A War

A War (Danish film)

Film poster
Directed by Tobias Lindholm
Produced by
  • René Ezra
  • Tomas Radoor
Written by Tobias Lindholm
Starring
Cinematography Magnus Nordenhof Jønck
Edited by Adam Nielsen
Production
company
Distributed by Nordisk Film Distribution
Release dates
  • 27 August 2015 (2015-08-27)
Running time
 115 minutes[1]
Country Denmark
Language Danish
Budget
Box office $880,073[2]

A War (Danish: Krigen) is a 2015 Danish war drama film written and directed by Tobias Lindholm, and starring Pilou Asbæk and Søren Malling. It tells the story of a Danish military company in Afghanistan that is fighting the Taliban while trying to protect the civilians, and how the commander is accused of having committed a war crime.[3][4] The film was nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 88th Academy Awards.[5][6]

Plot

Company commander Claus M. Pedersen and his men are stationed in the Helmand province. Meanwhile, back in Denmark Claus' wife Maria 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, without proper Intel, decides to call in an airstrike. After being sent back home, he is charged for killing 11 people by that airstrike. The grave consequences of these accusations shake him and his family back home. He explains to the court the requirement of this critical decision under attack. A second point-man of Claus' gives a false statement and Claus is acquitted by the judge and co-committee based on the evidence. Claus stays with his wife and kids engagingly.

Cast

Production

The film was produced by Nordisk Film with support from DR TV and received eight million Danish kroner from the Danish Film Institute. Filming took place in Copenhagen, in Konya, Turkey and in Almeria, Spain. It ended in January 2015. With the exception of the main characters, the soldiers are played by actual Danish soldiers who had served in Afghanistan.[3]

Reception

A War received critical acclaim. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a 90% "Certified Fresh" score based on 72 reviews, with an average rating of 7.7/10. The site's consensus states: "Tense, intelligent, and refreshingly low-key, A War is part frontline thriller, part courtroom drama -- and eminently effective in both regards."[7] Metacritic reports an 81 out of 100 rating based on 29 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[8] Olly Richards from Empire magazine gave the film four out of five stars saying "It’s a riveting, complex film that asks one simple question: what do you do when there’s no right answer?".,[9] while Clayton Dillard from Slant Magazine gave it a mixed review: two out of four stars saying "Tobias Lindholm stages his claims through clunky dramaturgical scenarios, with the seams exposed at every turn."[10]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "A WAR (15)". British Board of Film Classification. 26 November 2015. Retrieved 22 February 2016.
  2. ↑ "A War (2016) - International Box Office Results". Box Office Mojo. Internet Movie Database. 19 February 2016. Retrieved 22 February 2016.
  3. 1 2 Fiil-Jensen, Lars (4 November 2014). "Tobias Lindholms Krigen". Film Update (in Danish). Danish Film Institute. Retrieved 2015-03-14.
  4. ↑ "Krigen". KINO.dk (in Danish).
  5. ↑ Ford, Rebecca (14 January 2016). "Oscar Nominations: The Complete List". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 14 January 2016.
  6. ↑ "Tongue tied: Foreign film Oscar hard to call". BBC News. 16 February 2016. Retrieved 16 February 2016.
  7. ↑ "A War (Krigen) (2016)". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster. Retrieved 22 February 2016.
  8. ↑ http://www.metacritic.com/movie/a-war
  9. ↑ http://www.empireonline.com/movies/war-3/review/
  10. ↑ http://www.slantmagazine.com/film/review/a-war

External links

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