The Territory (2022 film)
The Territory is an 2022 internationally co-produced documentary film directed by Alex Pritz. It follows a young Indigenous leader of the Uru-eu-wau-wau people fighting back against farmers, colonizers and settlers who encroach on a protected area of the Amazon Rainforest. Filmed on location in Brazil from 2018 to 2020, the film utilizes almost exclusively on-the-ground, primary source material, including footage produced directly by the Uru-eu-wau-wau. Darren Aronofsky serves as a producer under his Protozoa Pictures banner.
| The Territory | |
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Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Alex Pritz |
| Produced by |
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| Cinematography |
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| Edited by | Carlos Rojas Felice |
| Music by | Katya Mihailova |
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Release dates |
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Running time | 86 minutes[1] |
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| Box office | $70,093[2][3] |
The film had its world premiere at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival on January 22, 2022. It was released in select cities in the United States and Canada on August 19, 2022, by National Geographic Documentary Films and Picturehouse with wider release to follow. Its festival run has included a number of award nominations and victories, including wins at Sundance and Telluride. Critics have praised its cinematography as well the authentic portrayal of tension between Indigenous peoples and settlers in contemporary Brazil.
Synopsis edit
The film focuses on the Uru-eu-wau-wau, an Amazonian tribe only contacted by the Brazilian government in 1980. Originally numbering in the thousands, the tribe is presented as just 200 strong at the film's outset. Bitaté Uru-eu-wau-wau is introduced as an 18-year-old who, despite his youth, is selected as leader of Uru-eu-wau-wau in order to coordinate their protection in the face of encroaching settlers who deploy slash-and-burn tactics to establish frontier settlements. Neidinha Bandeira, an environmental and human rights activist, is the other central cast member, working tirelessly to protect Uru-eu-wau-wau land and present their story to journalists and politicians. White seizure of Indigenous land is presented as a quasi-legal movement, tacitly encouraged after the election of reactionary populist Jair Bolsonaro.
The film interweaves vérité footage of settlers themselves who, though chauvinistic, also have genuine faith in their entitlement to Amazonian land. The threat of violence hangs over the film's action. Bandeira faces near-constant death threats and the tribe deals frankly with the threat of elimination. The murder of Ari Uru-eu-wau-wau, a 33-year-old tribal leader beloved by the Uru-eu-wau-wau, is presented around the film's mid-point; the primary coordinator of tribal patrols, Ari is found murdered on a roadside with his death unsolved at the film's conclusion. The Uru-eu-wau-wau are also hit hard by COVID-19, losing 5% of their already tiny numbers.
The film's last act presents Bitaté taking up Ari's patrol leadership, teaching drone and film technology to tribe members in order to document settler intrusion and monitor territory boundaries. The tribe implements a de facto police apparatus, arresting individual settlers and destroying their out-buildings and implements. Bandeira continues her steadfast advocacy and organizing despite being deeply shaken by Ari's murder. The tribe's position is presented as resolute but extremely precarious at the film's end, with a concluding crawl noting that the Amazon clearance, the invasion of indigenous land and the appropriation of resources continues to accelerate under the Bolsonaro administration.
Release and reception edit
The film had its world premiere at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival on January 22, 2022.[4][1] Shortly after, National Geographic Documentary Films acquired distribution rights to the film.[5] It was released in the United States on August 19, 2022.[6] The Territory received positive reviews from film critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, it has a 97% approval rating based on 63 reviews, with an average rating of 8/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "Visually striking, formally refreshing, and ultimately enraging, The Territory is a powerful advocacy documentary with the heart of a thriller."[7] On Metacritic, the film holds a score of 83 out of 100 based on 17 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[8]
