Set in 1825, Clare, a young Irish convict woman, chases a British officer through the rugged Tasmanian wilderness, bent on revenge for a terrible act of violence he committed against her family. On the way she enlists the services of an Aboriginal tracker named Billy, who is also marked by trauma from his own violence-filled past.
THE NIGHTINGALE is a meditation on the horrors of Australian colonization, set at the turn of the 19th century. The film follows Clare, a 21-year-old native Irish wife and mother held captive beyond her 7-year sentence, desperate to be free of her obsessed master, British lieutenant Hawkins. Clare's husband Aidan intervenes with devastating consequences for all. When British authorities fail to deliver justice, Clare pursues Hawkins, who leaves his post suddenly to secure a captaincy up north. Unfamiliar with the Tasmanian wilderness she enlists the help of an orphaned Aboriginal tracker Billy. Marked by their traumas, the two fight to overcome their distrust and prejudices against the backdrop of Australia's infamous 'Black War'.Written by
Mae Moreno
A crucial production team member, brought on early in the process, was Aboriginal Consultant Jim Everett, a Plangermairreenner man whose Aboriginal name is "pur-lia meenamatta". "Our people lived through two Ice Ages," said Everett. "We were here when the ice melted and the land bridge that connected to the mainland became submerged. Evidence uncovered in one of the latest Tasmanian archaeological digs dates back 42,000 years." See more »
Goofs
When Billy finds Uncle Charlie shot dead, he is clearly breathing. See more »
Quotes
Hawkins:
That's just the way, isn't it? You don't want trouble but sometimes trouble wants you.
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Crazy Credits
" Tasmanian Aboriginal culture is a living culture. The Aboriginal language used in this film is called 'Palawa kani'. It was created by current day Tasmanian Aboriginal people using records of their original languages. Aboriginal actors cast in this film are from mainland Australia. They and we pay our respects to the aboriginal people of Lutruwita (Tasmania) past and present." See more »
This revenge film is not for everyone, to say the least. The story is great, but the movie is extremely violent. The first 30 minutes of the film are hard to see, and for a lot of people, even hard to tolerate. One could argue that the director needed all this violence to properly portray the abuse against women that occurred at that time. A powerful experience, from which we do not emerge unscathed
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This revenge film is not for everyone, to say the least. The story is great, but the movie is extremely violent. The first 30 minutes of the film are hard to see, and for a lot of people, even hard to tolerate. One could argue that the director needed all this violence to properly portray the abuse against women that occurred at that time. A powerful experience, from which we do not emerge unscathed