Review No.187: You've Been Trumped

Plot: Anthony Baxter's film shows the battle between American tycoon Donald Trump and a small number of Aberdeenshire residents who want to protect their home from being turned into a golf course. Baxter follows this fight as Trump bad mouths one farmer's abode by calling it an eyesore and he also tries to get the Scottish people on his side by promising jobs at his hotel and golf resort. After the Scottish government give him the go ahead the residents refuse to move from their area of natural beauty even though it seems the police are now working for Trump also. As time goes on the people from Trump's end try dirty tactics by cutting of the power and water of several residents while at one point even Baxter is arrested.

Positives: This is a great David versus Goliath story that draws obvious comparisons to Bill Forsyth's Local Hero as we really get to know these unfortunate local residents who are at the mercy of a tyrannical businessman. Baxter makes the most of these characters by giving them all their own cameras so he can use their personal footage into the film and capture the demolishing of their homes first hand. There is also an element of guerrilla film-making here as Baxter attempts to get to Trump by ambushing at a press conference and also gets arrested for his poking his nose in where some don't feel it belongs. The cinematography throughout the film captures perfectly why this area should be preserved and why Trump and his cronies shouldn't be allowed to build on it.

Negatives: The film feels a little one-sided as Baxter fails to get any interviews with Trump's supporters or the police who arrested him. There is also an ambiguous ending which tells us that Trump's plans may now not go ahead anyway due to the installation of wind turbines on the land.

Verdict: A story that needed to be told and one that is told in a spectacular way, Baxter's film perfectly defines the phrase stranger than fiction as some of Trump's methods are truly unbelievable though the film isn't completely perfect it still deserves a strong score so I will award it 8/10