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Review: A moving story of grief in the wild, Robin Wright’s directing debut doesn’t fully ‘Land’

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The seasons pass swiftly in Robin Wright’s “Land,” a visually pristine, emotionally obvious drama in which time flies and heals some but not all wounds. A story of implacable grief giving way to tentative hope, the movie follows a desperately sad-eyed woman named Edee (Wright) deep into the mountains of Wyoming, where she begins a life of solitude for reasons that are at once intensely private and not especially hard to figure out. As the years fall away, marked by cycles of autumn leaves, winter icicles and other natural wonderments, Edee’s emotional shell begins to fall away too, and on a similarly predictable schedule.

We first meet Edee as she’s making her way up the mountain, stopping briefly in town to gather supplies, load up a U-Haul and toss her cellphone, mid-ring, into the trash. She’s done with other people, as becomes clear when she arrives at a remote cabin in the woods, an edge-of-the-world perch that suggests her seeming indifference to whether she lives or dies. But while Edee can cut herself off from any contact with the outside world, she can’t short-circuit her painful memories — namely, the apparitions of her husband and young son, their happy smiles frozen in ignorance of whatever mysterious tragedy awaits them.

Other things Edee can’t do, apparently: hunt, chop firewood or keep a hungry bear from devouring her rations. Ursine visitors aside, “Land” is decidedly not “The Revenant,” as wilderness survival stories go, and I mean that largely as a compliment. Wright and her cinematographer, Bobby Bukowski, aren’t interested in rubbing the viewer’s nose in mud and viscera, and while Jesse Chatham’s screenplay makes similarly strategic use of tragedy as a narrative device, Edee is not motivated by a desire for revenge. Initially, the movie pushes more in the direction of “Wild,” another portrait of an emotionally bereft woman seeking refuge in extreme isolation, but Chatham’s more linear story has little of that movie’s bristling, time-hopping energy.

Wright, making her feature filmmaking debut (after years of directing episodes of “House of Cards” ), seems keen to pare away essentials and steep us, for a while, in the tough rituals of everyday survival. The physical details are properly transporting, from the gloomy outhouse that greets Edee upon arrival to the cacophonous animal sounds that fill the air on her first night. (The movie was mostly shot, under suitably difficult conditions, on Moose Mountain near Banff National Park, in Canada’s Alberta province.) As lashing rain gives way to falling snow, the scenery gets prettier and incrementally more lethal. The near-death experiences that befall Edee in quick succession — that brush with the bear, the growing likelihood of death from exposure or starvation — grow naturally out of her harsh environs, even as they suggest an almost metaphysical intensification of her grief.

For all Wright’s skill at marshaling resources across this physically demanding production, it’s her unsurprisingly precise, delicate work in front of the camera that gives this story its initial pull. Edee may no longer want (or know how) to live, but her survival instincts inevitably kick in, sometimes against her own will. Instincts alone aren’t enough, of course, and “Land” would likely be even shorter than its fleet 89-minute running time were it not for the arrival of Miguel (Demián Bichir) and Alawa (Sarah Dawn Pledge), passing Good Samaritans who nurse Edee back to health. Miguel sticks around for a while and comes back every so often, briefly raising the specter of romance. But his growing bond with Edee remains both platonic and practical-minded, as he replenishes her dwindling supplies and teaches her the basics of wilderness survival.

The specifics of the situation are only faintly sketched in; there are passing references to a nearby Indigenous reservation where Alawa lives and works as a nurse and to which Miguel delivers clean water. But while Bichir’s low-wattage charm makes Miguel a calming presence — he and Wright have a touching, bittersweet rapport — there’s never any real doubt or mystery about the narrative function he serves here. He’s there to coax Edee away from the edge of the cliff and hold up a mirror to her own tragedy, to provide a sympathetic shoulder even if she isn’t quite ready to cry on it yet. He’s also there to sing along to Tears for Fears and his other ’80s pop favorites, an amusingly awkward detail that would be more endearing if it didn’t feel so calculated to endear.

And it’s that calculation that finally makes “Land” play more like a tidy, tactful study of physical endurance and emotional recovery than a fully sustained immersion in Edee’s experience. The film’s beauty is undeniable, but it remains a pictorial, surface-level kind of beauty, one that glosses over the muck and sweat of its protagonist’s various second-act breakthroughs, whether she’s planting a garden or gutting her first carcass. Here and elsewhere, the therapeutic power of nature is treated as a given, rather than a genuinely life-altering discovery. “Land” is a movie of hard truths that go down a little too easily, a story as terse but never as elemental as its title.

