Synopsis
A salesman for a natural gas company experiences life-changing events after arriving in a small town, where his corporation wants to tap into the available resources.
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Cast
- Matt DamonSteve Butler
- Frances McDormandSue Thomason
- John KrasinskiDustin Noble
- Rosemarie DeWittAlice
- Hal HolbrookFrank Yates
- Titus WelliverRob
- Lucas BlackPaul Geary
- Tim GuineeDrew
- Scoot McNairyJeff Dennon
- Terry KinneyDavid Stonehill
Recommendations
- 80
New York Daily News
Krasinki's soft-sell script, lets the movie's ideas get absorbed without grandstanding or pretension. Its issues go down with a smile and common sense, which turns out to be exactly the right formula. - 75
Rolling Stone
Director Gus Van Sant finds the human side of a knotty issue. No polemics. Just the face of a new America in crisis. - 67
IndieWire
Promised Land can't help but preach its cause in obvious ways that continually hold back an otherwise well-acted, swiftly paced drama. - 60
The Hollywood Reporter
Promised Land presents its environmental concerns in a clear, upfront manner but hits some narrative and character bumps in the second half that weaken the impact of this fundamentally gentle, sympathetic work. - 50
The Playlist
It's Middle America vs. big bad corporate America, and while the (not so) "bad guy" predictably finds salvation in salt-of-the-earth people, Promised Land often leaves a sour taste in your mouth. - 50
Variety
By manipulating their story to advance the cynical notion that you really can't trust anyone, the filmmakers inadvertently beg the question why their own motives should be so above suspicion. - 50
The A.V. Club
No one seems to recognize the irony of making a film about corporate rigging that is itself outrageously rigged. - 40
Time
Left-wingers in the mainstream media - by which I mean me - are supposed to lap up a movie that plays to our farm-loving, tree-hugging prejudices. But even we know that well-meaning does not automatically equal good movie. Some organic life is needed. And the only crop Promised Land harvests is Capra Corn.
