A new film from Denmark raises a tricky question about the responsibility of filmmakers �" even those from tiny, peaceful countries �" to fill in the vast gap in knowledge for a young generation for whom actual combat is as otherworldly an experience as a moonwalk. The film A War arrives at a time when young American women may soon be drafted and subjected to the same combat risks that their male counterparts have long known. For a guy who isn't fond of war movies, Tobias Lindholm's A War is my kind of war movie. Lindholm sets up a prickly narrative where a Danish Army officer, Claus Michael Pedersen (Pilou Asbaek), is leading a small unit in Afghanistan fighting the Taliban while trying to protect Afghan civilians.
The story of how this sober Dane with a spouse and three young kids back home winds up being accused of committing a war crime is of course a twist on an all-too-familiar tale for many war-weary Americans. As you read this, many of you are pondering whether to wait for the Hollywood remake, starring Tom Hanks or Colin Hanks. But what Lindholm's A War offers is a different Western nation, the previously virtuous Danes, getting bogged down in an enervating, no-win guerrilla war that leaves a trail of dead bodies and permanently soiled reputations. The skill by which Lindholm navigates this moral quagmire is a powerful reason that A War is a strong candidate for a Best Foreign Language Film Oscar at the upcoming 88th Academy Awards.
Set in Helmand province, shot in Turkey and skipping back and forth between the commander's troops in their foxhole and anxious family unit, A War stays soberly on message right through a third-act court martial. The great thing about foreign-language movies is how they can put us inside the heads of people whose mores we often find confounding and obtuse. Sadly, the characters in A War remain infuriatingly calm and rational. For those desiring a more American take on a comparable drama, consult Jim Sheridan's 2009 film Brothers. Tobey Maguire nails the role of an enraged vet just back from a harrowing tour of duty in Afghanistan. That movie, ironically, is based on a 2004 Danish version.
The only other thing missing in the otherwise excellent A War is the black-humor perspective where I found succor and sustenance as a draft-eligible, not-yet-out gay kid during the 12 long years of the Vietnam War. Try renting Richard Lester's biting satirical classic How I Won the War. A young, hopelessly incompetent British officer (comic gem from fresh-faced Michael Crawford) leads his befuddled troops through a series of combat disasters.