Rated: PG-13, for thematic content, brief strong language and partial nudity Running time: 1 hour, 29 minutes Playing: Starts Feb. 12, in general release where theaters are open

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Grief is a tough subject to tackle. Everyone, at some point in life, will experience the loss of a loved one. While death and loss are typically hard to address in real life (people rarely know what to say or how to help), the exploration of such emotions are often mishandled in films that opt for a less complex or abridged version of the process. Usually, a brooding character works through the stages of grief in unhealthy ways — revenge, endless rage, or by shutting down completely. In Land , actress Robin Wright’s directorial debut, the sad, isolated feelings that come with bereavement saturate the story, but the film has surprisingly very little to say about grief. 

Following a tragic loss, Edee (Wright) struggles with her grief and with being around others in general. Her sister Emma (Kim Dickens) tries to be there for her, but Edee is too far gone and unable to cope despite the support of Emma and a therapist. Needing to get away, Edee abandons her phone and her previous life in exchange for a quiet and peaceful existence in the Wyoming wilderness. However, life isn’t exactly easy in the wild and Edee has no idea what she’s doing at first, believing that her solitary confinement would assuage some of her sadness. Caught in a treacherous blizzard, Edee’s life is saved by local hunter Miguel (Demián Bichir) and nurse Alawa Crow (Sarah Dawn Pledge) and she must contend with her new lease on life. 

Related:  Land Trailer: Robin Wright Faces The Wild In Directorial Debut

Wright’s performance is devastating and heartbreaking. As Edee, she keeps Miguel at arm’s length as they forge a friendship that is grounded in the need for human contact and an unspoken respect for each other’s boundaries. Wright is distant, but slowly opens herself up as the film goes on, something which is exposed through her changes in body language. Miguel is a friend of convenience at first, someone who can teach Edee the way of life she’s stubbornly chosen for herself. Bichir is wonderful here, effusing a formidable, yet gentle, strength and kindness that quickly earns Edee’s trust. 

Together, the characters commune and listen to ‘80s music, though there’s a wide chasm between them due to Edee’s unwillingness to speak on her personal loss. In addition to the superb acting, Land’s sense of serenity is brought to life through lingering shots of the wilderness’ beauty. Snow-capped mountains and trees, the sounds of animals and running river water, and the undisturbed lushness of nature adds to the calming sense of quiet that Edee is chasing. As a director, Wright has an eye for such things, knowingly layering the story with details that bring the audience into Edee's secluded life. 

However, for a film that is only a cool hour and a half long, Land often feels agonizingly slow. The script — written by Jesse Chatham with revisions by Erin Dignam — also leaves a lot to be desired. How short-sighted Edee must be to think she could move on from her loss by being alone in the wilderness. While her early feelings of not being comfortable being around people are understandable, there's a sense of privilege in being able to leave it all behind and escape. What's more, Edee effectively runs away from her emotions rather than allowing herself to face them head on. Her inability to talk about her loss is relatable, but the film has nothing much to say about grief or the healing process. 

The character's own avoidance ultimately forces Land to stand still. Rather than explore the complexities of handling loss in a world that would want Edee to move on, the film is filled with long, quiet brooding that falls incredibly short of being fulfilling. The landscape and setting often act as substitutes for character development and exploration. Time seems to pass without consequence as the calm fills in the gap for proper introspection. For a film that centers the quiet sadness and mental retreat of grief, Land equivocates with regards to the topic, stifling any meaningful growth. 

Next:  The Most Anticipated Movies of 2021

Land will be released in theaters on February 12. The film is 89 minutes long and is rated PG-13 thematic content, brief strong language, and partial nudity. 

Let us know what you thought of the film in the comments!

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, Edee (Wright) finds herself unable to stay connected to the world she once knew and 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.

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Land (2021) Review

04 Jun 2021

Land (2021)

Robin Wright ’s directorial debut follows a trail beaten by recent female-led films about living off the grid: notably Jean-Marc Vallée’s Wild , Debra Granik’s Leave No Trace and Chloé Zhao’s Oscar-winning Nomadland . Although the scenery is just as awe-inspiring here, Land cleaves too close to familiar ground. Its unimaginative script pales in comparison to its free-spirited predecessors.

Much of the film plays out as a grim, silent montage of naïve Edee failing at self-sufficiency.

