User Reviews

The Land is, for all intents and purposes, a righteous polemic, reminiscent of poor salt-of-the-earth Communist screeds like Vidor's Our Daily Bread or Dovzhenko's Earth. But where those films were at times painfully idealistic, The Land, while still overly simplified, takes it one step further. The film is too smart to think that everything is going to be okay simply because everyone has goodness in their hearts (so they'll band together and save the day). But instead, it substitutes an "us against them" philosophy. The rich cityfolk are BAAAAD. All the poor farmers might not be good, but as we're informed in an opening discussion, the bad ones are the ones that abandoned their crops, absconding to the EEEVIL city to get rich, and are now layabouts because nothing will grow. The inference is all there in black and white, and it's actually a bit jarring considering I started my Chahine marathon with Memory: An Egyptian Story, a fantasy drama about a movie director who, during heart surgery, is put on trial by his conscience for compromising his integrity as a film director. Going by The Land, perhaps he feels he is one of the layabouts who abandoned his soil.

The film also brings to mind those prior films because they revolve around the same thing: cultivation and respect for the land. All three have several similar sequences, and The Land even contains an successful irrigation sequence more joyously revelatory than Our Daily Bread's (of course, right after this, the protagonists are thrown in jail and the eeeevil taxman cuts off the water). Chahine's direction for the most part is plaintive, mirroring the salt-of-the-earth vibe of the characters and the story, but there is one small sequence midway through that even the sketchy color work couldn't spoil: while the villagers are awaiting the release of their leader from prison, and a cloud of dust sweeps up, drenched in the sun, and the composition with the house and the old woman in black off to the side was so beautiful I wanted to frame it on my wall, or at least put on an album cover.

The film is rousing and entertaining but fairly ordinary and predictable, at least until the ending, which finishes a bit jarringly: it not only neglects to conclude at a clear finish line, but is brutally downbeat, a definite surprise bonus considering most films with white hat-black hat line divisions end with an unrealistic deus ex machina to leave you smiling as you file out of your seats. The Land resolves to twist up that expectation, and it's most definitely for the better, as the unexpected move works to excellent effect.

I have heard The Land referred to as Chahine's unseen masterpiece, and although I'm not quite able to affirm this opinion, I do admit that it is a very good film, and despite its one-dimensional characterization theology-wise, it develops them to the point of believability, and does enough to subvert expectations that it's most definitely a worthwhile watch, and I think it's a bit of a crime that it's so unavailable to people who would love to watch it.

{Grade: 8.25/10 (B+/B) / #9 (of 18) of 1969}

The wide variety of characters makes the story very engaging and alive, it makes the village feel almost real. This is important because everyone is affected in different ways by the political oppression and the selfish interests of a few. The acting is superb, especially Mahmoud Al Meleji who is amazing. The cinematography is mostly vivid and organic, it's never a distraction or anything too pretentious. The music was alright, but the non-diegetic peasant songs felt a little off since they seemed a little pamphletary and hopeful for the specific context of this village. My only big problem with this film is that it leaves some important loose ends such as the story about the boy (Muhammad Al Saqqa ) with whom the film starts as some kind of coming-of-age, and then the killing of Elwani which seems completely random and filmed in a poor way. Then most of these characters start lacking depth, always talking about the same issues and repeating actions that have almost no consequences. Most of the problems are solved easily, but from both sides, so the struggle feels more like a summary than a chaotic and emotional situation, and when it reaches the end it seems too abrupt, because it only focuses on one character, forgetting about everyone else and the village. I think I can understand why this film is important for the Egyptians and it's definitely worth watching since it is an universal story, but I get the feeling it's more important for what it represents rather than what it really is.

El-Ard, is probably the best Egyptian movie of all time and is a must-watch for those who wish to know more about Egypt, Egyptian culture of farming communities in the pre-1952 era, art and cinema.

At age 60, Mahmoud El Meleegy (or Mahmoud Al Meleji, who played Mohamed Abu Swailam) rendered an inspired performance which placed him at the top of Egyptian actors of all time. This is probably Yousef Chahine's finest work as he managed to bring the best of each crew member and orchestrate a monumental masterpiece, building on a great novel by Abdel Rahman El Charkawi.

Although there is no single actor or actress that personified the "Land", who is the undisputed true heroine/protagonist of this movie, "she" is neither invisible nor silent. Her physical presence is felt if not seen or heard in every scene through the amazing cinematography of Abdel Halim Nasr, heart-raking music of Aly Ismail, authentic script and dialogues of Hasan Fouad, the towering performance of all actors and even the costumes and props. Aly Ismail's music and the lyrics seem to rise from the land itself and the collective conscience of the people who are fatefully connected to it. The Land speaks to and through her subjects, occupies their minds and drives their actions. Even those who thought that they had managed to escape its gravity, finding new orbits living easier and cleaner lives in Cairo (Capital City of Egypt), such as Sheikh Hassouna (played by the genius Yehia Chahine), they suddenly find themselves back as if they had never left, sucked in to and by the Land. To their own shock, they betray their life-long friends in fear of losing their piece (of the Land).

The Land tells tales of comradeship, honor, love, heroism and betrayal. We can talk and even sometimes act like selfless heroes until we come near a point which ultimately tests our deepest inner selves - where most - if not all of us - will just turn back and accept injustice to others and even to self - in order to survive. And this perhaps, is the saddest - yet truest - tale which this movie tells.