Land of Mine
As World War Two comes to an end, a group of German POWs, boys rather than men, are captured by the Danish army and forced to engage in a deadly task – to defuse and clear land mines from the Danish coastline. With little or no training, the boys soon discover that the war is far from over. Inspired by real events, LAND OF MINE exposes the untold story of one tragic moment in post-war history.
Director:
Martin Zandvliet
Cast:
Roland Møller, Louis Hofmann, Joel Basman
Screenplay:
Martin Zandvliet
Screening Date:
Feb 04, 2017
Studio:
Sony Pictures Classics
Running Time:
1 hour 40 minutes
| Excellent | Very Good | Good | Fair | Poor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 52.3% | 38.6% | 9.1% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
“Wow! This was heavy and important to know. And brave of a Danish director to make. The tension so artfully established in the first 15 minutes with the training scene was so powerful. A very well made film. Thanks Jeanne K”
“Sometimes a movie needs to be uncomfortably tense, that is the case with LAND OF MINE. Message comes across clearly, doesn’t matter that some of the plot twists are predictable. Nothing justifies brutalizing children no matter what uniform they are wearing.”
“Too sympathetic to the German’s. They deserved all that they got.”
“Brilliant filmmaking. Powerful gripping emotions from the first frame to last.”
“Most of us of a certain age know the ravages of war. Everyone loses in war except the powerful and evil. Human nature can have a very dark side. War is, was, and will be hell. Excellent antiwar statement.”
“Extremely powerful. Great acting, somewhat predictable. No facial hair - only boys - yet still Germans. What an ethical dilemma.”
“The story elicits very mixed emotions. Essentially it can be seen to be an anti war film. A tear jerker.”
“Scary story, so sorry that it’s true. Well done and subtle for a violent story.”
“There is no end to the number of incredible stories emanating from the horrors of the Nazi regime.”
“So tough to watch!”
“A great depiction – admittedly on a small scale – of a tragic moment in Danish history. Stories like this in film will hopefully convince future generations of the insanity of war.”
“First time I can recall feeling for German soldiers.”
“War is not healthy for children and other living things. Oh the untold stories of WWII that must exist. Powerful! Brilliant story-telling although I could understand the Dane’s feelings about the Germans. The work they made them do was morally wrong (and illegal from what you read to us about the Geneva Convention). The acting was fabulous. Once you see the German boys as human beings you can’t hate them the way you might at the beginning. The end statement should have been in larger print. Oscar worthy. (How they could put this and TONI ERDMAN in the same category is mind boggling).”
“Fabulous film, but I had some problems with the depiction of no food for the prisoners. We only saw them being fed bits of bread on occasion, but there is no way the boys would have survived or had the strength to do the job at hand. They must have been fed something!”
“An excellent anti-war film. All of us share a lot.”
“This film brings out the horrors of war more than any I have seen in the past. It’s incredible to realize that the mine cleaners were just children who still called Mama for help! How can anyone not be moved by such a film?”
“Unless we realize that people are people, just like you and I, we will be condemned to relive wars.” Discrimination one day is a holocaust the next.”
“The history is personally painful; it makes the pain of war so tangible. Boys - children - caught up in the raw emotions. The way they were treated makes a reality of hate and fear that will repeat. The grayness of the film adds as a reminder of the films of the forties. The dog and the child makes it more real. Soldiers are really boys. Is war just a game, a boy’s game? Leadership issues of Danes were brutal.”
“The beauty and serenity of the landscape is a sharp contrast to the tasks these boys have to deal with added to the chilling demeanor of the Danish Sergeants. In the beginning you are clearly aligned with the Dane’s thinking of holocaust atrocities but once you meet the boys you realize that the Danes have become the same as the Nazis. How quickly the roles reversed. Very moving and effective film. The man who plays Sergeant Moller is amazing.”
“Enlightening!”
“Mines are not fun! I came close to stepping on 2 mines in Vietnam and twice closely missed. This movie was a little hard to watch for me. And hard to recommend.”
“An important film about the horrors and contradictions and untenable realities of war. Very human and shocking to see the uneasy balance between the compassion emerging in the Sergeant and the violent impulse of retaliation is just terrible.”
“We do not know that part of history.”
“War is evil.”
If you'd like to know more about the film...
Read about how director Martin Zandvliet was inspired for the film and what challenges he faced both pre- and post-production: http://www.indiewire.com/2017/01/land-of-mine-oscar-nomination-best-fore...
See what the director had to say about his controversial depiction of the Germans in LAND OF MINE in this interview: http://www.nordiskfilmogtvfond.com/news/stories/martin-zandvliet-eye-eye...
Often times an actor’s personality clashes with the character he plays. Watch this interesting interview that Variety held with director Martin Zandvliet and actor Roland Møller (Sergeant Carl): http://variety.com/video/land-of-mine-director-on-making-wwii-relatable-...
Learn more about the history behind German POWs being used as mine clearers in Denmark after WW2: http://www.revisionist.net/war-crimes.html