Wright stars as Edee, a woman who retreats to a precarious cabin high in the mountains of Wyoming following a personal tragedy. She is far from suited to the cabin life, which is more hardcore than cottagecore. Much of the film plays out as a grim, silent montage of naïve Edee failing at self-sufficiency. Her hands bloom with blisters after hacking firewood; she can’t hunt, her crops wither and she’s soon eating cold tuna from a can while shivering through her first winter. In one fearsome moment, a bear circles her outside privy, swiping at the walls. Be thankful, then, that Land frequently cuts away to those distractingly verdant mountain views for relief.

Intermittent flashbacks to Edee’s memories of a sunnier past life help explain her rash behaviour. Wracked by grief, at some level she’s hoping the elements will win. And that’s what she’d get, if gruff Miguel ( Demián Bichir ), a local hunter, didn’t step in to save her, with medicine and patient lessons in survival skills. From that point on, the film’s horizons narrow dismally to Miguel’s sacrifice and Edee’s redemption, amid some affable but forgettable banter between a diffident, self-absorbed heroine and her enigmatic saviour. For Edee, sadly, Wyoming’s landscape and its native culture are just a prop for her own therapy. And Land ’s pat conclusion is liable to leave you yearning for something as unpredictable as the weather, as broad in scope as the view from her rickety porch.

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Common Sense Media Review

Intimate, occasionally dark portrait of grief and isolation.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Land is a quiet character study about grief, trauma, and isolation. Directed by and starring Robin Wright, it follows Edee (Wright), a melancholy lawyer who nearly dies while attempting to live off the grid. For reasons that are slowly explained in flashbacks, she doesn't seem all…

Why Age 13+?

A bear paws at an outhouse while Edee is inside. It leaves but makes a lot of no

Edee remembers making love to her late husband; they're seen kissing, caressing,

Infrequent: "oh my God," "idiot," "damn," hell."

A character admits that his alcohol use may have contributed to an accident that

Any Positive Content?

Stresses importance of friendship, connection, compassion, perseverance. Idea th

Edee is grieving throughout the film and at certain points seems hopeless, even

Violence & Scariness

A bear paws at an outhouse while Edee is inside. It leaves but makes a lot of noise; later, it's obvious the bear ransacked her cabin and took (or destroyed) her food and supplies. Having trouble with the harsh conditions, Edee says "this isn't working" and puts a gun to her chin but doesn't pull the trigger. She's found unconscious, visibly blue/purple, with scarily chapped lips and on the brink of hypothermia and starvation. Others' violent or sudden deaths are discussed; grief is ever present in the film. Spoiler alert: A key character is revealed to be dying of cancer. Scenes of game hunting, including a brief moment when two characters skin a buck.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

Edee remembers making love to her late husband; they're seen kissing, caressing, on a bed, but the scene focuses solely on their backs and faces. Two scenes of nonsexual partial nudity. Edee takes a bath, and her back, legs, and a quick glimpse of a breast are visible. In another scene, her breasts are revealed when she's unconscious and being undressed in order to be treated. Two characters hold hands and share lingering looks.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Drinking, Drugs & Smoking

A character admits that his alcohol use may have contributed to an accident that killed his family. A woman has an IV attached, presumably for fluids.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.

Positive Messages

Stresses importance of friendship, connection, compassion, perseverance. Idea that life, no matter how difficult, is worth living resonates in the story. While nature offers beauty and sustenance, it can also be lonely and difficult to endure, so people shouldn't take it for granted, should be prepared to survive under harsh conditions. Grief is survivable, even if it never fully goes away.

Positive Role Models

Edee is grieving throughout the film and at certain points seems hopeless, even suicidal, but she slowly begins to see the value in living, in her surroundings, in making new connections. Miguel is kind, helpful, selfless.

Parents need to know that Land is a quiet character study about grief, trauma, and isolation. Directed by and starring Robin Wright , it follows Edee (Wright), a melancholy lawyer who nearly dies while attempting to live off the grid. For reasons that are slowly explained in flashbacks, she doesn't seem all that interested in living, period. This is a sad, occasionally heartbreaking drama about resilience and connection in the face of seemingly insurmountable loneliness. There's a frightening bear attack, as well as scenes of game hunting (including a brief moment when two characters skin a buck). In one scene, Edee puts a gun to her chin, but she doesn't shoot. Conversations include references to violence and deaths, as well as suicidal ideation. Scenes of Edee being nursed back to health after suffering from hypothermia and starvation include nonsexual partial nudity; in another scene, she's briefly shown in the bath. Edee's connection with a local hunter named Miguel ( Demián Bichir ) borders on the romantic, but the movie's only love scene is shown in a flashback of Edee's memories. Language is infrequent and mild ("oh my God," "damn," "hell"). To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

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Based on 3 parent reviews

Land –With All Its Challenges

What's the story.

