You say that the film depicts our British ancestors as sadists, well I must say that when I visited the UK and did the tourist thing, marking most of your historical sites, I was disquieted at the nature of the country's legal and social systems. The English were a bloody lot. Braveheart was right. So were the Americans to the Navajo. Dances with Wolves.
Human atrocities create emotional reactions, which is what storytelling is all about.
Besides, well into the 1900's England was still touting itself as the greatest, the infallible, the perfect and all-powerful Major Tom. The Greatest Race On Earth. It's a part of your history. Unfortunately, as an Australian, it's also by default part of mine. To exaggerate it through a movie is only a highlight - not bringing any new slanderisms to the tarnished reputation of the Anglos.