A brutal psychological thriller described as one of the most harrowing films ever made – and which sparked walkouts with its brutal content – has been removed from Netflix.
However, it still has a streaming home for viewers in the UK.
The award-winning 2018 film The Nightingale was part of the group of titles Netflix removed from its vast UK back catalogue during the fist few days of August, which also included movies from the Final Destination franchise and Shrek trilogy, alongside White House Down.
But for those wanting to seek out the film described as ‘the most shocking of the year’ and hard to watch, it is available on Amazon Prime Video for subscribers free of charge.
A disturbing period-set drama, The Nightingale takes place in 1825 and follows young Irish convict Clare (Aisling Franciosi) as she hunts a British officer, played by Sam Claflin, to extract revenge for the unspeakable acts of violence he committed against her and her family.
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On the way, she enlists the services of Aboriginal tracker Billy (Baykali Ganambarr), who is also marked by trauma from his own violence-filled past.
The intense thriller is directed by Jennifer Kent, who made a name for herself as the writer and director of psychological horror film The Babadook, frequently cited as one of the best horror films in recent years.
After premiering at Venice Film Festival, where it clinched the Special Jury Prize, The Nightingale screened as part of the Sydney Film Festival months later, where some cinemagoers revealed they had walked out over its intense and upsetting scenes.
*Warning – descriptions of graphic scenes below*
Alongside sequences depicting murder, assault and infanticide, there are also three visceral and horrifying rape scenes within the first 20 minutes, which according to local reports prompted protests and shouted criticisms at director Kent – who was sitting in the audience.
Kent later defended the scenes, the breathtaking violence of which continues further into the film, as an ‘honest and necessary depiction’ of a particularly brutal moment in history in Tasmania, where the massacre of Aboriginals by British colonists intensified during the Black War.
Critics and viewers also praised Kent for her unflinching take on things, with writer Michael Ouzas describing The Nightingale as ‘essential viewing and an Australian classic’ and @jesuevalle admitting on X that while he walked out ‘to take myself away from that brutal space’, he still recognised The Nightingale as ‘an important film’ and walked back in to finish watching it.
We Live Entertainment’s critic Scott Menzel called it a ‘haunting and unforgettable masterpiece’, while awarding The Nightingale 9.5 stars out of 10 and acknowledging its very dark nature.
‘I don’t think that any review can mentally, physically, or emotionally prepare you for what Kent has brought to life with this film,’ he added.
Meanwhile Alex Flood for NME branded it ‘the most shocking film of the year’ and advised that the film was ‘not for the faint-hearted’, while Little White Lies’ Hannah Strong described it as a ‘devastating, uncomfortable watch’ while suggesting it needed to be ‘exactly the film it is, bubbling with completely justified anger and pain’.
The Nightingale holds an impressive 87% score from critics on review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes, while boasting a decent 73% from the smaller pool of audience members sharing their reactions.
‘Genuinely one of the most harrowing pieces of cinema I have ever experienced,’ shared Dan L, who said that there ‘aren’t words for how incredible this film is’.
‘I watched this a few months ago and I still think about it all the time. It’s one of those movies that really sticks with you,’ wrote Laura M, adding: ‘This movie made me WEEP.’
Meanwhile, Amanda H said she was ‘hooked from start to finish’, which Hua M agreed with, chiming in: ‘Had me completely riveted/shook from start to finish. Incredible performances all around (but particularly by Aisling), and a nightmarish, visceral experience that I will not soon forget.’
‘Although some scenes were hard to watch, I couldn’t tear my eyes off the screen,’ wrote Maria D.
The Nightingale is streaming now on Prime Video in the UK.
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