Home Entertainment: ‘Edge of the World’ digital review

Jonathan Rhys Meyers steps into the shoes of Sir James Brooke in the latest historical epic, Edge of the World. The real-life version of Sir James Brooke is thought to have been one of the inspirations for Rudyard Kipling’s The Man Who Would Be King. Brooke was an adventurer who fought against pirates and slavery and became a ruler of his own kingdom in Borneo as King of Sarawak. Edge of the World joins Brooke as he arrives onto Borneo’s sandy shores and recounts his story across the years from explorer to leader to his eventual end. 

Rhys Meyers is no stranger to a period piece, having first come to most people’s attention with his turn as Henry VIII in BBC series The Tudors. His career has seen him traverse a variety of times across history and here he is transported back to the 1840s during Queen Victoria’s reign. Brooke is an idealist and a dreamer, one whose eye is immediately turned upon entering the strange unknown lands of Sarawak; Rhys Meyers captures that essence perfectly. Meyers conveys the adventurer’s seduction by the culture he is immersed in beautifully, drawing the viewer in alongside him, both becoming mesmerised by the beauty of the new world before them. It is only Dominic Monaghan’s role of Crookshank that prevents the viewer from tumbling off the edge of the world entirely with Brooke. Crookshank is the more militant and by-the-book of the pair, and the interplay between the two men leads to some of the most interesting scenes of the film.

Director Michael Haussman has spent most of the last thirty years working in the medium of music videos. He’s responsible for Madonna’s Take a Bow, and Justin Timberlake’s Sexyback to name just two from his catalogue. A lot of film directors make the jump from music videos to features, but where many try to maintain that same edgy and frenetic energy found within them, Haussman has gone a different route. Edge of the World is a thoughtfully-paced drama that lavishly takes its time telling the story, allowing the audience to marinate in the era. By spending so much time focused on the feeling of the time, Haussman manages to capture the spirit, beauty, and underlying danger of the film’s jungle setting wonderfully. The job is so thorough that you can almost feel the oppressive heat and mugginess pouring off the screen. 

History is riddled with violence and the story here is no exception, though for a story about a man fighting the tradition of beheading your enemy, there is a distinct lack of aggression for the bulk of the film. Towards the start we witness the brutality of which the indigenous communities are capable of, but these instances fade into the background as we hone in on Brooke’s journey. Haussman keeps these elements out as a way to enforce Brooke’s own blindness to the savage capacity of those within his rule, holding them back until the finale at which time bloody carnage is spewed forth. By reigning in the violence in such a way, Haussman ensures maximum impact, suddenly snapping the audience, like Brooke, out of the hedonistic dreamworld in which they have been existing. 

A lavishly shot and thoughtfully pieced together drama, Edge of the World, does occasionally suffer from some pacing issues. The narrative often languishes with nothing really driving it forwards. However, Brooke’s story is fascinating enough that it manages to keep the viewer interested and once the beautifully brutal finale begins, you’ll be hooked. 

Signature Entertainment presents Edge of the World on Digital Platforms 18th June and DVD 21st June.