‘To a Land Unknown’ Movie Review [AFI Fest 2024]: A Routine Immigration Story Is Elevated By Powerful Performances

Photo from AFI Fest

From Jeff Nelson

Real-life immigration stories have a nuance that extends far beyond the storytelling tropes on the silver screen. Mahdi Fleifel’s To a Land Unknown relies on these common themes, but its clean execution separates this crime drama from the pack. Each passing familiar cliché doesn’t feel like much until the film’s final moments, where it ties together to create a more meaningful experience.

Cousins Chatila (Mahmood Bakri) and Reda (Aram Sabbah) are Palestinean refugees who find themselves trapped in Athens after a smuggler rips them off. They’re drawn into their own high-risk smuggling plot to earn enough money to immigrate to Germany and create a new life of opportunity for their family left behind in a camp in Lebanon.

The movie opens with a quote from Palestinian-American philosopher Edward Said: “In a way, it's sort of the fate of Palestinians, not to end up where they started, but somewhere unexpected and far away.” This statement reverberates through every bone of In a Land Unknown, where uncertainty is the greatest demon. Chatila and Reda share a powerful bond, saving every dollar they can to achieve their goal. Reda’s looming drug addiction threatens it all, as he battles loneliness and hopelessness in a foreign land. Meanwhile, Chatila sees a light at the end of the tunnel, although his patience wears thin in shouldering his family’s responsibilities.

Chatila and Reda’s stealing, borrowing, and begging come to an end when they meet a 13-year-old Palestinian boy who ends up in Athens while immigrating to reconvene with his aunt in Italy. The cousins devise a plan to smuggle the boy themselves to earn enough money to reach Germany. However, desperation leads them to commit progressively more serious crimes to discover a place to call home. The thriller aspect is actually the less compelling piece of the puzzle. To a Land Unknown is most interesting when it’s centered on the two cousins and the cold isolation they encounter on the Athenian streets.

The two lead characters are made further enthralling by the strong performances that bring them to life. Bakri instills urgency in Chatila, elevating the film’s tension without neglecting the more tender aspects of the character. Meanwhile, Sabbah delivers a grounded representation of Reda’s addiction and the compassion that yearns to shine through. Cinematographer Thodoros Mihopoulos’ gritty photography strengthens the tone of the city streets.

To a Land Unknown reaches an evocative conclusion that works as well as it does thanks to Bakri and Sabbah’s authentic performances. Predictable plot beats are scattered throughout and some story threads don’t lead anywhere, making the wider narrative feel confusing and unfinished, rather than ambiguous. Even so, the total package wears its heart on its sleeve in a way that is rather affecting. 

Rating: 3/5

To a Land Unknown played AFI Fest 2024 on October 23rd, 2024.

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