Which film is better?
this or Van Diemen's Land?
"The strong mind perceives it's own reality" The Batman, 'The Batman' Series
This one is a good story and factual to a point. However, the conditions of where this actually took place is not as accurate. This movie was made for television and made in the UK, so it does not show the actual conditions of the "colony." Tasmania is a very environmentally hostile and volatile environment or was back them and yet this movie makes it seem as if the living conditions were not that bad when in fact, it was a rainy, wet and miserable.
Van Dieman's Land is probably more factual regarding the conditions they had to endure and has a lot of gory details in it since it is a movie and has not been edited for content. It is said that the inmates at Sarah Island would kill just to be sent to Hobart to be hanged so they could get out of the prison camp.
I think this was a good story because it does not show a lot of gory details and people can stomach it better than they can Van Diemen's Land. I think Van Diemen's Land probably has some more factual events. The name itself, Van Die mens land literally means "land of dead men."
Sorry Shannonphoenix but your post is factually incorrect.
The Last Confession of Alexander Pearce was produced entirely in Australia, for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. It was financed by Screen Australia and Screen Tasmania. It was shot on location in north west Tasmania and Sydney.
As The Last Confession of Alexander Pearce was commissioned by the ABC, every aspect of the film was rigorously fact checked by numerous historians, including Paul Collins, author of Hell's Gates who acted as a historical consultant on the film.
Rather than putting them against each other, why not watch both films and celebrate the fact film-makers have finally managed to bring this story to a wider audience?
Thanks for the insights, I think I have a better understanding of each film.
"The strong mind perceives it's own reality" The Batman, 'The Batman' Series
To date, The Last Confession of Alexander Pearce has received the following accolades, awards and festival screening around the world.
This list is by no means comprehensive.
EUROPEAN INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL 2010 - WINNER - BEST NON-EUROPEAN FEATURE
INSIDE FILM AWARDS AUSTRALIA 2009 - WINNER
APRA SCREEN MUSIC AWARDS 2009 - WINNER
IRISH FILM & TELEVISION AWARDS 2009 - NOMINATION
AUSTRALIAN FILM INSTITUTE AWARDS 2009 - NOMINATION
AUSTRALIAN DIRECTORS GUILD AWARDS 2009 - NOMINATION
TREGOR FILM FESTIVAL FRANCE 2009 - WINNER BEST SHORT FILM, 3 NOMINATIONS
SYDNEY MORNING HERALD TELEVISION AWARDS 2009 - WINNER
ROME INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL - NOMINATION
IRISH INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL - NOMINATION
HEART OF ENGLAND FILM FESTIVAL - NOMINATION
NEWPORT INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL - SPECIAL JURY PRIZE
EMPIRE MAGAZINE ****
THE TIMES ****
SYDNEY MORNING HERALD ****
THE AGE ****
Official Selection:
Crossroads Film Festival (Mississippi) 2010
European International Film Festival (Paris) 2010
Bridge Fest (Sarajevo) 2010
Rome International Film Festival 2009
Tregor International Film Festival (France) 2009
Perth International Film Festival (Australia) 2009
Heart of England International Film Festival (UK) 2009
Cape Winelands Film Festival (South Africa) 2009
International Film Festival Ireland 2009
Clones Film Festival (Ireland) 2008
"The name itself, Van Die mens land literally means "land of dead men.""
Pardon???
Van Dieman's Land was named by Abel Tasman.... who named it after his boss: Anthony van Dieman, the bloke who sent Tasman off on his discovery voyages!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthony_van_Diemen
Dude, Tassie may be a wild and untamed place but we were not originally named after anything to do with demons or dead men!