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Sweet Land

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Trailer for "Sweet Land"

The phrase “independent film” isn’t always synonymous with slacker attitude, ornate profanity and ironic violence. Some films are made independently for precisely the opposite reason, because they don’t have enough sex and violence to make them what Hollywood considers “marketable.” Nonetheless, movies like King of the Corner, Nosey Parker and My Big Fat Greek Wedding have shown that an audience remains for somewhat gentler fare. The heartfelt feature Sweet Land should appeal to that same audience. Set primarily in a Minnesota farming community circa 1920, it is the story of Inge (Elizabeth Reaser), a young mail-order bride who arrives at the bus station with a few pieces of luggage and a gramophone. (Any evocation of Holly Hunter’s arrival in New Zealand with an upright grand in The Piano is probably unintentional.) Her intended husband, the taciturn Olaf (Tim Guinee) and his more loquacious friend Frandsen (Alan Cummings, who also co-produced the film) initially assume that she is, like everyone else in the community, a Norwegian. But when they learn that she is actually German, an immediate chill descends. It’s only two years since the end of World War I, after all, and all that negative propaganda is still filling their minds. How Inge wins herself a place in the heart of the community, not to mention Olaf, accounts for the remainder of the story. If the tale is less than suspenseful (the film is framed as a flashback by the grandson as he wonders whether to sell the farm), it is no less engaging for it. Adapting a short story by Will Weaver, first-time director Ali Selim (a veteran of the commercial world) draws his characters as reticent but reasonable people who recognize that cooperation is necessary for survival in such a harsh environment. Selim draws uniformly terrific performances from a top-flight cast (including John Heard, Ned Beatty, Lois Smith and Alex Kingston), as well as making the most of the landscapes of Minnesota where the story was filmed. (Sometimes you just can’t beat 35-millimeter film.) Sweet Land will only be playing from Friday through Tuesday (at the Emerging Cinema screen at the Market Arcade) so don’t wait for word of mouth to catch up to you.