In actor Robin Wright 's directorial debut, LAND, she plays Edee, a troubled lawyer who seeks isolation in a remote cabin where she seems intent on total self-sufficiency but instead nearly dies of starvation. Flashbacks make it clear that Edee has survived some form of tragedy that has left her devastated and nearly suicidal. She tells no one of her trip and dismisses advice from a local to keep a car with her. Roughing it goes OK for a while, until nature strikes a cruel blow. On the verge of perishing, Edee is discovered by kind hunter Miguel ( Demián Bichir ), who summons his friend Alawa (Sarah Dawn Pledge), a nurse, to help save her. Alawa charges Miguel with looking after Edee, and they soon strike a bargain: He (and his faithful dog) will teach her how to hunt and then leave her be, no questions asked. Slowly and steadily, hunting, eating, and being with Miguel becomes a routine that pulls Edee out of her grief and despair.

Is It Any Good?

This quiet, surprisingly impactful drama is lovingly performed and directed by the talented Wright. If Nomadland is about a middle-aged woman's search for freedom on the road, Land is about a middle-aged woman's search for freedom of the soul. Both films star extraordinary actresses ( Frances McDormand and Wright, respectively) and outstanding supporting actors ( David Strathairn and Bichir) and are directed by women (Chloe Zhao and Wright). But whereas Zhao and McDormand tell an ultimately hopeful, happy tale about people in their 50s, 60s, and 70s dropping out of traditional 9-to-5 society to form their own nomadic hobo culture, Wright's story is a heartbreaking exploration of grief and stillness.

Another commonality with Nomadland is Land 's kinship to Into the Wild , but for a different, and sadder, reason. Edee's time in the cabin is reminiscent of Christopher McCandless' time in the bus. They both think they know what they're doing, but nature can be cruel, forbidding, and dangerous. Once he's (literally) in the picture, Miguel infuses a gentle warmth and humor to his interactions with Edee. He never pushes her to reveal her secrets and is content to be in the present, whether it's teaching her how to quietly stalk a deer or humming and singing "Everybody Wants to Rule the World." This isn't just one quick sing-a-long of Tears for Fears' '80s hit; he continues to sing it in several scenes, and it becomes a heartwarming anthem for the two characters, even if their singing is out of tune. Edee and Miguel's slow-burning connection brims with romantic possibility, but their bond is so transformative that it doesn't need a label to be powerful -- much like the movie itself.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about Land 's portrayal of grief and mental health. How does surviving trauma impact Edee? When does grief turn into more than situational depression or even suicidal ideation? How does she get help?

Discuss the character strengths that various characters demonstrate in the film. Why are perseverance and compassion important?

How does the movie depict the way a song can bring people together? What else draws Edee to Miguel? Would you consider the movie a love story of sorts?

Despite everyone's fierce independence, how do the characters help and support one another?

Movie Details

• In theaters : February 12, 2021
• On DVD or streaming : March 5, 2021
• Cast : Robin Wright , Demian Bichir , Kim Dickens
• Director : Robin Wright
• Inclusion Information : Female directors, Female actors, Latino actors, Middle Eastern/North African actors
• Studio : Focus Features
• Genre : Drama
• Character Strengths : Compassion , Perseverance
• Run time : 89 minutes
• MPAA rating : PG-13
• MPAA explanation : thematic content, brief strong language, and partial nudity
• Last updated : June 1, 2024

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Critic’s Pick

‘Land’ Review: True Nature

In her feature directing debut, Robin Wright plays a woman who moves alone to the mountains.

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By Glenn Kenny

The beauty of the mountain regions of Alberta, Canada, is presented in modes both lush and piercingly sharp in Robin Wright’s feature directing debut, “Land.” Wright also plays the lead role, Edee, a grieving woman who wants to get away from the world.

Many say they’d like to do that, but Edee means it. As she heads off to a mountaintop where she’s bought a minimally equipped cabin, she sees an incoming call on her iPhone. She throws the phone in a trash bin. At the cabin, she asks the man who’s handing it over to her to drive her rental car back down the mountain. “It’s not a good idea to be out here without a vehicle,” he warns. She does not heed him.

