A War

A War
Film poster
Directed by	Tobias Lindholm
Produced by	René Ezra Tomas Radoor
Written by	Tobias Lindholm
Starring	Pilou Asbæk Søren Malling
Cinematography	Magnus Nordenhof Jønck
Edited by	Adam Nielsen
Production company	AZ Celtic Films Nordisk Film Production
Distributed by	Nordisk Film Distribution
Release dates	27 August 2015 (2015-08-27)
Running time	115 minutes
Country	Denmark
Language	Danish
Budget	8 million Danish krone (USD$1.2 million)
Box office	$880,073

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. The film was nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 88th Academy Awards.

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 been send back home, he is charged for killing 11 people by that airstrike. The grave consequences of this accusations shaken him and his family back home. He explains 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 evidences. Claus stays with his wife and kids engagingly.

Cast

• Pilou Asbæk as Claus Michael Pedersen
• Søren Malling as Martin R. Olsen
• Dar Salim as Najib Bisma
• Tuva Novotny as Maria Pedersen
• Charlotte Munck as Lisbeth Danning
• Dulfi Al-Jabouri as Lutfi "Lasse" Hassan

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.

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." Metacritic reports an 81 out of 100 rating based on 29 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". 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?"., 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."

See also

• List of submissions to the 88th Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film
• List of Danish submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film

External links

• A War at IMDb
• A War at Box Office Mojo
• A War at Rotten Tomatoes
• A War at Metacritic