Welcome to Leith
2015·Thriller·1h 25m
7.1
★
In September 2012, the tiny prairie town of Leith, North Dakota, sees its population of 24 grow by one. As the new resident's behavior becomes more threatening, tensions soar, and the residents desperately look for ways to expel their unwanted neighbor.
Directed by Michael Beach Nichols and Christopher K. Walker
small town
racist
north dakota
racism
white supremacists
Trailer
IMDB
N/A
Where to Watch
Crew
Michael Beach Nichols
Director
Christopher K. Walker
Director
Michael Beach Nichols
Writer
Christopher K. Walker
Writer
T. Griffin
Original Music Composer
Michael Beach Nichols
Editor
Christopher K. Walker
Editor
Michael Beach Nichols
Director of Photography
Julia Willoughby Nason
Executive Producer
Jenner Furst
Producer
Michael Beach Nichols
Producer
Christopher K. Walker
Producer
Popular Reviews
31 reviews
Grilliam
7.0★ · 04/14/26
On one hand, I can appreciate that they played it as neutral as they could and I think both sides would believe they were fairly represented. On the other hand, that kind of guaranteed that it wasn't going to have the punch that the audience wanted. The first half goes by really quick and the sides are established very early; back half slows way down and becomes a tedious court case. But they really let this man dig his own grave for 80 straight minutes, but I guarantee he'd watch this and think they made him the hero. As a documentary, I think is accomplishes what it set out to do and got its message across strongly without having to hamfist anything (although I don't think they needed SPLC's involvement). Personally, I wish they'd gone farther at the expense of appearing balanced and showed us more of the town fighting back. This doc is clearly a warning and although the message is clear and they definitely made Cobb and his crew look like shit, I don't think the doc gives the town enough spotlight, especially the one (and apparently only) black guy in the town.
On one hand, I can appreciate that they played it as neutral as they could and I think both sides would believe they were fairly represented. On the other hand, that kind of guaranteed that it wasn't going to have the punch that the audience wanted. The first half goes by really quick and the sides are established very early; back half slows way down and becomes a tedious court case. But they really let this man dig his own grave for 80 straight minutes, but I guarantee he'd watch this and think they made him the hero. As a documentary, I think is accomplishes what it set out to do and got its message across strongly without having to hamfist anything (although I don't think they needed SPLC's involvement). Personally, I wish they'd gone farther at the expense of appearing balanced and showed us more of the town fighting back. This doc is clearly a warning and although the message is clear and they definitely made Cobb and his crew look like shit, I don't think the doc gives the town enough spotlight, especially the one (and apparently only) black guy in the town.
kemper bowden
10.0★ · 04/14/25
why did my grandpa show me this at age 11?
why did my grandpa show me this at age 11?
sophiaPRO
6.0★ · 04/14/24
i have never wanted someone’s neighbors to murder them more
i have never wanted someone’s neighbors to murder them more
Nick
5.5★ · 04/08/24
scary
7/10
7/10
scary
7/10
7/10
LeonDeon
7.0★ · 09/02/20
Welcome to Leith is fascinating from top to bottom.
While there are plenty of examinations of white supremacists in the States this one sets itself apart from how truly insidious the plan from Craig Cobb really was. Craig Cobb is a white nationalist who sought to take over a town and make it a utopia for fellow white nationalists. The unfortunate town at the center of this story is the small town of Leith, North Dakota. The town is small enough that the plan was feasible. Leith only had a population of 24 people at the time.
Cobb was so invested in this plan he had mapped out the town, plotting and charting each property and who owned what in the town. The plan was so appealing that two more white nationalists moved to the town and started their insidious plan to take over the town through the democratic method. From the moment they sniffed Cobb out he didn’t hide his true intentions and went on the provoke the townsfolk. What was captured in the film is startling to see but the truth nonetheless. It’s the unabashed hatred that radiates in the minds of those who mean to do harm to anyone different from themselves. It’s providing a viewpoint where we as the audience are meant to ask: “What can we do when hate enters the daily way of life?”
The media covering this story only added more fuel to this bonfire. It soared higher and higher as more and more white nationalists heard about Cobb’s plan and came out in droves to support his nefarious plan. We hear about these racists and see videos but to see the number of bodies physically in the frame becomes a startling realization of the true threat these ideals bring to a harmonious way of life. As naive as it might seem coming from me it was hard to see the venom dripping from the mouths of these people. How they could so easily and callously say whatever vile threat came across their mind as a way to intimate those who would dare to oppose them. They came together like a plague in the town of Leith and it was up to the citizens to try and find a way of getting rid of Cobb before something happened. With media coverage it was like watching a political drama play out the only difference being that it was real and was going to have everlasting effects dependent on the victor for the literal battle for Leith’s future.
Welcome to Leith captures a turbulent moment in time. Lightning in the bottle if you will, this focuses on what those who mean you harm can really do. It aims to ask us how we can deal with the situation if we were present. What would we do and how would we go about fighting blinding hatred that taints all it touches.
While there are plenty of examinations of white supremacists in the States this one sets itself apart from how truly insidious the plan from Craig Cobb really was. Craig Cobb is a white nationalist who sought to take over a town and make it a utopia for fellow white nationalists. The unfortunate town at the center of this story is the small town of Leith, North Dakota. The town is small enough that the plan was feasible. Leith only had a population of 24 people at the time.
