Directed by:
Tobias LindholmScreenplay:
Tobias LindholmCinematography:
Magnus Nordenhof JønckComposer:
Sune Rose WagnerCast:
Pilou Asbæk, Tuva Novotny, Søren Malling, Charlotte Munck, Dar Salim, Dulfi Al-Jabouri, Cecilie Elise Søndergaard, Adam Chessa, Andreas Buch Borgwardt (more)Plots(1)
Company commander Claus Michael Pedersen (Pilou Asbæk) and his men are stationed in an Afghan province. Meanwhile, back in Denmark, Claus' wife Maria (Tuva Novotny) is trying to hold everyday life together with a husband at war and three children missing their father. During a routine mission, the soldiers are caught in heavy crossfire and in order to save his men, Claus makes a fateful decision that leads to a tragedy that could seriously affect his military career and family life. (StudioCanal UK)
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Reviews (7)
Classical "Lindholm style movie" that is procedural, minimalist, faded in terms of acting, without unnecessary talking, and again about a topic that other screenwriters would hardly have captured without at least a hint of melodrama. Yet it is by no means slow, inaccessible, or cold. Only emotions are not expressed here by crying and loud yelling, but by the pensive lighting of a cigarette. The disadvantage is the division into two parts, because what the first one offers (daily routine on a mission in Afghanistan and family trouble at home) is something that has been seen/read several times in recent years, although not that civil and good in terms of quality. On the contrary, the trial scene is flawless in this respect, and it is unbelievable how the main character manages to convey moral dilemma between the lines without ever saying anything literally. Journalistic monsters, environmental impacts, etc. may have played a role in this, but nothing like that. It intimately focuses exclusively on the trial itself and the scenes from home (as in the Breakdown, it was purely about negotiating in the office and surviving in one cabin). Yes, the same theme can undoubtedly be imagined as a typical Oscar movie, and it might not be bad at all (see "Breakdown" versus "Captain Phillip"), but Lindholm's approach is more unique and much more interesting. And thanks to that, even with a greater unforced obvious emotional impact.
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An honest Scandinavian drama that pretends to be a war movie but in reality, is a prime example of Scandinavian depression in the lives of ordinary people. I am not giving it a full score only because the whole case seemed absurd to me. I would give the DA a few slaps and send her to the Taliban for a few weeks just so she would know what she was actually defending. She was so annoying during the whole movie that I was hoping for Clausʼs innocence. And when you don’t accept the main premise of the movie it’s hard to give it five stars.
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What can an individual do in a world where the category of morality melts into a completely opaque web of emotions, power and subordination...? Lindholm once again captures the ambivalence of the contemporary world in all its nudity and with the utter creative coldness of an individual whom he consistently controls, all whilst not missing the finest nuances. After the moment when the key dialogue of the main characters occurs after the incredible tension of the first half, which is divided between the front and the background, which the director leaves in silence behind the glass, I had no doubt that I was watching Lindholm's best film. Incredibly complex, humble, and, in the best sense of the word, engaging. Beyond good and evil, beyond bad and correct... we live in a world where the greatest struggle can take place in the silence of the garden of a family home. An inconspicuous, all the more fundamental masterpiece.
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A well-made story about what the responsibility of soldiers actually is and what their decisions are, or rather, what the consequences of their decisions are. The film focuses quite well on how it's possible to connect conventional life with military life, that even those who are soldiers are really just people. It's a slightly different view, more intimate.
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If I try to put myself in the situation of the main character played by the great Pilou Asbæk, I would fight the most brutal battle with my conscience. I have a feeling the same was true for him. This film raises a number of disturbing questions but provides no clear-cut answers to any of them. Perhaps it is because there is no clear answer to them. (70%)
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