To a Land Unknown

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To a Land Unknown

Released Jul 11

1h 46m

Comedy

Drama

Crime

Mystery & Thriller

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Popcornmeter

98%

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54 Reviews

Popcornmeter

Fewer than 50 Ratings

Chatila and Reda are saving to pay for fake passports to get out of Athens. But when Reda loses their hard-earned cash to his dangerous drug addiction, Chatila hatches an extreme plan, which involves them posing as smugglers and taking hostages in an effort to get him and his best friend out of their hopeless environment before it is too late.

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Critics Consensus

Powered by Mahmoud Bakri and Aram Sabbagh's raw believability, To a Land Unknown will keep audiences pinned to their seats as they wonder what lengths these characters will go to survive.

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Ann Hornaday

Washington Post

This is the world as it is, Fleifel seems to be telling us. What it could be is left up to our own moral imagination.

Rated: 3/4

Jul 18, 2025

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Michael Phillips

Chicago Tribune

Chatila’s the emergent protagonist in the script by Fyzal Boulifa, Jason McColgan and director Fleifel, and in the compelling, un-showy performance by Mahmood Bakri, the story’s escalating tensions never feel actor-engineered.

Rated: 3/4

Jul 18, 2025

Full Review

Glenn Kenny

RogerEbert.com

The sobering note on which the movie ends recalls a stone-cold classic from a sadly long-gone era of moviemaking. The homage actually functions as a token of this movie’s integrity and heartfelt sadness.

Rated: 3/4

Jul 15, 2025

Full Review

Sankeerthna Vedamtam

MovieJawn

To A Land Unknown takes a third option in its gloomy ambiguity and firmly holds to the principle of the true buddy film. The protagonists may be hustlers, but the film makes it clear: the real long con is mutual survival.

Aug 19, 2025

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Jessie Wallace

Pajiba

This is a very strong feature from a promising director that should be seen by those who can see it.

Aug 15, 2025

Full Review

Robert Stinner

In Review Online

The stories of Chatila and Reda are compelling narratively, but they carry a weight beyond the scope of the film as symbolic microcosms of the devastating, disorienting effects of generations of displacement.

Aug 12, 2025

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Andre N

Yet another film promoting illegal migrants who, this time are drug addicts who plan to take hostages.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

08/29/25

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Orin D

We saw this fine film last night @. college film series. It is a tense, gripping experience, a film dominated by a sense of foreboding from the git-go. I often felt like I was watching a great documentary rather than a fiction film Highly recommended! BRAVO

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

08/29/25

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Hamza A

A cinematic masterpiece and a heart wrenching look at exile.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

08/15/25

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Diane P

It's a powerful and thought provoking film!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

08/13/25

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Hamza A.

A cinematic masterpiece.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/25/25

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Justin D.

The performances are incredible and the story is so timely.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/25/25

Full Review

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Mahdi Fleifel

Director

Mahmoud Bakri

Chatila

Aram Sabbagh

Reda

Mohammad Alsurafa

Malik

Angeliki Papoulia

Tatiana

Mouataz Alshalton

Abu Love

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To a Land Unknown: Trailer 1

1:37

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Synopsis

Chatila and Reda are saving to pay for fake passports to get out of Athens. But when Reda loses their hard-earned cash to his dangerous drug addiction, Chatila hatches an extreme plan, which involves them posing as smugglers and taking hostages in an effort to get him and his best friend out of their hopeless environment before it is too late.

Director: Mahdi Fleifel
Producer: Geoff Arbourne, Mahdi Fleifel
Screenwriter: Mahdi Fleifel, Fyzal Boulifa, Jason McColgan
Distributor: Watermelon Pictures
Production Co: Inside Out Films, Nakba Filmworks
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Crime, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: Arabic
Release Date (Theaters): Jul 11, 2025, Limited
Box Office (Gross USA): $14.5K
Runtime: 1h 46m
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.66:1)

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