A War
classified 15 SPlease note: This was screened in Jan 2016
The consequences of war on all its participants from soldiers and civilians to family and loved ones is powerfully illuminated in this acclaimed and bruising drama from director Tobias Lindholm (A Hijacking), starring Pilou Asbæk as a Danish soldier on duty in Afghanistan.
Vast desert views reach out across the southern Afghan province of Helmand where Danish company commander Claus Michael Pederson (Asbæk), having left his family behind, is now stationed with his troop. Back home his wife, Maria (Tuva Novotny), is finding it difficult to get through each day alone with her three children and to cope with the knowledge that her husband is living in a war zone. So when during a routine mission Claus and his company suddenly find themselves in deep water after getting caught up in crossfire in order to save his men, Claus makes a decision that has far reaching consequences for both him and his family back home.
Retaining the matter-of-fact structural simplicity and procedural meticulousness of Lindholm’s previous work (both his films A Hijacking and The Hunt, which he wrote the screenplay for, were audience faves here), this nerve-shattering film conveys the on-the-ground maelstrom of combat as vividly as any previous on the subject. Not simply an anti-war statement, it’s also a multifaceted drama that highlights the hardship experienced by soldiers in Afghanistan as well as the wider questions around what it actually means to participate in war as a nation.