With Beast of War, director Kiah Roache-Turner delivers a survival thriller that is as emotionally resonant as it is terrifying. Known for high-octane indie horror like Wyrmwood: Road of the Dead, Nekrotronic, and Sting, Roache-Turner takes a more restrained, meditative approach here, balancing bloody spectacle with themes of silence, identity, and trauma.
The film was sparked by a single haunting image: men adrift on a raft, stalked by unseen predators beneath the surface. While loosely inspired by the real-life WWII sinking of the HMAS Armadale, Roache-Turner was clear that Beast of War was not a retelling, but rather a genre piece that could explore survival, masculinity, and cultural identity without being bound to historical tragedy. “There was a level of emotional importance to this one that I hadn’t really had in my previous films,” he said, noting his personal connection. His grandfather was killed in the Pacific theater of WWII, a loss that shaped the story’s emotional core.
At the heart of the film is Leo, a First Nations soldier played by Mark Coles Smith. Roache-Turner collaborated closely with cultural advisors to authentically portray the perspective of an Indigenous man conscripted into a system that often denied his humanity. This layering of history and identity elevates the film beyond its creature-feature framework.
Visually, Beast of War distinguishes itself with its commitment to practical effects. Formation Effects built a massive animatronic shark that interacts with the cast in real water, creating a tangible sense of threat. Roache-Turner explained his insistence on this choice: “Digital sharks just look like really well-rendered video games. You need that interaction, that weight in the water”. To achieve the ambitious scope, the production team even constructed the largest indoor water tank in the Southern Hemisphere.
The result is a film that feels both epic and intimate, a survival horror that delivers the visceral thrills audiences expect while also engaging with silence, grief, and cultural memory. As Roache-Turner reflected, Beast of War represents a new direction in his filmmaking: “This one doesn’t feel like my other ones… it felt like a real story by an adult. I think we got it right.”
Speaking with him, it is clear this film marks a turning point. Roache-Turner remains a master of indie horror spectacle, but with Beast of War, he proves he is equally adept at weaving heart and history into the blood and terror.
Jessie Hobson