“This isn’t working,” Edee admits to herself as hard winter sets in. We’ve seen flashbacks to her former life, so we’re now partially aware of her situation. Through impressionistic shots that seem part flashbacks, part wishful visions, we get glimpses of an existence that is no longer Edee’s. And we begin to understand that while she’s come to this location perhaps in part to relive scenes from that life, she may also be actively courting death.

Suffering from exposure and dehydration, she’s found by a hunter, Miguel. With the help of his sister, a nurse, Miguel brings Edee back from the brink of death. The hunter is played by Demián Bichir, a great actor who very well may have the saddest eyes of anyone working in movies today. “Why are you helping me?” Edee asks. “You were in my path,” he says.

As they get to know each other a little, Miguel recognizes the arrogance and egotism that have made Edee’s mourning a destructive thing. To her assertion, “I’m here in this place because I don’t want to be around people,” he responds, in a gentle voice, “Only a person who has never been hungry thinks starving is a good way to die.”

Miguel reveals the losses in his own past, but it’s only at the movie’s very end that we learn how deep his injury, and indeed his self-injury, have gone. And what Edee’s been keeping hidden also comes fully to light. What’s left is reconciliation. If possible.

Wright’s movie is ambitious (that location! that weather!), but not grandiose. Its storytelling economy helps make it credible and eventually moving. While “Land” sometimes leans too hard on conventional signifiers (the rootsy music score is predictably somber), it’s a distinctive, strong picture.

Land Rated PG-13 for themes and imagery. Running time: 1 hour 29 minutes. In theaters. Please consult the guidelines outlined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention before watching movies inside theaters.

An earlier version of this review misstated the profession of the character Miguel's sister. She is a nurse, not a doctor.

How we handle corrections

Land (2021) Ending Explained – Will Emma Survive All by Herself in Wyoming?

When a tragedy strikes us, it often feels like the end of everything we know and love, a theme poignantly explored in the film “Land.” This psychological drama, directed by and starring Robin Wright, delves into the depths of despair and the journey toward finding a new meaning in life. Edee Holzer, portrayed by Wright, faces a devastating tragedy that makes her contemplate giving up on life itself. Land (2021) ending brings a powerful closure to her journey, highlighting the resilience of the human spirit.

Edee seeks therapy to recover but soon decides to escape to a remote place, far from people and the life she once knew. Initially, it seems she seeks a fresh start, but as time passes, her desire to end her life gradually intensifies. “Land” addresses existential questions about the source of life’s meaning, our ability to live in solitude, and the essence of existence. The film’s slow-paced, melancholic narrative, enriched with beautiful scenic frames, invites viewers to reflect on these profound themes.

The background music in “Land” resonates with the viewer’s emotions, aligning them with Edee’s struggles in Wyoming. Her journey of overcoming immense challenges, aided by a stranger’s unexpected kindness, illustrates the unpredictability of life and the reasons that can emerge to renew hope. This exploration culminates in the film’s ending, offering a compelling testament to the unpredictable paths our lives can take in the face of adversity.

Land (2021) Plot Summary & Synopsis:

Edee Holzer’s husband, Adam (Warren Christie), and son, Drew (Finlay Wojtak-Hissong) were shot by a random shooter at a concert hall. And therefore, Edee is completely shattered. She doesn’t know what to do. At the advice of her sister Emma (Kim Dickens), she meets a therapist who she thinks will work out the magic and help her overcome her trouble. After the tragic incident, Edee lost trust and faith in people.

She finds it difficult to be around people who she believes want her to be better at all times. When the therapist asks her why she finds it difficult to share her life with others, she replies that she doesn’t want to share her feelings and that she doesn’t want others to have a share in what she feels. Edee is reluctant to share what she is going through and has to live alone with the pain she is enduring after losing her beloved husband and son.

Edee’s escape to a foreign land

Wanting to escape the judging and constant questioning, Edee travels to Wyoming carrying her food and other basic requirements. She purchases a small house on the hilltop surrounded by Shoshone National Forest and tribal land and wants not to be affected by the noise of the competitive world. She gets rid of her mobile and car to keep away from the modern world.

The house she has purchased needs a makeover, it is old and has collected dust. There is an easy chance of animals like a coyote or a bear being her unwelcomed guests. Edee reads books, trying to learn to survive in this land she has come to. At the same time, she is reminded of the pain and trauma, and she constantly asks herself, “Why am I here anymore?”. The words of her sister Emma, “Don’t hurt yourself,” give her the courage to move forward. She tries to chop firewood and do some fishing but to no avail.

When nothing is working for Edee

In one instance, a bear breaks into her house and eats all her supplies. Edee is left with no supplies and no firewood to keep herself warm. Thus, she tries to shoot herself with the hunting rifle. But reminded by the words of her sister Emma she stops. A snowstorm strikes the place, and her house’s dislodged metal roof needs repairs. But attempting to repair she is hurt and injured. Luckily, a local hunter Miguel (Demian Bichir), sees Edee in need of help, and, assisted by Alawa (Sarah Dawn Pledge), a nurse, they both rescue Edee.

Good-hearted Miguel provides the supplies and takes care of her. He teaches her to hunt and accompanies her for a few days. He also leaves his dog, Potter, to be taken care of by Edee. Edee is thankful to Miguel for his kindness and slowly opens up to the idea of interacting with the world, in other words, to know about life outside the place where she lives.

Miguel shares with Edee his life story of losing his wife and daughter in a car accident. Edee learns to survive all by herself, from hunting to planting a few vegetables, far from being destroyed by the animals. Later, she learns that Miguel is on his deathbed suffering from throat cancer. He tells Edee that he was a drunkard and he was driving the car when the accident happened. He also tells Edee that she has taught him how to die in a state of grace. She, in return, tells him that he has taught her to want to live again.

Land (2021) Ending Explained:

Living alone seems sometimes a solution to all the problems we encounter. It may sometimes make us feel that life is better when we do not interact with the troubled world. But every living condition has its own problems. When Edee thinks that she is safe enough with the supplies she purchased and when she thinks that she can survive in a foreign land without interaction or modern equipment, the presence of animals around her and punishing weather makes her life vulnerable to danger. She didn’t think of a backup or deliberately chose not to have a backup.

What happens to Edee when the bear eats all the supplies?

When she is in a cabin near her house, she hears a bear growling, which walks straight to her home. The bear destroys all her supplies and eats all of them, leaving nothing for Edee. Edee thus is lost and doesn’t know what to do. She doesn’t know to hunt, and whatsoever she plants are destroyed by the animals. Thus, Edee thinks to herself that nothing is working.

She loses hope to survive. All her attempts at survival are watered down, and hence she gives up on life. Already she had lost the battle, and yet again, when this tragedy strikes, it affirms her thought to end her life. The bear’s entry into her house symbolizes storms, difficulties, and challenges that can, again and again, come into her life.

The question is whether she will be able to face them bang-on. Edee needs a companion to take care of her. To make her feel loved. And the only persons to do that were her husband, son, and beloved sister. And at the moment, she was just left to herself as she had lost her husband and son and was far away from her sister.

Why does Miguel choose to help Edee?

Miguel was on his way back when he noticed Edee on the floor and chose to help her. Seeking the help of Alawa, a nurse, he medicates Edee. Miguel believes in doing the right thing, and he doesn’t receive the money that Edee wants to pay him for the help rendered. When Miguel lost his wife and daughter, Miguel was the driver, and he was drunk, so he took responsibility for the death of his wife and daughter. Thus, this time when he sees Edee struggle alone, he decides to be alert and responsible. Miguel takes the opportunity to reconcile himself. He learns to forgive himself. And by making this kind gesture, Miguel wants to give hope to Edee.

Miguel helps Edee by taking care of her when she is sick. He helps by accompanying her when she is lonely. He brings her some food supplies, does her medical tests, and gets the reports to Edee. Miguel also teaches Edee to hunt to be able to survive in the foreign land. He helps Edee, respecting her decision to reside in a secluded place. Moreover, Miguel doesn’t enforce his ideas onto her but just calmly accompanies and teaches Edee that there are very many reasons we have at our disposal to choose to survive.

Will Emma Survive All by Herself in Wyoming?

Emma does survive all by herself in Wyoming but not instantly. It is a gradual process. When she goes to Wyoming, she thinks she will survive despite cutting ties with the outside world. Therefore, she instantly gets rid of the car and remains cocooned in the dilapidated house. She gathers all of her supplies only to have them devoured and eaten by a bear later. She loses hope but regains her courage when Miguel comes to her aid. Subsequently, she learns to hunt and also defend herself against wild animals. Miguel, a stranger who helps her without expecting anything in return, teaches her how to survive and live again.

“Land” takes us through a bitter-sweet journey of Edee’s life and makes us think that despite our life being vulnerable, we ought to learn to find meaning and fight to survive no matter what obstacles we may face. And that there are ample reasons to live despite the tragedies that strike us.

