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I was also able to view this beautiful film at a pre-screening in Northfield through St. Olaf and Carleton Colleges. I cannot praise this film enough. I am so excited to have Ali make more films and so anxious for this film to be released in theaters so that everyone may enjoy it. I also stayed after the film for a Q&A with Ali (the director) and it was really interesting to hear him speak about the film. Fantastic film, gorgeous filming, heartfelt story. Tears rolled down my face at the end; extremely touching film. I think people of all ages will appreciate this film. The director comes from commercial work and advertising so his transition to film was interesting to hear about, but it seemed to be extremely successful! I can't say enough about Sweet Land!

Moulin Rouge is a great movie....for some people. It's one of those "love it, hate it" movies---I, personally, loved it. All of my friends loved it; in fact, everyone I know that's seen it has loved it, a lot of them have and seen it twice. Compare it with Baz Luhrman's "Romeo and Juliet" for the sweeping, tragic, romance. Compare it with an artsy music video for the cinematography. Then compare it with your Greatest Hits from the Last 30 Years CD for the soundtrack. It's about 1/2 opera, 1/2 dialogue. Imagine such songs as "Your Song", "Roxanne", and "Like A Virgin" as key scenes in the movie, only all songs tweaked to be "broadway"nized. Ewan McGregor's performance is quite good, and his voice proves to be pretty decent, too. (I enjoyed his rendition of Elton John's `Your Song' better than the original!) Nicole Kidman is in a typical `unattainable goddess' role, with pretty good acting (not as impressive as McGregor's emotional performance), and with an I-Got-the-Lead-in-a-few-High-School-Musicals voice. Be prepared to be open-minded for the first 20 minutes (it's a little weird in the beginning), but to be delighted with the rest of the film. And BE OPEN MINDED! You should love it!