World War II is a well-trod genre. Finding a new way in was the challenge for Danish writer-director Martin Zandvliet (“Applause”). The result was “Land of Mine,” a well-reviewed but controversial box office hit in Scandinavia and Europe that scored three European Film Awards on the way to a coveted Oscar nomination for best foreign-language film.
“It’s an amazing year for world cinema,” said Zandvliet, who also edits documentaries. “And you never know what to expect in terms of awards … Unfortunately this small, local story feels more global and more relevant than ever.”
At the end of the war in 1945, more than 2,000 German POWs were forced to remove over 1.5 million land mines from the west coast of Denmark. “Land of Mine” follows a hard-nosed Sergeant (Roland Møller), who after five years of brutal occupation by Germany, commands a troop of German POWs, some as young as 13, to use their...
“It’s an amazing year for world cinema,” said Zandvliet, who also edits documentaries. “And you never know what to expect in terms of awards … Unfortunately this small, local story feels more global and more relevant than ever.”
At the end of the war in 1945, more than 2,000 German POWs were forced to remove over 1.5 million land mines from the west coast of Denmark. “Land of Mine” follows a hard-nosed Sergeant (Roland Møller), who after five years of brutal occupation by Germany, commands a troop of German POWs, some as young as 13, to use their...
- 1/25/2017
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Once in a blue moon you come upon a movie that is a complete surprise.
When I saw “Toni Erdmann” at Cannes, I was riveted by the father-daughter comedy, which was a hit with critics but was robbed of an award by an idiosyncratic competition jury. The film went on to wow festivalgoers and cinemas around the world, and Sony Pictures Classics opened it stateside on Christmas Day. It won the Cannes Screen International Critics’ poll, Best Foreign Language film from the New York Film Critics Circle and swept the European Film Awards, grabbing five including Best Picture; it’s nominated for the foreign-language Golden Globe and Indie Spirit awards and was shortlisted for the Oscar.
That doesn’t mean it will win. All the reasons why the movie is unconventional — organic, sprawling, shocking and hilarious — could weigh against it with more mainstream Academy voters, along with its 162-minute running time.
When I saw “Toni Erdmann” at Cannes, I was riveted by the father-daughter comedy, which was a hit with critics but was robbed of an award by an idiosyncratic competition jury. The film went on to wow festivalgoers and cinemas around the world, and Sony Pictures Classics opened it stateside on Christmas Day. It won the Cannes Screen International Critics’ poll, Best Foreign Language film from the New York Film Critics Circle and swept the European Film Awards, grabbing five including Best Picture; it’s nominated for the foreign-language Golden Globe and Indie Spirit awards and was shortlisted for the Oscar.
That doesn’t mean it will win. All the reasons why the movie is unconventional — organic, sprawling, shocking and hilarious — could weigh against it with more mainstream Academy voters, along with its 162-minute running time.
- 12/28/2016
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
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