Danish director Susanne Bier has rightfully claimed a place as one of the best and most important voices of international cinema. She has collaborated with Lars von Trier and Benicio del Toro, had films remade by Hollywood (Brothers), been nomination for two Academy Awards, winning this past February for this sober, but compelling, examination on violence and family. In a Better World may be one of the most old-fashioned pieces of filmmaking you’ll see this year, but that doesn’t make it any less fascinating as it wields a dramatic left-hook to the gut.
Its Danish title is “Hævnen”, which, despite its similarity to the heavenly afterlife, actually translates as “The Revenge”. It’s a suitable juxtaposition that works within Bier’s decision to cast her story in two very distinct landscapes; the moody, picturesque shores of Denmark and the war-ravaged deserts of Sudan. Beginning with scenes of an African refugee hospital, a handsome but brutish doctor played by Mikael Persbrandt (Everlasting Moments) attends to casualties, locals frightened of an ever-worsening crisis at the hands of an evil warlord. Back home in Denmark his meek son Elias (Markus Rygaard) befriends a new boy at school, Christian (William Jøhnk Nielsen), who has recently lost his mother and has an ever-increasing violent streak. As the boys’ friendship deepens, so too do the dangerous consequences that will make everyone re-evaluate themselves.
Elias (Markus Rygaard) and Christian (William Jøhnk Nielsen)
Bier gets such striking work from the two young boys that it’s hard to believe they had never acted before. Nielson is particularly excellent. Persbrandt, as well as Ulrich Thomsen and Trine Dyrholm (who viewers may recognise from Danish masterpiece The Celebration), provide solid work in less flashy roles. The roles here aren’t as complex as those Bier explored within her finest work After the Wedding (2006) and Brothers/Brødre (2004), but the issues of familial traits passed down through generations, the effect of death on people of different ages and the increasing self-reliance of children are interesting ones that are definitely worth investigating.
Anton (Mikael Persbrandt) and Marianne (Trine Dyrholm)
In the pantheon of Oscar, Bier’s film is a far worthier winner of the statue than recent victors The Secret in Their Eyes and The Counterfeiters. Even if In a Better World isn’t Bier’s finest moment, if the Oscar win for this great film means audiences will discover her other work then it’s hard to disparage its win. It’s a very attractive production – the Danish villages and Sudanese deserts (filmed in Kenya) are superbly lensed by Morten Søborg – with a climax that will knock you out if the film has grabbed you. If you find yourself questioning your own tendencies of rage then Bier has probably succeeded at what she achieved.
In a Better World is released in Australia on March 31st
Director: Susanne Bier
Cast: Mikael Persbrandt, Ulrich Thomsen, Trine Dyrholm, William Johnk Nielsen, Markus Rygaard, Kim Bodnia, Wil Johnson and Odiege Matthew
