Sweet Land

Variety Ronnie Scheib

Intelligently written, brilliantly cast and thesped story of a German mail order bride in a Norwegian-American community in Minnesota just after WWI never hits a wrong note.

Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman

Sweet Land is a movie of extraordinary tenderness, in which Reaser and Guinee, using a language of looks, make you happy to think about what love once might have been.

Village Voice Rob Nelson

Directing with a light comic touch and a palpable affection for the characters, Selim draws pitch-perfect acting from a large cast and achieves breathtaking levels of color and clarity from old-fashioned 35mm.

The Hollywood Reporter Kirk Honeycutt

Demonstrating a mastery of the medium that belies his status as a first-time feature filmmaker, writer-director Ali Selim has crafted in Sweet Land a tale of pure Americana that speaks both to the immigrant experience and the nature of love.

New York Post Lou Lumenick

This year's actress to watch is Elizabeth Reaser, who delivers a tour de force as a determined German mail-order bride who comes to 1920 Minnesota in Ali Selim's captivating indie Sweet Land.

Charlotte Observer Lawrence Toppman

Top honors go to Guinee, who steadily builds his character from tiny details, and Reaser, who's understood through eyes and attitude while speaking a hodgepodge of German, Norwegian and English.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer William Arnold

First-time director Ali Selim does an exceptional job throughout, his movie has the balance, uncluttered leanness and emotional impact of a Willa Cather short story, and it's no surprise that it has been nominated for Best First Feature in the 2007 Independent Spirit Awards.

Los Angeles Times Kenneth Turan

A type of American independent we don't see often enough.

Salon.com Andrew O'Hehir

It's winsome, sentimental and lovely in a minor-key way.

Chicago Tribune Michael Wilmington

The film's most memorable performance is in another supporting role, by Alan Cumming as hapless Frandsen, Olaf's sympathetic neighbor and a hopelessly inept farmer.

Boston Globe Wesley Morris

A lovely , old-fashioned farm romance quietly doubling as a comment on immigration and American identity.

Portland Oregonian Marc Mohan

Sweet Land brushes against the true spirit of American independent cinema.

San Francisco Chronicle Ruthe Stein

An unusual look at love and how it can unexpectedly develop. Those for whom the concept of an arranged marriage is foreign will get a little history lesson on the immigrant experience watching this sweetly engrossing film.

The New York Times Jeannette Catsoulis

The film’s guileless, heartfelt style veers perilously close to corniness at times, but the superb cast dares you to mock.

Chicago Reader J.R. Jones

Ali Selim, a highly successful director of commercials in Minneapolis, makes his feature directing debut with this simple and beautifully paced drama, letting the characters breathe and the land speak.

Baltimore Sun Michael Sragow

Once you get past the movie's needlessly fragmented framing device and its protracted introduction to a xenophobic rural Minnesota town, the core story gains some traction in your mind.

New York Daily News Elizabeth Weitzman

Selim's script doesn't hit new territory, but beautiful cinematography takes it just far enough.

Washington Post Desson Thomson

Sweet Land is as empty and beautiful as the picturesque Minnesota terrain it's so clearly taken with.

TV Guide Ken Fox

Mark Orton's overused fiddly score is nice enough, but can't disguise the essential emptiness of overlong scenes.