I probably would never have heard about this Danish film if it weren't for its inclusion in the nominations at the Oscars, I was hoping it would be a good one. Basically company commander Claus Michael Pedersen (Pilou Asbæk) and his men are stationed in the Helmand province of Afghanistan. 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. The soldiers are caught in heavy crossfire during a routine mission, without proper Intel, Claus makes the decision to call in an airstrike to save his men. Claus is sent back home following this mission, and charged foe killing eleven men by the airstrike, the grave consequences of these accusations cause him and his family to be shaken. Claus explains in court that this decision was a critical requirement while they were under attack, one of the men defending Claus gives a false statement, meaning he is acquitted by the judge and co-committee based on the evidence, Claus is allowed to stay with his wife and kids. Also starring Søren Malling as Martin R. Olsen, Dar Salim as Najib Bisma, Charlotte Munck as Lisbeth Danning, Dulfi Al-Jabouri as Lutfi "Lasse" Hassan and Alex Høgh Andersen as Anders. It is a simple story of a military troop fighting the Taliban and protecting civilians, and the commander accused of committing a war crime, I will be honest and say that having to read subtitles at the same time as the action, I lost my way a few times, but overall I know it was an interesting enough war drama. It was nominated the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film of the Year. Worth watching, in my opinion!

-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.--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 cluncky dramaturgical scenarios, with the seams exposed at every turn."

"A War" (2015 release from Denmark; 115 min.) brings the story of Claus and Maria, a couple from Denmark. As the movie opens, we get to know Claus, a Commanding Officer of a unit in Afghanistan. One of the guys in the patrol unit walk onto a mine and is killed. The unit is devastated and Claus tries to keep the poise and focus, but it's hard. Meanwhile, we get to know Maria, who is taking care of the couple's three young kids, including Julius, a 6 or 7 year old boy who is having behavior issues at school and with his sisters, all because Dad is missing. At this point we are 10 min. into the movie, nut to tell you more would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.Couple of comments: this is the latest film from writer-director Tobias Lindholm, best known for his 2012 (and equally stellar) film "A Hijacking". The first half of the movie plays out as a 'traditional' family drama within a war context: dad is doing all he can to stay focused at the job at hand (war), while mom is struggling to keep the family together. I thought that the depiction of the conflict in Afghanistan was done very realistically and with the proper taste and respect. But then just as you think it stays within that framework, the movie takes a new direction shortly in the second half, and all I will say it that it made the movie even better for it. Pilou Asbæk (as Claus)and Tuva Novotny (as Maria) both give outstanding performances. This movie got an Oscar nomination for Best Foreign Language Movie (I believe "A Hijacking was nominated too), and with that, I've now see 4 out of the 5 Oscar nominees in that category. I still think "Son of Saul" is the odds-on likely winner, but I certainly wouldn't be upset if "A War" comes away with the Oscar."A War" opened this weekend at my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati, and I couldn't wait to see it. The Saturday matinée screening where I saw this at was attended okay but not great, and that is a darn shame. Perhaps people are fatigued watching films about the Iraqi and Afghan wars. Even with that, I found "A War" to be an outstanding film that deserves a larger audience, do if you have a chance to see this, be it in the theater, on VOD or eventually on Blu-ray/DVD, please give this a chance. "A War" is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

Modern local conflicts and crisis areas have brought along a different approach in depicting military activities - confrontations without clear battle fronts, with a foreign military mission in assisting role. But as, in essence, there is a war going on, one is unable to predict every next move and incorporate all situations/events into specific legal framework; in the event of military events, there are always casualties.Such is the background and essential point in Krigen, where the Danish Company commander Claus M. Pedersen (solidly performed by Pilou Asbæk) has to equally deal with both a severe accusation against him and his family (the characters of his spouse and three children seem to be more dynamic and interesting than those of officers and soldiers). I know that legal proceedings are not snappy, particularly among the Danes who are curbed and reticent, but still - the plot is a bit slow and arid, often uncovering the documentary aspect rather than that of a feature film, and the solution and the final scene are too plain. All this is just a narration running its course, and most of otherwise good and distinct actors have nothing profound to perform. Krigen is not a bad film, but not at the level of e.g. Tobias Lindholm's Jagten or Submarino. For me, Krigen is a less intensive and less diverse than some related films, e.g. Stop-Loss or Brothers. Despite having an Oscar nomination, I would be surprised if it gets this award.