You've Been Trumped (2012)

Wonderful character development!

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.

Worth seeing just to witness how winsome it is.

An incredibly powerful documentary that strips Donald Trump bare and exposes him for who he really is. For decades Trump as been a joke but this film demonstrates clearly that the Donald isn't so funny. His assertion of sheer force of will might be admirable if one weren't a free person on the receiving end of it. Trump has contempt for all who oppose him and his favorite weapon are character assassination and the courts. He will sue over anything. Trump also believes anything is for sale and can be bought. This seems to currently include the presidency of the United States. Trump is a demagogue in public and knows well how to manipulate a crowd. However, in business he has only had a minor interest in honesty and decency and focuses primarily on personal gain. With an ego the size of all outdoors and a dark side that's deeply disturbing, Trump is profiled in this documentary with accuracy, insight, and frightening clarity.

I have lived in Aberdeenshire all my life. My father and mother have both lived in Aberdeenshire all their lives as well as at least my previous 4 generations as that is as far back as my parents have traced. I remember going to those sand dunes many times when i was younger and i might have actually been living very close to the course if my parents hadn't opted to move to a different house in Aberdeenshire. When plans to build the course came about i didn't know who Donald Trump was very well and all i heard about it was a few newspaper headlines which said it would bring jobs so i thought " that is fine if they want to build it, i haven't been to the dunes in the last couple of years". However, i recently watched this documentary in geography at school. It opened my eyes to so many things such as : how the police can be biased, how little the "big" people care about the "small" people and how bad an effect it has had on the environment. I also found it hard to believe anyone in their right mind could actually mean what Trump says. There is not a doubt in my mind that the course should not have been built. I found it extremely hard to give my favourite movie "The Shawshank Redemption" 10 stars but this, my new favourite film, easily warranted a 10 star rating. You must watch it.

What can I say, this film blew me away and inspired me to write to Trump's secretary the Chief Constable of Grampian Police force and my first review on IMDb.From the title we know the story and the film is efficiently executed. Shot on hand-held and using residents footage with some clips of Local Hero. As a subject it is fairly easy to portray Trump as an evil man.However the film excels at capturing how the system designed to protect places and people can be corrupted. It explores the cult of personality and the immense power of business. The blatant corruption of state government, the developers, lawyers, educational institutions, local politicians and ultimately, providing the centerpiece of the film, the police. Like Trump, none of the antagonists make any attempt to hide that they have been completely debased by celebrity, money and power.The film contrasts this with the almost gentle stoicism of the residents in the face of what is in reality a helpless situation. Through their eyes we see the destruction, bullying and land grabs. They stand in contrast to the aberrant forces in front of them. For me what is most shocking is that this takes place in Scotland, not China.I would like to have seen more counter argument, the upside of development and the jobs the completed golf course will provide. Ultimately though it is the local authorities that damn themselves, in their actions instead of their words.A very powerful piece of film-making I hope it reaches a wide audience.

'You've been Trumped' tells a true story that should make everyone very angry indeed. Donald Trump proposes building a new golf course in Scotland; the potentially lucrative nature of the deal lies in getting planning permission to build where otherwise would not be allowed. He duly gets permission, and it's hard to avoid concluding that the man's ego, reputation and bombast are actually his company's key assets: that he can get the opportunity to cash in on the change of use when a better (but less well promoted) proposal would have been automatically rejected (in fact, Trump's proposal only got through after the Scottish government specifically intervened to over-rule the local planners). But let's assume the development is economically justified. We still live under the rule of law; and it's natural to hope that the police would be on the side of the little guy threatened by the force of overwhelming money. But not a bit of it: we see how, when Trump disputes his boundary with a neighbour, the police come to protect not only Trump's property, but also his freedom to damage his neighbours'; while the film-maker gets himself arrested for doing nothing illegal but simply for documenting this unequal fight. That the authorities refuse to appear in the film to justify their actions makes the point eloquently. It's sad (in my opinion) that the beautiful dunes at Balmedie have been destroyed; but even more alarming for the side government is ultimately on to be so starkly revealed.