source: Promised Land

Promised Land (2012) *** 1/2 (out of 4) Director Gus Van Sant is visited from the ghost of Frank Capra in this morality tale that mixes politics, family values and greed. Natural gas salesmen Steve (Matt Damon) and Sue (Frances McDormand) head out to a small town to try and make the people vote for allowing them to drill for gas. They spread around whatever "truths" they must to secure the vote but soon the small town life starts to effect Steve. PROMISED LAND isn't a masterpiece by any stretch of the imagination but it's extremely well-made, features some great acting and it really is a fun movie to sit through. There are problems including the ending, which I won't ruin for those who haven't seen the movie but I think this complicated story and issues gets solved way too easily. With that said, Van Sant was the perfect person to handle this material because in someone else's hands you're probably looking at an over-sentimental picture that is too preachy. Instead, Van Sant really paints a great picture of small town life and I thought the screenplay allowed each character to fully grow. This includes obviously the Damon character but several other smaller ones including a terrific bit by Hal Holbrook who plays a local school teacher. The material is extremely well-written and for the most part the message is always there but it's never just beating the viewer over the head. Damon turns in some of his best work in years as he's completely believable in the role of this salesman who starts to have second thoughts. I thought the actor delivered a very strong and emotional performance that really paid off. Holbrook is simply divine in his small role and McDormand is also very good in her supporting bit. Rosemarie DeWitt also adds another winning performance to her resume. PROMISED LAND, I think, could have ended a bit better but there's still something that bring it all together. The film is fairly predictable but with such strong direction and a great cast it's still very much worth seeing.

I enjoy Matt Damon and was excited to see this movie, until I made it to the part where the "environmentalists" stepped in; then I knew exactly where this movie was going. Then the BIG surprise ending where you found out that Dustin really worked for Global?! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! These movies and other false propaganda is the reason why we have people against hydraulic fracing (There's no K btw), even though most of those people do not even know what it is. The classroom scene was a perfect example of how environmentalists lie to the people for their own benefit. Go here if you want to learn about hydraulic fracturing, there is no party affiliation or any bias tied to this site, just a Petrophysics Professor who teaches a fracing class for engineers: http://www.spec2000.net/10-closurestress.htm All in all, I did not like this movie, because of its clear purpose. This is not a movie for entertainment, its a movie with an agenda to misguide the American people down the wrong path.

***SPOILER*** This movie so bad, that I suspect that the assertion that it was financed by Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the President of the United Arab Emerates, is false. Anything that so blatantly satirizes and trivializes anti-fracking arguments as does "Promised Land" must have been financed by the fracking industry. There are compelling and persuasive arguments for and against fracking. Energy production and energy conservation are not risk-free endeavors. There are always trade-offs to be evaluated and weighed regardless of how energy is produced or conserved. An honest, if truncated, evaluation of fracking could have been possible within the confines of a standard length Hollywood movie. Instead we got this nonsense that trivializes a critical issue in today's society.

I wasted $9.00 on this Hollyweird anti-fracking agitprop "Promised Land" so you won't have to. The movie's sole purpose is to exploit people's fears and their lack of information about water pollution from fracking. Damon's character is an energy-company representative dispatched to a struggling farm town to buy drilling rights on their land and prey on their misfortune. He meets an environmental activist played by John Krasinski, who co-wrote the movie with Damon. Matt claimed in a Playboy interview that fracking is only a backdrop for the story but given his political predilections, that's poppycock. At one point in the film, Matt's character Butler tells the land owners "gas means "F*** You money" just one of many not so subtle metaphors throughout the film. They want you to believe fracking is a relatively new and untested technology yet more than 1 million wells in the United States have been hydraulically fractured since 1947. If you're simply looking for entertainment, the trailer is the most entertaining part of this film and its free. No credits given to the state-owned media company in the United Arab Emirates yet they partly funded the movie. I guess Matt Damon is so rich, he can devote all of his time making left-wing feelgood propaganda films. Even rich super stars need a hobby! If you really want to know what's driving the anti-Fracking movement(money and power), you won't find it in this film.

There have been plenty of actors to make the great leap from the small screen to big screen and with plenty of success, but it is my feeling that John Krasinski will be one of the few that becomes a powerhouse player in Hollywood. His latest effort, which he co-wrote with co-star Matt Damon and teamed up with Damon's friend and director of Damon's breakout film, Good Will Hunting, Gus Van Sant. Promised Land is one movie that you will be able to go back and pinpoint as turning point in Krasiniski's career and where Damon has gone from the player to the teacher. This is the story of a big energy corporation looking to take the natural gas resources of a small farming town. The corporation's representatives played perfectly by Damon and Frances McDormand are sent in to find land to lease for areas for fracking a dangerous and controversial means of extracting the natural gas from miles under the ground. Soon a local school teacher and retired "genius" begins raising questions and has the town very much concerned and it raises to another level when a small environmental group comes to town with it's representative played by Krasinski. When he clearly has the town on his side Damon's small town roots and conscience begin eating away at him. Then the bottom falls out and only one is left standing. Having made his mark on the sit-com, The Office, Kransinski has clearly proved he is more than just a smart funny character on a popular sit-com, he's now a true actor. His performance which begins very much playing into his comedy roots takes a quick and dramatic turn. There is no one better to walk Krasinski out of the office and into the Promised Land than Matt Damon. This being only second major screenplay, it is not unlikely that he could follow his co-stars footsteps and take home the golden statue on Oscar night (this would also give Damon his second writing Oscar). With a nearly perfectly cast of supporting players from the perfectly placed Hal Holbrook to the always lovely Rosemarie DeWitt, Promised Land is a film that will have you feeling every emotion poured on the screen. With plenty of comedic moments to have you taken in early on, to the real emotions that can easily be identified with of the local towns folk. The performance of the film that had my attention from the moment he appeared on screen was the legendary Hal Holbrook. His role as a man who loves his town and farm despite having had the opportunities escape, is one that you almost can't take your eyes off of. Holbrook has one Oscar nomination to his credit and it wasn't very long ago for the wonderful Into The Wild when he was a spry 83 years old. Now a perfectly aged 87 he might not only be looking at another well deserved nomination but he just may walk on that stage and take that coveted award in his hand and no doubt to an arousing applaud. www.loveyourmovies.com

I had a hard time deciding how high to rate this. Bad points: Damon's acting and dialog. Good points: Several plot twists that took me by surprise. OK, fairly predictable left wing propaganda. Not as heavy handed as I feared going into it, but still an unpleasant issue, like a blister on a hike. Not a deal breaker, but not a good thing. So again, some of the acting was quite good (sorry Matt, not you). And the plot twists actually surprised me, something that hasn't happened since I saw Shymalan's one good movie: "Sixth Sense" So, all that being said, 4 stars seems about right. Finally a few things you might not know and might find interesting: 1) Obama's secretary of the interior reported to congress that there have been zero cases of fracking polluting ground water. 2) The movie was funded by the United Arab Emirates. Now, why do you think an OPEC country would be pushing an anti Fracking movie? Hmmmmm.

Intelligent. Thought-provoking. Thoroughly enjoyed. Accurate portrayal of big cooperations engaging in an undercover fashion, posing s ignificant risks to the environment and their business partner's health, but on the surface exposing the benefits of money by sponsoring local fairs and baseball team clothing. I admired the fact that it did show both sides of the issue at hand. Yes, the people in a small farming community do need money and the cooperations understand this and see this as their best form of PR because it does help people, but short-term. But, on the other side - destroying the environment, their livelihood, their dignity, their health, the animals are long-term effects that are not accounted for. Anyone who opposes should at least give the film a shot because it does cover both sides.

I really enjoyed this film. Acting is superb (obviously, look at the cast), beautifully shot, engaging confident storytelling. Very will scripted by Krasinski and Damon. People seem a bit split on this movie, I think that partly has to do with a 'hot button' subject, but I don't think the film overly politicized the issue, in fact it did a good job of not making it to preachy, and showed that it is a very complicated issue. Also the movie isn't an action film, it's a drama, that is nonetheless thoroughly engaging. Highly recommend. would give it 10/10 but third act issues lowered the score for me just a bit. Still a great watch!

"I'm not selling them natural gas. I'm selling them the only way they have to get back." Steve Butler (Damon) is a salesman working for Global, a natural gas company. Him and his partner travel to a small farming community to buy up property rights in order to drill. When an objection by a local teacher causes an enviormentalist activist to show up things get harder for Steve. This is a movie where the trailer doesn't do it justice. I wanted to see it based off the cast but it looked a little boring. While the movie is a little slow moving it is in no way boring. The writing and acting is very good and the "bad guy" that Damon plays really makes you feel for him and kind of root for him instead of the "good guy". While the movie does get a little political towards the end this is not a typical "enviromental/save the Earth" type movie. This movie makes you able to feel both sides of the argument and almost forces you to pick a side. I expected this to be boring with good acting going in. I got sucked in pretty fast and ended up really liking this much more then I thought I would. Overall, much better then expected and I highly recommend this. I give it an A.