Land Of Plenty (2005)
Picture: C+ Sound: C+ Extras: C+ Film: C+
There is
this strange idea circling director Wim Wenders that as a filmmaker and artist,
he sees things in U.S. better than U.S. citizens do. Maybe he gets lucky and sees some things but
for the most part, this is false, especially since plenty of U.S. critics,
filmmakers and writers see the same things possibly attributed to him and
better. Made during a production delay,
Wenders’ Land Of Plenty (2005)
attempts to look at anxiety among the poor and police in a fictional account of
the two-year point of 9/11 in Los Angeles.
Michelle
Williams is Lana, a young lady who must deal with a police father (John Diehl)
too far to the Right for his own good.
She is trying to help at a homeless shelter that has a soup kitchen,
while he thinks he is onto an Islamic Terrorist. The film has some good moments and it is
actually not as pretentious as Wenders usual narrative films, but it just never
gels. Yes, he is observant about some
aspects of our society, but things like the Right Wing Radio Talk Show host
don’t ring accurate, even when they are true.
The one here is far too nice and not angry enough to be recognized. Burt Young and Gloria Stewart also star in a
124 minutes long piece that may run on a bit.
The
anamorphically enhanced 1.78 x 1 image was obviously shot in digital (1080i
HD?) being soft and detail challenged throughout, with limited colors. The Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo is front heavy
and in Pro Logic mode, you get few surrounds and cramped dialogue. Extras include eight deleted scenes of mixed
quality (they had to cut somewhere), a making of featurette and yet another
Wenders commentary. You can read more
about Wenders at the following link:
Wim
Wenders Volume 2 DVD Set:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/4776/Wim+Wenders+Collection+–+Volume+Two+(Scarlet+Letter/Wrong+Move/American+Friend/Lightning+Over+Water/Room+666/Tokyo-Ga/Notebook+On+Cities+&+Clothes/A+Trick+Of+Light;+Anchor+Bay)
- Nicholas Sheffo
