SXSW Review: ’40 Acres’ is a Standard Post-Apocalyptic Drama Enhanced by Action and Danielle Deadwyler

Whatever disaster, natural or man-made, befalls humanity, the world of cinema has conceived many post-apocalyptic futures to follow. In most of them, advanced technology no longer exists and the new world order more closely resembles the past, with survivors turning to handheld weapons and extrajudicial methods to stay alive. 40 Acres treads familiar ground with the story of a Canadian family defending their farm against vicious intruders, but its intensity and the strength of its central unit’s determination to survive help single it out from a number of other similar films.

The Freeman farm is one of the last outposts of civilization in the aftermath of numerous disasters, including a civil war and widespread famine. Hailey (Danielle Deadwyler) ensures that her generational family home remains safe with strict but simple rules, one of which is shoot first, don’t ask questions. Her partner Galen (Michael Greyeyes) is by her side and helping to raise their children Raine (Leenah Robinson), Danis (Jaeda LeBlanc), and Cookie (Haile Amare). After Hailey’s older son, Emanuel (Kataem O’Connor), brings in a stranger, Dawn (Milcania Diaz-Rojas), and Hailey loses communication with the other farms in the area, the family goes on high alert, preparing to defend their land from a terrifying threat.

This film, which marks the feature directorial debut of R.T. Thorne, who has plenty of TV series and music videos under his belt, sets its tone from the very first scene. An armed group makes its way towards the farm, ready to take it by force, and they’re quickly taken out by sniper headshots and more direct methods, like Hailey with a knife. They’ve been through this before and have a surefire system in place to make sure they’re alerted in time to never be in any real danger, but a visit to a supply depot where they find bodies hanging upside down and hear rumors of cannibals puts them on edge. For Hailey, letting someone in is something that compromises their safety net, and if there’s one thing she’s going to do without question, it’s protect her family.

Deadwyler has been on an impressive run with two solid but unsuccessful shots at Oscar nominations for Till and The Piano Lesson, and it’s great to see her move into another genre that uses her talents just as well. She has a ferocity in her eyes when she’s staring down someone who’s come looking for her loved ones that can’t be matched, and it’s also a delight to see her lighten up in rare instances where she’s actually able to unwind or to enjoy being with Galen. She’s well-suited for this role and does a formidable job leaning into the action scenes, with are quite physical and demanding.  

The rest of the ensemble, led by Wild Indian star Greyeyes, is also impressive. The younger actresses all deliver, and O’Connor and Diaz-Rojas have great chemistry that makes their budding romance a worthwhile part of a much more serious film that on the surface doesn’t seem to have any time for getting to know people who could be dead just moments later. There’s no shortage of violence in this film, which shouldn’t upset those who sought this project out, even if it does focus heavily on children carrying weapons and fighting for their lives. This vision of the future is certainly depressing for its overall assessment of humanity, but it’s affirming to see a family that still sticks together and bothers to assign reading reports to ensure some knowledge persists. This film is far from relaxing but will have those who want to see a dark, action-packed post-apocalyptic drama leaving relatively satisfied.

Movie Rating: 7/10