what a land

source: The Land

Four teenage boys commit to making it out of the inner city of their hometown Cleveland by pursuing their dreams of becoming professional skateboarders. Because of lack of funds they needed to get into tournaments they had to depend on illegal ways to obtain money. This landed them in an extremely sticky situation that will test their brotherhood and their morals. After watching The Land we can see that this stands apart from other coming of age movies and stories. It stands differently than all of the high school romance and high school drama stories who are all very similar and overused plot themes. These boys have real big, real world problems. Violence problems, poverty problems, family problems. None of the cheesy stuff. The movie is also relatable because of how the characters change throughout. A main example would be how Cisco changes in the movie. In a time where there is more violence than ever, The Land shows the even more harsh violence that is not shown on the news. The stuff that happens daily in big cities but usually goes unnoticed. This is showed in one scene when guys apart of a drug queenpin shoot drive by and shoot someone on their dirt bikes. There are also many examples that show change and many high schoolers go through lots of changes. One example is how cisco changes. He is all for doing the illegal things and he is the one who had the idea. But he was the first to realise that they are not cut up for the stuff. He tries to quit but no one else wants to. I recommend this movie for kids ages 13-19 because they can relate to this the most. These kids are coming of age the hard way like many kids do. This is a very entertaining and unique movie that is not like many others i have seen.

This movie does a great job of showing how the naivete of youth can have disastrous consequences for the kids and their extended families. The plot plays out in a way that causes the audience to share in the anxiety of the characters

If you want to watch a really depressing movie this is it. This movie was something that as you watch you can already foretell what's going to happen in the next scene. Wasn't really out of the box or different from anything that you would imagine this film to be about from reading the summary. That's about it.

Never wanted the movie to end, it was a very good movie, the ending of it wasn't too good because of what happens to Junior but it did add that thrilling feeling when Cisco gets his revenge. The violence is basically a reality of some of the stuff that happens in places like Cleveland, Compton and more. I wish that there was more of a happy ending for example at least one of them succeed in becoming a professional skate boarder. I really loved how they showed the realism with all the gangs around the neighbour hood it was very unexpected but still very good. Also I think all of the actors played the characters perfect. Overall the movie was exceptional and I would love for there to be a number 2

Believable drama, and quite atmospheric Though thought Michael Kenneth Williams who is such a great character actor was totally under used in his role as one of the teenagers father.

Going in to watch this movie, I did not have high hopes. It seemed to be a tired theme, judging by the write-up. Though it was not groundbreaking or a 'first of its type', it was thoroughly enjoyable, with some very solid acting accompanied by some excellent music. I think that this film will definitely appeal to a teen audience, much like the classic 'basketball diaries' did for me when I was a teenager. With a solid plot, it actually feels more like a documentary at times, than a movie. It does pull on the heart-strings a little, and will hit home for some with the brutal neighborhood and lifestyle that some less fortunate children are brought up in, but not in a cliché way. Overall I feel a 7/10 does it justice.

Watch dope after this film for a good contrast. To be honest the shock at the end (youll know if you've watched it) pulls it all together, to really push across a message thats hard to ignore. This film is about dreams, friendship, greed and most of all reality. Yes it is a bleak film at times, but I feel unfortunately life is often bleak - especially when born into bleak circumstances as many people are. There are a lot of morals to be found in this story, and something which I have to say i love is the absence of romance. This film was about friendship, family and all the other factors involved., and didn't feel the need to pimp itself up with a romantic story line irrelevant to the story.

This is the first (full-length) movie written and directed by Steven Caple Jr, a Clevelander from Tremont, where the movie (whose atmosphere sounds quite autobiographic) is based. It's a good film, already vastly celebrated at 2016 Sundance Film Festival, dealing with the universal theme of coming of age without expectations, money, family or education. And Mr Caple's glance to mankind (as in any great artist) is a loving one. Even the title seems to express Author's feelings for his own roots, instead than a relation to the story itself. Some actors are unknown but you will probably recognize Machine Gun Kelly, the unbelievable Erykah Badu and the great Kim Coates.