One of the great things about cinema is how not only the actors can become characters to the story. There is so much beauty in the world that when it is placed front and center becomes an entity all its own. The latest film LAND starring Demian Bichir and Robin Wright also making her directorial debut. Could this film offer up the breathtaking landscape it promises along with the depth or will it get lost in the woods?

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LAND follows one woman’s search for meaning in the vast and harsh American wilderness. Edee, in the aftermath of an unfathomable event, finds herself unable to stay connected to the world she once knew, and in the face of that uncertainty, retreats to the magnificent, but unforgiving, wilds of the Rockies. After a local hunter brings her back from the brink of death, she must find a way to live again.

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I always love when actors make the transition to directing to see what their experience in front of the camera has given them for behind it. Here Robin Wright has fully embraced letting the vibrant beauty and scariness of nature to take front and center which fully embodies the journey her character is on. It’s a pretty simple premise that wastes no time getting to the point while offering up so much depth and growth for not only her but those around her.

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The film is firmly focused on Edee, but with the introduction of Bichir’s character Miguel it kind of becomes a much larger story of survival, redemption, heart and friendship that begins to tell a story that is more than you might originally believe. For the first half if not more of the film Wright speaks very little yet still offers up a powerful performance that showcases her pain and desperation that is really hard to tell if she even is interesting in surviving. As it unfolds the layers are torn away to reveal an interesting new direction in the film that made it work so much better.

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With a relatively short runtime it packs in so much beauty and life that will surely hit the notes with audiences that are willing to listen and see the message right in front of them. In addition to the film this release offers up bonus content including featurettes that take you behind bringing this film to life. Grab your copy of LAND available now on digital, Blu-ray and DVD now from Universal Home Entertainment.