Read More: Land [2021]: ‘Sundance’ Review – Robin Wright helms a moving tale about resilience

Land (2021) links: imdb ,  rotten tomatoes , wikipedia  land (2021) cast: robin wright, demián bichir, sarah dawn pledge, where to watch land.

He has an MA English Literature and Language Degree from Parvatibai Chowgule College, Margao, Goa. He comments on art, technology, ethics, literature, and movies

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Between Lands: Is the Netflix Show Based on True Events?

‘Between Lands’ or ‘Entre Tierras’ is a Spanish-language period drama show that takes its viewers back to the 1960s in Spain. It follows María, a young woman from Andalusia in the south of Spain. To fend for her poor family, she makes the paramount decision to marry a rich landlord in a transitive manner who promises the safety and wellness of her mother and siblings. However, the wealthy man has concealed several dark secrets from her that could drastically alter María’s life for the worse.

After these revelations come to light, Maria is forced to tackle the upcoming challenges of living in an unknown new land and persevere through the struggles and consequences of her sacrifice. Considering its period setting and the adversities from that time, viewers of the show could have queries about whether it is inspired by a true story.

Between Lands is an Adaptation of a Fictional Italian Series

Driven by a story from writers and creators Susana López Rubio, Juan Beiro, and Joaquín Santamaría, ‘Between Lands’ is a fictional story that explores a time period of transformation in Spain. It is partially adapted from the 2022 Italian miniseries ‘La Sposa,’ or ‘The Bride’, and takes the liberty of rediscovering the source material via new characters, plot and setting alterations, and narrative tweaks. The show doesn’t directly delve into any cultural, political, or social incidents from the time, but seemingly resembles Spain while it was undergoing substantial reforms. It takes a different route, focusing on María’s experience through unfamiliar territory and the people she deals with in her new life similar to its Italian inspiration.

Her family struggles to survive as María is forced to be the breadwinner after the death of her father. Their financial worries reach a dire state as they must make enough to pay rent or suffer the fate of being vacated from their home. María seizes the opportunity to meet with Ramón, who is looking for a bride in her hometown. She is beyond the suitable age of marriage as per the local average yet presents herself to him with the clear intention of providing for her family. He complies with her proposition, but there’s a catch. The wedding turns out to be a proxy for his nephew Manuel.

Striving to secure a stable life for her family, María’s courage to fulfill her end of the bargain resembles the real-life struggles of those who have chosen such a path. Examples of this are scattered throughout the globe even to this day. It may not be widespread in countries like Spain in this day and age, but the economic adversities of the 60s within Iberian borders would make individuals put the survival of their loved ones over choice.

While the narrative leading up to the wedding depicts María and her family’s challenges for survival, other real-life concepts it sheds light on are transitive and proxy marriages. Some forms of matrimony can be described as transitive due to the exchange that they entail, commonly in the form of material wealth, property, or, in more advanced cases, the unity between states. These marriages may or may not be for romantic purposes. While history is spattered with numerous examples of these types of marriages that vary in each party’s proposition, María’s example of sacrifice for her family’s well-being isn’t uncommon.

Ramón’s intention is for Manuel and María to provide him with an heir to his wealth and property. He promises María to keep his end of the bargain once she gets pregnant. Settlements like these are uncommon today but have been recorded throughout history. Royal families, in particular from across the globe, have been known for partaking in such activities. Additionally, it hasn’t been uncommon for affluent families to also involve themselves in these types of settlements, which is adeptly illustrated in María’s situation.

A modern-day example of a transitive type of matrimony is a marriage for citizenship, which may include monetary benefits. In cases such as these, individuals seeking citizenship in another country may marry a person of their desired nationality. Although regulations have been heightened and the activity in itself is frowned upon, these types of marriages aren’t uncommon.

In the case of proxy marriages, it is when one or both individuals are absent from the wedding proceedings. Unbeknownst to María, Ramón shows up to marry her as a proxy for his nephew, who himself is unaware of his new wife. María, desperate to provide for her family, seals the deal and is taken away to a completely unfamiliar part of the country where she must essentially restart her life. ‘Between Lands’ constructs a narrative around the challenges of individuals such as Maria who put their family’s lives before their own. Dire situations lead to life-altering decisions that do not always provide a way back.

Read More: Best Period Dramas on HBO Max

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Though it concerns that most clamorous of subjects in modern American discourse—political division, and the partisan enmity that’s come to define it—the nonfiction feature “This Land” begins quietly: with a shot of a wheat field, blowing in the breeze, and the sound of a pick-up truck engine, sputtering. 

