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This Is Our Land (2018) movie poster

Spoiler-Free Summary

This Is Our Land (2018) Spoiler-Free Summary – What It's About

Release, runtime and language
2018 · 117 min · French
Echo score 70
JustWatch #23,011 4
Directed by
Lucas Belvaux
Starring
Émilie Dequenne, André Dussollier, Catherine Jacob, Guillaume Gouix, Patrick Descamps, Corentin Lobet
Budget
$5.8M

A compassionate nurse, seeking connection and purpose, becomes entangled with a far-right political movement. Drawn in by their promises, she explores their ideology but soon faces a disturbing reality, challenging her beliefs and forcing her to examine the dangerous allure of extremism and the potential consequences of belonging.

On this page (6)
  1. 1 Where to watch
  2. 2 What it is about
  3. 3 Is it worth watching?
  4. 4 After you watch
  5. 5 Movie threads
  6. 6 Every angle

Where to watch

Where to Watch This Is Our Land (2018)

Where can you watch This Is Our Land? Stream, rent or buy it in the US, including on OVID, Fawesome and Kanopy: current JustWatch availability with up-to-date prices.

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Spoiler-free summary · safe to read

What Is This Is Our Land About? (No Spoilers)

The plot of This Is Our Land (2018) without spoilers: what it is about, who it follows and where it takes place, told without the twists or the ending. Enough to decide whether it is your next watch, not enough to ruin it.

In the quiet villages of Pas‑de‑Calais, the rhythm of daily life is marked by the hum of factories, the chatter of market stalls, and the steady, caring presence of Pauline, a home‑nurse whose compassion has become a lifeline for the locals. Juggling the demands of a modest salary, her two children, Tom and Lili, and the weight of an aging father, Jacques, she embodies the resilience of the working‑class family striving to keep hope alive amid economic strain. The film’s tone balances the warmth of intimate domestic moments with an undercurrent of unease, hinting that even the most familiar streets can conceal shifting loyalties.

When the charismatic right‑wing physician Philippe Berthier approaches her with an unexpected opportunity, Pauline finds herself drawn into the orbit of a nationalist movement led by the compelling Agnès Dorgelle. The promise of community renewal and a platform to amplify her caring nature teases a new sense of purpose, while the political undercurrents of the region begin to swirl around her. Alongside her reappears Stéphane Stankowiak, an old school friend who now coaches her son’s soccer team, and whose ambiguous past adds a layer of tension to her budding involvement.

Family ties and friendships become a delicate balancing act. Jacques, a former communist, reacts with alarm to his daughter’s potential alignment with a cause that feels antithetical to his lifelong convictions. Meanwhile, the village itself fractures into camps: some patients rally behind Pauline’s newfound visibility, while others, including Nathalie Leclerc and Nada Belisha, voice concerns about the moral price of such affiliation. These interpersonal frictions underscore the broader societal discord, painting a portrait of a community at a crossroads.

The film moves with a restrained, contemplative style, letting the stark beauty of the northern French landscape echo the internal conflict of its protagonist. As Pauline navigates the lure of political belonging against the backdrop of her caring vocation, the story invites viewers to ponder how easily empathy can be reshaped into something far more complex, and whether the search for purpose can lead one into unexpected and unsettling territories.

Last updated: August 10, 2025 at 02:40

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What to expect

Is This Is Our Land Worth Watching? What It Feels Like

Is it dark, sad, slow, intense or confusing? The mood of This Is Our Land (2018) in a few tags, without a word about how it ends. Each tag opens a list of movies that feel the same.

After you watch

Seen This Is Our Land? Now Read the Spoilers

Once you have watched This Is Our Land (2018), come back for the full story: the plot summary with spoilers, the timeline in chronological order, the characters and meaning.

Movie threads

More Movies Like This Is Our Land, by Mood & Story

Curated lists built around what makes This Is Our Land tick: the same mood, the same kind of story or the same emotional payoff. Each list explains why these movies belong together.

Movies about ideological descent like This Is Our Land

Characters drawn into extremist movements, facing moral rupture and disillusionment. Discover films similar to This Is Our Land, where relatable protagonists are drawn into extremist groups. If you were intrigued by the exploration of radicalization, moral conflict, and the cost of belonging, these movies offer similar tense and thought-provoking drama.

  • tense
  • unsettling
  • introspective
  • divided
  • melancholic
  • anxious
  • Tone: dark, unsettling
  • Pacing: steady, character-driven
Why these movies?

The story pattern: These stories typically follow a character seeking purpose or community, who is gradually indoctrinated into a rigid ideology. The narrative tension builds as the character confronts the gap between their initial ideals and the movement's disturbing reality, culminating in a crisis of conscience and a break from the group, often at great personal cost.

Why they belong together: These films are grouped by their shared focus on a specific character arc: the journey into and out of a radicalizing ideology. They create a similar viewing experience of psychological tension, moral unease, and a heavy emotional weight stemming from broken ideals and fractured relationships.

Somber dramas of social division like This Is Our Land

Tense stories where personal lives are fractured by broader social and political rifts. Explore movies like This Is Our Land that capture the tension of social and political division. If you appreciated the film's somber mood and its focus on how community conflict forces personal moral choices, these similar stories will resonate with you.

  • somber
  • tense
  • melancholic
  • divided
  • anxious
  • disillusioned
  • Tone: dark, somber, bittersweet
  • Pacing: steady, deliberate
Why these movies?

The story pattern: Narratives in this thread often use a community or family as a microcosm for larger societal conflicts. A central character, often initially apolitical or seeking connection, is forced to take a stand as ideological lines are drawn, leading to betrayals, strained family bonds, and a bittersweet personal realization about the world.

Why they belong together: These movies share a cohesive, heavy atmosphere built from themes of social fracture, betrayal, and disillusionment. They are united by a dark, steady tone, a focus on working-class struggles or community dynamics, and an emotionally resonant, often bittersweet, conclusion.

Every angle

This Is Our Land (2018) Explained: Plot, Timeline & Characters

Everything about This Is Our Land in one place: what happens in the plot summary, the timeline in chronological order, the characters and meaning and a spoiler-free summary. What's After the Movie adds the cast, box office and post-credit scenes.

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