Majorthebys
Charming and brutal
Infamousta
brilliant actors, brilliant editing
InformationRap
This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.
huh_oh_i_c
Perhaps the most significant thing about this film is the majority of the critical reception in America: While objectively speaking the film is not very critical of America, while it is one of the most balanced 9/11 films, it has been treated like the plague. This indicates the heavy self-censorship American media have imposed on themselves and ... reflects John Diels character Uncle Pauls paranoia nicely. Accurately. From the book "Vernon God Little" to "Land of Plenty", American reviewers, pundits, and 'intellectuals' are as sensitive as an eyeball to sand towards foreign commentary and critique of their society.I downloaded this movie by accident, looking for the similarly titled BBC drama "In a Land of Plenty". Upon seeing that Michelle Williams was in it, I decided not to delete it right away. Halfway through the pic I thought to look it up here, and learned then that Wim Wenders was directing it. And now you'll expect me to say that it was one these serendipitously great finds, a gem unknown, a great movie. Hmmm I can't, since I thought the film a tat too depressing for that.The character of Uncle Paul is all too paranoid, too realistic for my taste. I really don't think that this character is grossly distorted. The greatness about this character is threefold: a) As a viewer you're left unsure whether he's really mentally ill or not, b) he's surely representative of a part of the American population (hopefully not a large part, but I fear yes) and c) he's been greatly portrayed by Diehl. I detest him as much as J.R. Ewing was detested.As Europeans, we are used to think of Americans/Republicans as the winners, who despite their lack of intelligence, still manage to rule the world/the USA, who are winning because they all (more or less) have the white picket fence thing going on. This movie shows that not all right-wingers are indeed winners, that there are very sad and depressing people among them. It hits home that Po' White Trash is not a thing of the past. I mean, DUDE! This guy is a sad, sad figure.Of course the character of Lana is much more appealing and attractive, and I watched Michelle with open mouth every time she graced the screen with her deceptively natural acting.The only criticism I have of the film is in its end dialog: Paul asks why people cheered on 9/11. When Lana says "Because they hate us" it isn't made clear why the world hates America. Wenders either chickens out or loves his adopted country too much. Or, maybe he does indeed see both sides. The people of the world hate America, because Americans always side with the dictators and the oppressors: Pinochet, Videla of Argentina, the Israelis (and not with the Jews: in WWII they denied several Jewish requests for the bombing of concentration camps), Mubarak, Marcos of the Philipines, Apartheid etc. Aside from one time when it didn't, in Kosovo, Americans have always sided with torturing dictators to oppress the poor. We don't hate you because of your freedom. If we did that, we all attack Sweden and Holland. Smoke out Amsterdam (pun intended). We hate you because you could help us win our freedom with relative ease, but you choose not do so. Because otherwise you have to pay 2 cents more on the gallon for gasoline, god forbid!!