Critics acknowledge that The Territory is an advocacy film rather than a strictly disinterested documentary. The New York Times notes in its review that Indigenous people and settlers "are given near-equal amounts of screen time" but that "Pritz does not draw a false equivalency between the two; in fact, the longer time is spent with the farmers, the more alarming their gap of understanding toward the Uru Eu Wau Wau becomes."[9] The sense of intimacy created by immediate, personal portraits of conflicting perspectives is praised across reviews, heightened by striking visuals and sound design.[10] The LA Times calls the film a "a gripping portrait of an endangered community."[11] A more critical review at RogerEbert.com acknowledges the cinematography but suggests that the hero-villain narrative risks simplicity and becomes monotous.[12]
Accolades edit
| Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipient(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cinema Eye Honors | January 12, 2023 | Outstanding Non-Fiction Feature | Alex Pritz, Darren Aronofsky, Gabriel Uchida, Sigrid Dyekjær, Lizzie Gillett, and Will N. Miller | Nominated | [13] [14] |
| Outstanding Production | Alex Pritz, Darren Aronofsky, Gabriel Uchida, Sigrid Dyekjær, Lizzie Gillett, and Will N. Miller | Nominated | |||
| Outstanding Cinematography | Alex Pritz and Tangãi Uru-eu-wau-wau | Nominated | |||
| Outstanding Original Score | Katya Mihailova | Nominated | |||
| Outstanding Sound Design | Rune Klausen and Peter Albrechtsen | Nominated | |||
| Outstanding Debut | Alex Pritz | Won | |||
| Audience Choice Prize | The Territory | Nominated | |||
| The Unforgettables | Bitaté Uru-eu-wau-wau and Neidinha Bandeira | Won | |||
| Copenhagen International Documentary Film Festival | March 23 – April 3, 2022 | F:act Award – Special Mention | The Territory | Won | [15] |
| Critics' Choice Documentary Awards | November 13, 2022 | Best First Documentary Feature | Alex Pritz | Nominated | [16] [17] |
| Best Science/Nature Documentary | The Territory | Nominated | |||
| Best Cinematography | Alex Pritz and Tangãi Uru-eu-wau-wau | Nominated | |||
| Dublin Film Critics Circle Awards | December 15, 2022 | Best Documentary | The Territory | 9th place | [18] [19] |
| Golden Reel Awards | February 26, 2023 | Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Feature Documentary | Rune Klausen, Peter Albrechtsen, Mikkel Nielsen, Tim Nielsen, Sebastian Vaskio, Guilherme Tortolo Magrin, Pietu Korhonen, and Heikki Kossi | Nominated | [20] |
| Golden Trailer Awards | June 29, 2023 | Best Documentary TV Spot (for a Feature Film) | The Territory (ZEALOT) | Nominated | [21] |
| Best Original Score TV Spot (for a Feature Film) | Nominated | ||||
| Gotham Awards | November 28, 2022 | Best Documentary | The Territory | Nominated | [22] |
| International Wildlife Film Festival | April 23–30, 2022 | Best of Festival Award | Won | [23] [24] | |
| Best Sustainable Planet Category | Won | ||||
| Mountainfilm | May 30, 2022 | Moving Mountains Award | Won | [25] | |
| Peabody Awards | June 11, 2023 | Documentary | Won | [26] | |
| Primetime Emmy Awards | September 9–10, 2023 | Exceptional Merit In Documentary Filmmaking | Alex Pritz, Darren Aronofsky, Sigrid Dyekjær, Will N. Miller, Gabriel Uchida, Lizzie Gillett, and Txai Suruí | Pending | [27] |
| Outstanding Directing For A Documentary/Nonfiction Program | Alex Pritz | Pending | |||
| Outstanding Cinematography For A Nonfiction Program | Alex Pritz and Tangãi Uru-eu-wau-wa | Pending | |||
| Producers Guild of America Awards | February 25, 2023 | Outstanding Producer of Documentary Theatrical Motion Pictures | Sigrid Dyekjaer, Will Miller, Lizzie Gillett, Darren Aronofsky, Gabriel Uchida, and Alex Pritz | Nominated | [28] [29] |
| Provincetown International Film Festival | June 15–19, 2022 | John Schlesinger Documentary Award | Alex Pritz | Won | [30] [31] |
| Satellite Awards | March 3, 2023 | Best Motion Picture – Documentary | The Territory | Nominated | [32] [33] [34] |
| Seattle International Film Festival | April 24, 2022 | Golden Space Needle Award – Best Documentary | Won | [35] | |
| Sheffield DocFest | June 23–28, 2022 | Tim Hetherington Award – Special Mention | Won | [36] | |
| Sundance Film Festival | January 20–30, 2022 | World Cinema Documentary – Audience Award | Won | [37] [38] | |
| World Cinema Documentary – Special Jury Award for Documentary Craft | Won | ||||
| Zurich Film Festival | October 1, 2022 | Science Film Award | Won | [39] |
References edit
- ^ a b "Sundance Film Festival 2022 Program Guide" (PDF). Sundance Institute. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
- ^ "The Territory". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved August 28, 2022.
- ^ "The Territory (2022)". The Numbers. Nash Information Services, LLC. Retrieved August 28, 2022.
- ^ Lang, Brent (December 9, 2021). "Sundance Unveils 2022 Feature Lineup, Including Films from Lena Dunham, Amy Poehler and Netflix's Kanye West Doc". Variety. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
- ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (January 23, 2022). "National Geographic Docu Films Acquires Sundance Film The Territory". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
- ^ "40 Films to See this Summer". The Film Stage. April 27, 2022. Retrieved April 27, 2022.
- ^ "The Territory". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved November 9, 2022.
