There are so many films with similar scenarios: a mysterious stranger in a small, remote community, the fight to save a rare and valuable lifeform, the backdrop of a battle between conservation and development. "Local Hero", "The Medicine Man", "Pale Rider"... but I'm sure other people can come up with better examples.
shareHmmmm perhaps it's a genre within filmmaking?
shareI don't think it was a battle to save a rare and valuable lifeform. Most people believe the Tasmanian Tiger is extinct and the protagonist was trying to kill one.
Furthermore, the conflict between environmentalists and development wasn't that pervasive through the film except for a few short moments.
I agree, it adds nothing to the genre. I became engaged in the film by ticking off the clichés as they occurred: the stranger greeted by taciturn hostility from suspicious locals; the mute boy whose proferred childlkike paintings may hold the key; overbearing percussion music at times of tension to name but three. The acting was uniformly poor, Willem Dafoe looked non-plussed and even Sam Neill seemed well off-key.
shareAnd the hostile locals are always in a bar.
shareYou are so clever OP. Mind if I start a blog about you? I have a good idea for the title.
share