The Promised Land

I often find myself searching in vain for the right dose of gloomy and eerie atmosphere combined with tension in thrillers and horror movies. Yet, here I am, feeling like a complete idiot. All it takes is to watch a film about the expansion of Danish agriculture and you'll be looking for a rope and a nice beam in the attic to end all that depression. But hey, wait for those end credits to roll first, because despite its gloomy (or even somber) tone, this film is extremely good. Even though I'm from the country, I don't enjoy digging in the soil (I prefer livestock), but here I found myself enthusiastically watching the captain's battle for a good harvest against the whims of nature and other disasters. How could I not root for the main hero, especially when he was portrayed by Mads Mikkelsen, whose face radiates internal anguish? Plus, he is so convincing he could make me believe he grew a row of melons from carrot seeds. What I found disappointing was the ending which somewhat undermined the experience for me. / Lesson learned: Playing fetch can lead to a lifelong commitment. (01/09/2024)

Flawless, suffocating, absorbing and emotional. I love this Danish intimate filmmaking, and when a sound name in the director's chair (just look for yourself what this god has made), the brilliant, Oscar-winning Mads Mikkelsen and a well-played theme come together, it's a win-win. From the beginning, from the viewer's perspective, you just can't help but root for the main character's plan and wait to see where it all goes. As the characters arrive, each one iconic and fresh enough to garner further sympathy, we fill the screen with A-list characters, and once the main villain (read a sleazy, disgusting, twisted motherf*cker, the kind that hasn't been on screen in quite some time and who we'd probably all like to see dead right away) appears, things get progressively more intense. The story unfolds brilliantly, the characters and their fates equally so, and we're treated to historical drama, even brutal gore, and a few twists that turn the plot 180 degrees and shuffle the viewer's cards nicely. In the end, I'm completely satisfied and it's clear that the North is just somewhere else and can produce with grace an intimate historical gem that I would otherwise avoid by a mile, but here I simply can't help but give it a full score. (01/02/2024)

A gritty low-budget historical drama that can hold its ground compared to its Western friends. A fine Mads Mikkelsen as a soft-spoken retired captain, a great villain escalating the pissed-offness of both the protagonist and the viewer, and a magical landscape of Danish moorland wilderness, very impressively shot by Rasmus Videbaek. I expected a tougher finale, but it somehow fell into a romantic template, but it was not a big deal and Bastard retained its toughness and dignity. (04/20/2024)

Great. Old-school attitude and Mads Mikkelsen's stubborn expression in a solid film with a great script that grabs you by the heart. Danish moors and beautiful shots of the rugged landscape. And, of course, there's one motherfucker you wish the worst for, wondering the whole time why the captain didn't put a bullet through his head right from the start. A great story with a strong conclusion and a worthwhile point. (01/05/2024)

A likable film with a likably unlikable protagonist driven by wounded ambition. The Promised Land blends a serious historical epic with some penny-dreadful twists that ultimately prevent the film from forcefully crowning Kahlen’s fate as an entirely tragic and self-destructive character. The Promised Land comes across as a film in search of itself on the heath. Fortunately, Arcel elevated his directing above that in the slightly TV-like A Royal Affair, Rasmus Videbæk beautifully captures the chiaroscuro and Mads Mikkelsen plays his unapproachable father character with his usual precision. The film wants to throw a powerful jab with its ending, but it winds up choosing a safer route that doesn’t offend, but it doesn’t satisfy either. (01/18/2024)