gradyharp
LAND OF PLENTY is nowhere near as powerful a title for this brilliant Wim Wenders film as the original working title, ANGST AND ALIENATION IN America. This is another Wim Wenders wonder of film-making, a quiet little powerhouse of a movie that should be required viewing for all of us. Wenders wrote this moving piece with assistance from Scott Derrickson and Michael Meredith and directs a sterling cast in an exploration of the American psyche post 9/11, and few writer/directors could have keener insight into the state of mind of a country at odds with itself and the rest of the world.Lana (Michelle Williams) is flying back to the US after a two-year stay on the West Bank. She is the daughter of missionaries, having lived her life in Africa and other missionary fields and she is flying home after her mother's death to deliver a letter to her uncle Paul (John Diehl), a damaged Vietnam vet who has cut himself off from his family and the rest of life and in response to 9/11, his mind being obsessed with tracking Sleeper Cells to destroy terrorists in his own homemade surveillance van. Upon arriving in Los Angeles, Lana is met by Henry (Wendell Pierce) who is a pastor who runs a mission for the homeless of Los Angeles and provides Lana with a bleak room and a job in the kitchen of the mission. Lana is full of praise for God for all things, the optimistic evangelical girl who fails to recognize evil. One member of the mission bunkhouse is a Pakistani Hassan (Shaun Toub) whose garments and fixation on boxes of Borax alerts Paul to his possible involvement as a terrorist.Lana contacts Paul, desires to connect with him, but Paul is aloof, obsessed with his 'mission' to ferret out terrorists. When Hassan is the victim of a drive-by shooting Lana is devastated at the loss of a human being while Paul is convinced Hassan was hit by a larger organization. Paul with his colleague Jimmy (Richard Edson) discover Hassan has a brother who lives in Trona (outside of Death Valley). Together Lana and Paul transport the corpse of Hassan to his brother Youssef (Bernard White) who lives in a hut in Trona: Lana is committed to doing the right thing, Paul sees an entry into more evidence for evil to quash. While Lana is warmly entertained by Youssef, Paul investigates the town and finds that the Borax boxes of Hassan's business were innocent means of washing carpets imported from Pakistan. The coming together of Youssef, Lana, and Paul finally achieves meaning when Paul reads the letter from his sister, Lana's mother, who somehow manages to erase all lines of prejudice, bigotry, religious differences, misunderstanding - finally giving breathing room to the damaged souls of the brotherhood of man the three represent.Wenders manages to bathe his story in the light of reality yet maintain an unprejudiced stance in moving his characters through their paths of revelation. The camera wanders a bit, the music blends perhaps too heavily, and the pieces of the puzzle don't always fit together - much like life doesn't always fall into place the way we expect. But there is much to learn from Wenders' wisdom and with the aid of perfect performances from Michelle Williams, John Diehl, and Wendell Pierce he has created an indelible work. A fine film for us all to ponder. Grady Harp
D A
Interesting mixture of character study, suspense, U.S. sociology, and comedy thrown together competently in a way only Wim Wenders can somehow sustain. Flawed though it may be, Land of Plenty is still the most interesting piece of post-9/11 fiction I have yet to see. Exactly one year after that fateful day, across the other side of the country, two family members will connect in a most bizarre yet relevant manner, while each one deals with aftermath in their respective ways. Filmed one year earlier then, although released to DVD a few months after, Wenders offers the antithesis to his quirky, subtle, arty melodrama "Don't Come Knockin", defying most of his usual style until the last act of the story. Guided by time honored and often neglected traditions of a strong commitment to singularly personified characters, viewers are led on an insiders journey through a one of a kind portrait, solidified by unknown but seasoned actor John Diehl as the gung-ho patriot veteran. Gently and less memorable in walks Michelle Williams's role to sprinkle some much needed humanity and contrast to the crazed antics. Much of the darker urgency in the first half eventually subsides into more familiar motifs, opening up the gritty feel into lighter fare. Satisfying and memorable in a brilliant climax, the overall pace from bleak drama to typical Wenders soulful dramedy does lessen the impact, no more as when the conveniently written final antidote improperly bids these characters adieu. With an open mind and a slight suspension of disbelief intact, Land of Plenty still offers engaging and thought provoking material while transforming itself into something less heavy in the process.
ft-5
I think with 10/10 this movie is actually rated too high normally i'd give it a 8 or 9/10. But let me tell you why i didn't: At the time when this movie came to the cinemas in Germany, the anti-American atmosphere that broke off in the after-math of the decision of the German chancellor Schroeder, that German troops won't take part in the Iraq War (a good decision as far as I'm concerned), reached a peak. People arguing against that, often stressed the historical role of the American liberators of Germany and stuff. That's all true but it doesn't say much to somebody like me, who's in his twenties. Nevertheless I think there are reasons to have a more complex picture of America. And this movie actually tries to show something of this as well. It also tells an American story and analyzes the American society from the point of somebody (Wim Wenders) who went to America to find something better than in Germany. He found it. Then became realistic about it, and found that there isn't a perfect place on earth, and America definitely isn't. And so this is also a movie of a personal picture of America after 09/11. And at this very special moment it was also a very political movie in Germany, even if I have to confess few people saw it like this...