Cobb was so invested in this plan he had mapped out the town, plotting and charting each property and who owned what in the town. The plan was so appealing that two more white nationalists moved to the town and started their insidious plan to take over the town through the democratic method. From the moment they sniffed Cobb out he didn’t hide his true intentions and went on the provoke the townsfolk. What was captured in the film is startling to see but the truth nonetheless. It’s the unabashed hatred that radiates in the minds of those who mean to do harm to anyone different from themselves. It’s providing a viewpoint where we as the audience are meant to ask: “What can we do when hate enters the daily way of life?”
The media covering this story only added more fuel to this bonfire. It soared higher and higher as more and more white nationalists heard about Cobb’s plan and came out in droves to support his nefarious plan. We hear about these racists and see videos but to see the number of bodies physically in the frame becomes a startling realization of the true threat these ideals bring to a harmonious way of life. As naive as it might seem coming from me it was hard to see the venom dripping from the mouths of these people. How they could so easily and callously say whatever vile threat came across their mind as a way to intimate those who would dare to oppose them. They came together like a plague in the town of Leith and it was up to the citizens to try and find a way of getting rid of Cobb before something happened. With media coverage it was like watching a political drama play out the only difference being that it was real and was going to have everlasting effects dependent on the victor for the literal battle for Leith’s future.
Welcome to Leith captures a turbulent moment in time. Lightning in the bottle if you will, this focuses on what those who mean you harm can really do. It aims to ask us how we can deal with the situation if we were present. What would we do and how would we go about fighting blinding hatred that taints all it touches.
Welcome to Leith is fascinating from top to bottom.
While there are plenty of examinations of white supremacists in the States this one sets itself apart from how truly insidious the plan from Craig Cobb really was. Craig Cobb is a white nationalist who sought to take over a town and make it a utopia for fellow white nationalists. The unfortunate town at the center of this story is the small town of Leith, North Dakota. The town is small enough that the plan was feasible. Leith only had a population of 24 people at the time.
Cobb was so invested in this plan he had mapped out the town, plotting and charting each property and who owned what in the town. The plan was so appealing that two more white nationalists moved to the town and started their insidious plan to take over the town through the democratic method. From the moment they sniffed Cobb out he didn’t hide his true intentions and went on the provoke the townsfolk. What was captured in the film is startling to see but the truth nonetheless. It’s the unabashed hatred that radiates in the minds of those who mean to do harm to anyone different from themselves. It’s providing a viewpoint where we as the audience are meant to ask: “What can we do when hate enters the daily way of life?”
The media covering this story only added more fuel to this bonfire. It soared higher and higher as more and more white nationalists heard about Cobb’s plan and came out in droves to support his nefarious plan. We hear about these racists and see videos but to see the number of bodies physically in the frame becomes a startling realization of the true threat these ideals bring to a harmonious way of life. As naive as it might seem coming from me it was hard to see the venom dripping from the mouths of these people. How they could so easily and callously say whatever vile threat came across their mind as a way to intimate those who would dare to oppose them. They came together like a plague in the town of Leith and it was up to the citizens to try and find a way of getting rid of Cobb before something happened. With media coverage it was like watching a political drama play out the only difference being that it was real and was going to have everlasting effects dependent on the victor for the literal battle for Leith’s future.
Welcome to Leith captures a turbulent moment in time. Lightning in the bottle if you will, this focuses on what those who mean you harm can really do. It aims to ask us how we can deal with the situation if we were present. What would we do and how would we go about fighting blinding hatred that taints all it touches.
While there are plenty of examinations of white supremacists in the States this one sets itself apart from how truly insidious the plan from Craig Cobb really was. Craig Cobb is a white nationalist who sought to take over a town and make it a utopia for fellow white nationalists. The unfortunate town at the center of this story is the small town of Leith, North Dakota. The town is small enough that the plan was feasible. Leith only had a population of 24 people at the time.
Cobb was so invested in this plan he had mapped out the town, plotting and charting each property and who owned what in the town. The plan was so appealing that two more white nationalists moved to the town and started their insidious plan to take over the town through the democratic method. From the moment they sniffed Cobb out he didn’t hide his true intentions and went on the provoke the townsfolk. What was captured in the film is startling to see but the truth nonetheless. It’s the unabashed hatred that radiates in the minds of those who mean to do harm to anyone different from themselves. It’s providing a viewpoint where we as the audience are meant to ask: “What can we do when hate enters the daily way of life?”
The media covering this story only added more fuel to this bonfire. It soared higher and higher as more and more white nationalists heard about Cobb’s plan and came out in droves to support his nefarious plan. We hear about these racists and see videos but to see the number of bodies physically in the frame becomes a startling realization of the true threat these ideals bring to a harmonious way of life. As naive as it might seem coming from me it was hard to see the venom dripping from the mouths of these people. How they could so easily and callously say whatever vile threat came across their mind as a way to intimate those who would dare to oppose them. They came together like a plague in the town of Leith and it was up to the citizens to try and find a way of getting rid of Cobb before something happened. With media coverage it was like watching a political drama play out the only difference being that it was real and was going to have everlasting effects dependent on the victor for the literal battle for Leith’s future.
Welcome to Leith captures a turbulent moment in time. Lightning in the bottle if you will, this focuses on what those who mean you harm can really do. It aims to ask us how we can deal with the situation if we were present. What would we do and how would we go about fighting blinding hatred that taints all it touches.