Director Kriv Stenders' Lucky Country isn’t an upbeat film as its title leads me believe. Rather it is grim, violent and claustrophobic. So when the dishevelled character Carver (Neil Pigot) poses the question,“Bet ya thought it was going to be all bloody Henry Lawson didn’t ya?”, to young Tom (Toby Wallace), I wonder if he’s talking to me.

The film is set in 1902, with the country’s recent Federation looming in the background. But it’s not a period piece. It’s true that history dictates certain elements of the film (such as costumes), but its exploration of both the human condition and the impenetrable landscape are timeless; people are still greedy and the Australian landscape is still dauntingly fruitless.

Nat (Aden Young) moves his family from England to Australia at the turn of the 19th Century. He plans to live off the land, but the barren soil and unpredictable terrain shatter his dreams – he is unable to grow produce and his only horse is injured after falling into a gully. Nat’s son Tom and daughter Sarah (Hannah Mangan-Lawrence) accompany him in his struggle against the land; his wife is recently deceased.

Nat refuses to leave his unprofitable property, for reasons his children cannot fathom. The land “speaks” to him and he is under its spell. However, when a trio of ex-soldiers come knocking on the door of their humble cabin Nat’s family is forced to deal with another overpowering force – human nature.

The three ex-soldiers, Carver, Henry (Pip Miller) and Jimmy (Eamon Farren), are portrayed with fine-tuned ambiguity. For example, the unofficial leader of the group, Henry, is initially warm and father-like towards Nat’s children, but the prospect of wealth (in the form of a gold nugget) turns him sour with greed, which he channels into violent behaviour.

Aden Young does a fine job as Nat, his wide eyes revealing what he is desperately trying to hide with his stoic behaviour – his feelings of inadequacy and hopelessness.

The film alternates between a yellowish-brown colour palette (the trees, the cabin and the soil) and scenes dappled in evocative blue light, though the reasons for this transition are not obvious. The shaky camera work intensifies the film’s sense of claustrophobia, almost to the point of being nauseating.

The film’s strength is that it is instinctual without being predictable. Audiences will understand the characters actions, but won’t see them coming.

Lucky Country is released in Australia on July 16, 2009.