Evelyn (Maya Stange) is an independent, modern young woman. She marries her anthropology professor and together they go to an island in Papua New Guinea for a field research that will last about a year. There are some other white people on the island – some missionaries and a pearl trader named Mick Carpenter (Rufus Sewell), who seems pretty sure the newlyweds won’t last in this savage land.

Her husband (Martin Donovan) Philip is an ambitious man who believes in the novelty of their mission. He also tends to see his wife as his assistant, rather than another fellow anthropologist.

However, Evelyn has no intentions of backing down- she conducts her own research and makes her own connections with the natives. This causes trouble in their marriage and the natives seem to like Evelyn much more than her husband.

Mick is amused by Philips’s self-righteousness and impressed by Evelyn’s determinations and independence. Mick also happens to be complete opposite of her husband in every possible away and Evelyn might be more intrigued by this handsome trader than she should be…

And let’s not forget the time is pre-Word War II…

It is the perfect epic story. The love story is passionate, emotional, exciting but never over-the-top or cheesy. It is never disguised as a twist or something. The poster features Rufus Sewell and Maya Stange together and as soon as the movie starts, Evelyn talks about pearls and meeting another man…

Pros:

– You have the well-structured conflicts.

– Beautiful scenery

– A great love story

– Good actors. Both Maya Stange and Rufus Sewell are amazing.

Cons:

– Much shorter than 2 hours, it leaves you wanting for more…

Directed and co-written by Bill Bennett in 1999.

A solid 8.5 or 9/10.

Enjoy the on-set Rufus Sewell interview: In a Savage Land

[pro-player width=’530′ height=’253′ type=’video’]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cmyHfWVRnSo[/pro-player]

I hope they don’t remove it but the movie is on youtube. Here is the link to the first part.

You start watching here:

[pro-player width=’530′ height=’253′ type=’video’]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E8oqfkL_Yis[/pro-player]