Ali Selim's visual masterpiece recalls the stark artistry of Terrence Malick and Western lyricism of Larry McMurtry, as it turns every frame into a picture postcard of stunning beauty.

| Original Score: A- | May 25, 2013

Exceptionally photographed and remarkably performed by actors Tim Guinee and Elizabeth Reaser, Sweet Land is modest, but demonstrative, eager to detail a love story that sustains for a lifetime.

| Original Score: A | Dec 28, 2009

| Original Score: 3.5/5 | Sep 15, 2008

The flashback structure adds nothing but length to an already awkward mix of humanist-socialist parable and gently halting love story that's been sat on a shelf since 2005. But even so, it's a surprisingly sweet little treat.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Sep 5, 2008

At once epic and intimate, Sweet Land offers a stirring account of love and hardship which, aside from a muffed Capra moment towards the end, hardly puts a foot wrong.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Sep 5, 2008

Nostalgic, gentle, loving: the elegiac mood set against endless rural space inevitably suggests Malick's Days of Heaven. What next from this considerable talent?

| Sep 5, 2008

Our movie of the week - which isn't saying much - arrives in the shape of this atmospheric slice of Americana about an arranged marriage deep in the heart of rural Minnesota.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Sep 5, 2008

Pleasant surprise of the week, a US indie so unashamedly romantic about pie, cornfields, family and baseball you could be forgiven for thinking you were watching a Presidential campaign video.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Sep 5, 2008

Here is a nicely photographed, but bland, insipid and weirdly passive-aggressive little film.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Sep 5, 2008

Minnesota between the wars is a bone yard for dreams, yet, like Babette's Feast, the film plucks a tiny miracle from stony ground.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Sep 5, 2008

Sweet Land could have been mawkish and overly sentimental, but Selim has a light touch and the film is intelligent, sensitive and sweet.

| Original Score: 3.5/5 | Sep 5, 2008

Echoing Malick's 'Days of Heaven' in the way it captures the majesty of the American countryside, this is a small gem that's worth seeking out.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Sep 5, 2008

| Original Score: 4/5 | Sep 4, 2008

| Original Score: 4/5 | Aug 7, 2008

The son of an Egyptian immigrant, the Minnesota born Selim demonstrates a startling intimacy and empathy for his characters, but infuses his story with a candid tough love for their weaknesses.

| Jul 3, 2007

Characters' motivations and behaviours wobble all over the map - even within single scenes - making for a profoundly frustrating and disappointing experience for viewers.

Full Review | Original Score: 63/100 | Jul 2, 2007

It's not a film to watch when you're tired.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Jun 23, 2007

Sweet Land isn't so silly as to say 'love conquers all', but it reminds us, sometimes ecstatically, that love can conquer a lot.

Full Review | Original Score: B- | Jun 2, 2007

| Original Score: 3/5 | May 22, 2007

An old-fashioned family drama masquerading as an art film.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Mar 16, 2007