Often privileging such sensorial vignettes above narrative detail, director Matthew Palmer opens on these two as if to establish the rural America they belong to as a real place—as distinct from the mythic “heartland” often conjured to frame a stereotypical home of America’s reactionary right wing as, beyond the nation’s geographic center, some moral and political middle ground as well. 

Once that truck engine roars to life, though, so does the radio, and the polarized stylings of Sean Hannity and Rachel Maddow drift in to better situate us. Through introductory intertitles, “This Land” (out on VOD) soon specifies not only its setting, but also the slant of its premise. 2020’s presidential election, referred to as “one of the most contentious in the country’s history,” is mid-progress across America, whose politics have come to feel informed most, in the filmmakers’ moral assessment, by an ideology of hatred for vaguely defined others. Registering a plea for humanism amid such hostility, “This Land” asks a leading question directly: “Who are these people we view as the enemy?”

The presumptive framing of this rhetoric suggests at first that “This Land” will go the route of other propagandist liberal panacea—see: Dawn Porter ’s “ The Way I See It ,” released by Focus Features then broadcast more appropriately on MSNBC—narrowing its audience to those who already agree with an oversimplified premise and telling them nothing they’re not ready to hear. Seeking an alternative to that particularly useless vein of cultural output, Palmer instead adopts an observational aesthetic, emphasizing the textures of everyday life for various Americans on Election Day across a 67-minute feature that resembles a slice-of-life snapshot more than a sermon. 

Prominently featured are a married gay couple on opposite sides of the aisle; one is white and liberal, the other Black and conservative, and their inability to bridge this divide is seen as one consistent source of tension in a complex relationship. A Native man, in recovery from addiction, asks why he should vote to elect another white man to office; a young Black woman echoes this overall disillusionment with party politics. A Republican voter addresses both the loss of his wife, who was deported to Mexico following the last election, and parenting their young son, who was soon after diagnosed with cancer. “Being a Christian, I believe God’s going to take care of us, so long as I do what I’m supposed to do—the right way,” he says at one point. Meanwhile, tacked to the family fridge, a drawing of Trump in a Superman costume is adorned by a request, in a child’s handwriting, to please let the boy’s mother come home. 

Indebted most to RaMell Ross ’s comparably ethnographic “Hale County This Morning This Evening” without rivaling the richness of its insights, “This Land” prizes moments of intimate pictorial beauty. The landscape photography, of which there’s plenty, is attuned to light and shadow, which might abstract a character into silhouette as they walk through a desert at dusk or regard them from a far distance as they swim downstream. Though it introduces its main subjects early, the film is carried less by their stories than by associative editing rhythms that keep the tone tranquil as connections are uncovered between characters. In the woods, one rodeo cowboy waxes poetic about his love of riding while a separate subject dances on the rooftop of a city apartment building, lost in a moment of private joy. A particularly moving parallel finds two different parents reading their children the same bedtime story. Elsewhere, having registered his righteous anger at the United States’ long history of white supremacy and violence, another key character retreats into nature, taking solace in sobriety and spiritualism, as a talking head declares, “We have a great country, so let’s keep it that way.” 

Unavoidably, “This Land” was shaped by the limitations of a global pandemic. To capture the experiences of various people around the country on a single day, Palmer and his producers assembled a team of nearly 50 filmmakers, coordinating with each over Zoom. Selecting main subjects for the film to feature involved a months-long interview process, and Palmer divulges—in press notes, not on screen—that one of the first questions asked of interviewees was “What do you want to share with the world?”

As such, politics often surface within the context of subjects’ daily circumstances, but which way any of them will vote is treated as an entry point, just one potential avenue through which the specifics of their challenges and priorities can be illuminated. The subjects of “This Land” ultimately have less to say about Trump—and certainly less to say about his opponent, now-President Joe Biden—than you might expect. That people’s politics can be personal, complicated, and contradictory should come as no surprise to anyone living in America, nor should the idea that political affiliation writ large represents something different to each one of us. Despite its lyrical presentation, the film’s lingering ideas are straightforward and sentimental, arguably even self-serving. Our political divide can be bridged only by those who take the time to see each other, and who approach such patient acts of observation from a place of genuine compassion, concludes the filmmaker who set out to prove as much in the first place. 

Now available on VOD. 

Isaac Feldberg

Isaac Feldberg is an entertainment journalist currently based in Chicago, who’s been writing professionally for nine years and hopes to stay at it for a few more.

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