A War

Classical "Lindholm style movie" that is procedural, minimalist, faded in terms of acting, without unnecessary talking, and again about a topic that other screenwriters would hardly have captured without at least a hint of melodrama. Yet it is by no means slow, inaccessible, or cold. Only emotions are not expressed here by crying and loud yelling, but by the pensive lighting of a cigarette. The disadvantage is the division into two parts, because what the first one offers (daily routine on a mission in Afghanistan and family trouble at home) is something that has been seen/read several times in recent years, although not that civil and good in terms of quality. On the contrary, the trial scene is flawless in this respect, and it is unbelievable how the main character manages to convey moral dilemma between the lines without ever saying anything literally. Journalistic monsters, environmental impacts, etc. may have played a role in this, but nothing like that. It intimately focuses exclusively on the trial itself and the scenes from home (as in the Breakdown, it was purely about negotiating in the office and surviving in one cabin). Yes, the same theme can undoubtedly be imagined as a typical Oscar movie, and it might not be bad at all (see "Breakdown" versus "Captain Phillip"), but Lindholm's approach is more unique and much more interesting. And thanks to that, even with a greater unforced obvious emotional impact. (25/01/2016)

An honest Scandinavian drama that pretends to be a war movie but in reality, is a prime example of Scandinavian depression in the lives of ordinary people. I am not giving it a full score only because the whole case seemed absurd to me. I would give the DA a few slaps and send her to the Taliban for a few weeks just so she would know what she was actually defending. She was so annoying during the whole movie that I was hoping for Clausʼs innocence. And when you don’t accept the main premise of the movie it’s hard to give it five stars. (22/12/2016)

A War is not so much a movie about war, but rather about the collision of different cultures and the state of European society, which has become too comfortable, self-centered, and repeatedly fails in conflicts with other worlds because it stubbornly tries to give events in distant countries different meanings corresponding to our customs and ideals of morality nurtured in the safe ideological bubbles of European elites, which have not experienced a real crisis and uncertainty for a few decades and have permanently lost touch with reality. European society has lost in many ways the ability to improvise, relying on bureaucratic rules instead of faith and ideas. It is aging and weakening. It is no wonder that military missions have been showing at best minimal effectiveness for some time now and at worst a real disaster. The protagonist of the movie should not have stood before the court, but rather those who sent him on a senseless mission and tied the unit's hands with stupid rules. The director may have revealed more about the functioning of European society than he originally intended. Overall impression: 75%. (08/07/2021)

A well-made story about what the responsibility of soldiers actually is and what their decisions are, or rather, what the consequences of their decisions are. The film focuses quite well on how it's possible to connect conventional life with military life, that even those who are soldiers are really just people. It's a slightly different view, more intimate. (27/04/2017)

What can an individual do in a world where the category of morality melts into a completely opaque web of emotions, power and subordination...? Lindholm once again captures the ambivalence of the contemporary world in all its nudity and with the utter creative coldness of an individual whom he consistently controls, all whilst not missing the finest nuances. After the moment when the key dialogue of the main characters occurs after the incredible tension of the first half, which is divided between the front and the background, which the director leaves in silence behind the glass, I had no doubt that I was watching Lindholm's best film. Incredibly complex, humble, and, in the best sense of the word, engaging. Beyond good and evil, beyond bad and correct... we live in a world where the greatest struggle can take place in the silence of the garden of a family home. An inconspicuous, all the more fundamental masterpiece. (27/04/2016)