This Land: Review

8th September 2022

America has a two-party political race and you’re either on one side or the other. Recent years have seen the political landscape change and with the election of Donald Trump, it became a country which a lot of people never thought they’d ever see.

However, a week is a long time in politics and Donald Trump had four years to leave an impression on the American people and whether they like it or not, that divide grew even wider.

This Land is a documentary directed by Matthew Palmer which aims to look into how America was at the time of the 2020 election and whether there could ever be harmony again. The two sides have always been a bone of contention and probably divides more there than anywhere else in the world, but Palmer’s documentary hopes to find a common ground.

Starting out in a scenario that most people perhaps couldn’t understand, they are introduced to two friends, one white and one black, and on either side of the political divide, but maybe not in the way you’d expect. Being taken into the white man’s home, his friend is treated as part of the family despite his right leaning politics.

Then we see various people from different walks of life such as a mother with a son who has Down’s Syndrome and cowboys living on a ranch. There’s even a Native American man who is wildly opposed to either side. It shows a wide range of different people with different points of view and it manages to never settle on either side which is impressive considering the division of its subjects.

However, whilst not taking a side it also doesn’t go too deeply into what either Biden or Trump were offering on their political sides, or what connects its subjects.

This Land has a more laid back and fly on the wall approach to its documentary style and with its relaxing feeling, it tells its audience that everything is going to be ok, just as it should. Although sometimes it does feel like the visuals take over the conversations with the people which could not only show their views more deeply, but also show what makes them still want to get along.

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