Overview
Three friends chase their dreams in a cutthroat world of industry and ambition.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- visceral
- bleak
- propulsive
- historical drama night
- arthouse cinema evening
What critics said
Critics broadly praise the film's visceral period reconstruction, industrial imagery, and compelling portrayal of ambition and moral degradation.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The textile boom, unsafe factory labor, and the protagonists' ruthless pursuit of fortune expose the human costs of capitalist development.
Smoke-filled streets, textile factories, machinery, and unsafe working conditions create a visceral portrait of late 19th century Łódź.
Karol Borowiecki, Moryc Welt, and Maks Baum form a business partnership as a Pole, a Jew, and a German.
Adultery, cheating, and strained husband-wife relationships accompany the men's pursuit of industrial wealth.
Films like The Promised Land, and why
There Will Be Blood
shared historical industrial setting, class conflict, corrosive ambition, and morally bleak social drama
The Leopard
shared period capitalism, ruthless wealth accumulation, lavish historical reconstruction, and social critique
Germinal
shared industrial modernity, class exploitation, ethnic tensions, and sweeping historical drama
The Last Days of Emma Blank
shared anti-capitalist period drama, ensemble ambition, and oppressive workplace conditions
Movie Details
- Director
- Andrzej Wajda
- Release Date
- 1975-02-21
- Runtime
- 179 min
- Rating
- 7.4 / 10 (91)
Cast
- Daniel Olbrychski
- Wojciech Pszoniak
- Andrzej Seweryn
- Kalina Jędrusik
- Anna Nehrebecka
- Bożena Dykiel
- Andrzej Szalawski
- Stanisław Igar
- Franciszek Pieczka
- Kazimierz Opaliński
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Klassiki
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Promised Land about?
- Three friends from different ethnic backgrounds gamble their loyalties and morality on a textile empire in industrial Łódź.
- What is The Promised Land like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Promised Land as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is The Promised Land violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in The Promised Land as mild.
- What did critics think of The Promised Land?
- Critics broadly praise the film's visceral period reconstruction, industrial imagery, and compelling portrayal of ambition and moral degradation.
- Which films are like The Promised Land?
- Films with a similar feel include There Will Be Blood, The Leopard, Germinal, and The Last Days of Emma Blank.
- How long is The Promised Land?
- The Promised Land runs 179 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Promised Land?
- In United States, The Promised Land streams on Klassiki.
