Sweet Land (2005)
- Starring:
- Elizabeth Reaser, Tim Guinee, (more)
- Director(s):
- Ali Selim
- Theatrical MPAA Rating:
- PG
- Category:
- Drama, Independent Films
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A European exile finds herself a stranger in a strange land when she comes to the United States in this independent romantic comedy-drama. As a man ponders what to do with his family's estate after the death of his grandmother, he thinks back to how she first came to America shortly after World War I. Olaf (Tim Guinee) is a Norwegian-American farmer looking for a wife to share his home on the Minnesota prairie, and with eligible women in short supply locally, he sends away for a mail-order bride. Inge Ottenberg (Elizabeth Reaser) soon arrives at Olaf's doorstep, but while she's pretty, smart, and amiable, he's taken aback to discover she's not Norwegian but German, which after several years of anti-German propaganda does not make her popular with her new neighbors. Inge isn't very good with English, making it even harder to keep her background a secret, and the local pastor, Rev. Sorrensen (John Heard), is so outraged at the presence of a presumed Hun he refuses to perform their wedding. But Inge struggles to make friends with her new neighbors, in particular Olaf's best friend, Frandsen (Alan Cumming), a gadget fancier whose wife, Brownie (Alex Kingston), is better with mechanical items than he is. In time, Inge's cheerful nature and love of music begin to make an impression on the community as she shares her favorite tunes on her ever-present gramophone. Sweet Land was the first feature film from writer and director Ali Selim. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Theatrical Feature Running Time:
- 111 mins
Complete Cast:
- Elizabeth Reaser - Inge Ottenberg
- Alan Cumming - Frandsen
- Ned Beatty - Harmo
- Alex Kingston - Brownie
- Paul Sand - older Frandsen
- Jodie Markell - Donna Torvik
- Sage Kermes - Mae Torvik
- Tim Guinee - Olaf
- Lois Smith - older Inge
- John Heard - Rev. Sorrensen
- Patrick Heusinger - Lars
- Stephen Pelinski - older Lars
- Tom Gilroy - Comrade Vik
- Robert Hogan - older Olaf
- Director(s):
- Ali Selim
- Writer(s):
- Ali Selim
- Producer(s):
- Jim Bigham, Ali Selim, Alan Cumming
- Theatrical MPAA Rating:
- PG(Brief Nudity)
- Categories:
- Drama, Independent Films
- Closed Captioning:
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- Subtitles:
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- 2006 - Sweet Land - Independent Spirit Awards - Best First Feature
- 2006 - Sweet Land - Women Film Critics Circle - Best Female Images in a Movie
- 2006 - Sweet Land - Women Film Critics Circle - Karen Morley Award
