Rent The Settlers (2023)

Fear and violence in 1890s Tierra del Fuego - The Settlers review by Philip in Paradiso

In 1893, in Tierra del Fuego, in the very south of Chile, Alexander MacLennan, a Scotsman who served in the British Army, oversees the fencing-off of the land for his employer, José Menéndez, a wealthy landowner who owns thousands of sheep. MacLennan is a very rough and violent man, and he plays the part of enforcer for his employer.

Menéndez asks the Scotsman to lead an expedition across the whole of his estate, all the way to the Atlantic Ocean, on the Argentinian side of Tierra del Fuego. The aim will be to demarcate and reclaim the land. Menéndez makes it clear that, if MacLennan encounters any groups of Amerindians native to the region, they should be eliminated, as he considers that they are a threat to his sheep-raising business (he claims they kill and eat the sheep belonging to European settlers). The Scotsman sets off in the company of Bill, an American cowboy from Texas working for José Menéndez, and Segundo, who is mixed-blood (mestizo) and has been selected by MacLennan because he is a good shot.

The movie develops from there. In many respects, it is an odd, unconventional and unique film you are unlikely to ever forget, once you have seen it. There is something haunting and dark about it. That is, no doubt, linked to the eerie, bleak, mournful and wild landscapes of Tierra del Fuego (I assume it was filmed on location): endless moorland interspersed with forests, snow-capped mountains in the distance and, in places, moon-like scenery of utter desolation. You feel the vastness of this empty, or near-empty, wilderness, its power and its mystery. The music, also, is captivating and hard-hitting. All of this makes the narrative mesmerizing.

In other ways, the film is perhaps a bit frustrating, as not that much actually happens most of the time: there is something slow and deliberative about the pace of the story. And yet, there are several high points along the way, and the end of the movie, which I do not want to spoil for readers of this review, is as unexpected as it is masterful.

The film depicts, more than anything else, an atmosphere - an atmosphere of fear, menace and violence in the midst of this primeval natural world. The underlying theme, of course, is that of the white man purporting to bring Western civilisation, religion and values to the aboriginal population of Tierra del Fuego, deemed to be 'savages'. However, as the film shows, things are not that simple, and the 'savages' may not be those the settlers despise and slaughter so readily.

Overall, a weird and haunting film that I would recommend, but which may not be everyone's cup of tea.

Virtually unwatchable - The Settlers review by Alphaville

The phrase ‘revisionist Western’ usually makes the heart sink and this amateurish, miserabilist bore, lauded at Cannes, is no exception. Set in Chile in 1901, the landscape looks great… when you can see it. Much of the film is shot in the dark. No drama or driving plot, mumbled conversations that hold no interest, endless silences featuring meaningful looks… You get the idea. Downbeat and dour.

A Chilean ‘Heart of Darkness’ - The Settlers review by HW

A unique and bold film about the horrors of colonialism in 19th century Chile. There is clearly history being exposed here that is not talked about enough, but mirrors the atrocities committed against natives in North America, Australia or wherever European empires have used brute force to take land. Through the eyes of a half-Indian named Segundo, we witness him, a Scotsman and an North-American riding through the starkly beautiful landscapes of mountainous Chile on a dark, bloody mission for a sheep baron. An eerie, disturbing but necessary and rewarding watch. An incredible directorial debut too, especially with a multi-lingual script.