- ^ "The Territory Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved November 9, 2022.
- ^ Shaffer, Claire (August 18, 2022). "The Territory Review: Saving the Amazon, One Camera at a Time". The New York Times. Retrieved August 19, 2022.
- ^ Linden, Sheri (January 28, 2022). "The Territory: Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 19, 2022.
- ^ Abele, Robert (August 18, 2022). "Review: Indigenous people turn to technology to save their Amazon home in The Territory". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 19, 2022.
- ^ Allen, Nick (August 19, 2022). "The Territory". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved August 19, 2022.
- ^ MacCary, Julia; Shafer, Ellise (January 12, 2023). "All That Breathes, Fire of Love Lead Cinema Eye Honors". Variety. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
- ^ Jones, Marcus (November 10, 2022). "Fire of Love and The Territory Lead 2023 Cinema Eye Honors Nonfiction Film Nominees". IndieWire. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
- ^ Dalton, Ben (April 1, 2022). "CPH:DOX reveals 2022 competition, industry winners". Screen Daily. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
- ^ Zilko, Christian (November 13, 2022). "Good Night Oppy, Get Back Dominate Critics Choice Documentary Awards (Complete Winners List)". IndieWire. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
- ^ Davis, Clayton (October 17, 2022). "Fire of Love and Good Night Oppy Lead Critics Choice Documentary Award Nominations". Variety. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
- ^ Clarke, Donald (December 15, 2022). "An Cailín Ciúin named film of the year by Dublin Film Critics' Circle". The Irish Times. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
- ^ "An Cailín Ciúin Makes History at the Dublin Film Critics' Circle". Screen Ireland. December 16, 2022. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
- ^ Tangcay, Jazz (January 9, 2023). "Everything Everywhere All At Once Leads Motion Picture Sound Editors Golden Reel Awards Nominations". Variety. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
- ^ Tinoco, Armando (June 5, 2023). "Golden Trailer Awards Nominations List: Stranger Things, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Ted Lasso & Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery Among Most Nominated". Deadline Hollywood. from the original on June 5, 2023. Retrieved June 6, 2023.
- ^ Shanfield, Ethan (October 25, 2022). "Tár Leads Gotham Awards Nominations: Full List". Variety. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
- ^ "2022 Winners". International Wildlife Film Festival. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
- ^ "IWFF Announces the Award Winners of the 2022 International Wildlife Film Festival". Wildlife Film. April 29, 2022. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
- ^ "Mountainfilm awards". Telluride Daily Planet. June 7, 2022. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
- ^ Coates, Tyler (May 9, 2023). "Peabody Awards: Abbott Elementary, Andor, Severance and We're Here Among Winners". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved June 4, 2023.
- ^ "The Territory". Television Academy. Retrieved July 12, 2023.
- ^ "Producers Guild of America Awards Celebrates Everything Everywhere All At Once, White Lotus, The Bear, Navalny & more with Top Honors" (Press release). Los Angeles: Producers Guild of America. February 25, 2023. Retrieved March 2, 2023.
- ^ Carey, Matthew (December 12, 2022). "PGA Awards Documentary Nominations Bring Shocks and Surprises: Nothing Compares In, All The Beauty And The Bloodshed Out". Deadline. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
- ^ "Provincetown International Film Festival Announces 2022 Winners – PIFF Receives Oscar-Qualifying Status". Provincetown Film. June 19, 2022. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
- ^ Sippell, Margeaux (June 20, 2022). "Provincetown International Film Festival Announces 2022 Award Winners". MovieMaker Magazine. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
- ^ "2022 Nominees". International Press Academy. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
- ^ "IPA Reveals Nominations for the 27th Satellite Awards". International Press Academy. December 8, 2022. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
- ^ "The International Press Academy Announces Winners for the 27th Annual Satellite Awards". International Press Academy. March 3, 2023. Retrieved March 10, 2023.
- ^ Murphy, J. Kim (April 24, 2022). "Seattle International Film Festival Awards Top Honors to Klondike, Know Your Place". Variety. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
- ^ Ramachandran, J. Naman (June 29, 2022). "Sansón and Me, Master of Light Win Sheffield Doc/Fest". Variety. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
- ^ Debruge, Peter (January 28, 2022). "Sundance 2022 Winners: From Nanny and Navalny to Crowd-Pleaser Cha Cha Real Smooth, Indie Fest Spreads the Wealth". Variety. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
- ^ "2022 Sundance Film Festival Awards Announced". Sundance Institute. January 28, 2022. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
- ^ "The Golden Eyes of the 18th ZFF Go to Films from Switzerland, from Colombia and from the USA". Zurich Film Festival. October 1, 2022. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
External links edit
- The Territory at IMDb