[Film Review] Beaten to Death (2022)

Horror films love to ask the question, “What would you do if you were stranded in an unfamiliar area, and had to rely on the kindness of strangers?” And Beaten to Death (2022), written and directed by Sam Curtain, screams this question.

Jack (Thomas Roach) escapes being nearly killed in an abandoned house in the middle of nowhere in the Australian outback. His wife is already dead, killed by the same man who was trying to kill Jack. Badly injured and in need of help, Jack runs to look for anyone he can find. Covered in dark red blood, bleeding from the face, he takes off at a run. The film unfolds in a non-linear manner, meaning the viewer pieces together what exactly happened, and it’s only near the end when the motivation is revealed. Jack has to keep running, from those who might hurt him, and simply from the unrelenting sun and land, to try to find help before he bleeds to death. Meanwhile, he’s grieving the wife he left behind, dead and abandoned in the house where the film opened.

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The parallels to Wolf Creek (2005) are obvious - people hunting people in the outback. Fans who enjoyed the bleak, gory films of the 2000s will find much to enjoy. Like many horror films, it seems inspired by The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) - people out of their element, alone in unfamiliar territory who run afoul of the locals and end up getting hurt. There are moments in Beaten to Death that feel like all the times Sally Hardesy almost escapes from Leatherface, only to be pulled back into the fray. However, Beaten to Death is its own film. The sprawling land in the Australian outback offers many places to run, but nowhere to hide. There is room to breathe while watching, as we see Jack making his way through the wilderness, in search of help, and see flashbacks to his life before. Not much time is spent with Jack and his wife, and because of that, they don’t earn much sympathy. Audiences might grant that no one should have to go through what Jack and his wife went through, but we won’t be especially attached to them while bad things are happening.

Beaten to Death offers something different to the current horror landscape, and if you have ever been a fan of bleak and violent horror films, definitely give it a watch. 

Beaten to Death will be in UK theaters as of 1st September!

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