- Read Nick's review of 'Land'
From acclaimed actress Robin Wright comes her directorial debut LAND, the poignant story of one woman’s search for meaning in the vast and harsh American wilderness. Edee (Wright), in the aftermath of an unfathomable event, finds herself unable to stay connected to the world she once knew and in the face of that uncertainty, retreats to the magnificent, but unforgiving, wilds of the Rockies. After a local hunter (Demián Bichir) brings her back from the brink of death, she must find a way to live again.
'Land' is in theaters on February 12th, 2021.
From acclaimed actress Robin Wright comes her directorial debut 'Land', the poignant story of one woman’s search for meaning in the vast and harsh American wilderness. Edee (Wright), in the aftermath of an unfathomable event, finds herself unable to stay connected to the world she once knew and in the face of that uncertainty, retreats to the magnificent, but unforgiving, wilds of the Rockies. After a local hunter (Demián Bichir) brings her back from the brink of death, she must find a way to live again.
Robin Wright’s directorial debut, “Land,” is a story of trauma, transformation, and acceptance. Or at least it tries to be. It aspires to be like “Wild,” starring Reese Witherspoon, by capturing the beauty in one’s path to healing through solitude but falls short in some key storytelling and cinematic ways. After some devastating, life-changing event, which isn’t revealed until the very end, Edee (Robin Wright) escapes to a cabin without any connection to the outside world. She dumps her phone, which is constantly getting calls from her protective sister, Emma, shortly played by Kim Dickens, and only nearly survives until a man (Demián Bichir) and wife luckily find and save her.
Edee’s clarity comes anti-climatically, partly due to the lack of character development but also because Robin herself, while delivering an honest performance, feels like an outsider that never fully integrates into nature. Even at 89 minutes, the film could have cut the multitude of beautiful, yet repetitious landscape shots it uses to transition between every scene in lieu of deeper emotional attachment for the grieving character. This may be a rocky start to a potential directing career for Wright, but with some adjustments shows great potential.
Rating: 2.5 out of 5
Nicholas Ruhrkraut (Contributor) lives in New York City but is a Midwestern boy at heart. He loves discussing everything film on his podcast "Oscar Wild," cooking and baking at home, reading, and traveling.Click Here to check out Nick's Articles.