When a college professor confronts two hunters she catches trespassing on her property, she’s drawn into an escalating battle of wills with catastrophic consequences.
Chuck says:
The very definition of a slow burn, Julian Higgins’ God’s Country is a sly meditation on the long-term effects of racism and marginalization that wisely takes its time in examining one woman’s simmering rage and the tragic emotional storm that results. Thandiwe Newton delivers a controlled performance as Sandra, a college professor living in Montana with a dark past. The recent death of her mother seems to have increased the emotional burden she carries, and she gives vent to her feelings in increasingly unhealthy ways. When two hunters park on her land to enter the nearby forest to hunt, she takes exception and tells them not to do so anymore.
This is just the first in a series of encounters that rapidly spin out of control, until Sandra finds herself threatened on all sides and begins lashing out in public and the workplace. As the film progresses, more is revealed about her past and it becomes clear that her increasingly violent responses have very little to do with the trespass on her property. The subject of micro-aggressions and blatant instances of racism and sexism, this is a portrait of a woman who’s reached her limit and feels there is no way to stand up for herself but in a manner she abhors. Hard to shake, Country proves to be an uncommonly smart and gripping piece of social criticism.
3 1/2 Stars
Pam says:
