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A War

Play trailer 2:30 Poster for A War R 2016 1h 55m War Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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90% Tomatometer 97 Reviews 79% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
A Danish commander (Pilou Asbæk) faces a courtroom trial after a judgment call leads to the deaths of 11 civilians during the war in Afghanistan.
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A War

A War

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Critics Consensus

Tense, intelligent, and refreshingly low-key, A War is part frontline thriller, part courtroom drama -- and eminently effective in both regards.

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Critics Reviews

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Cary Darling Fort Worth Star-Telegram/DFW.com 03/17/2016
4.5/5
The haunting and stark A War may be [Tobias Lindholm's] most striking and effective work yet Go to Full Review
Marjorie Baumgarten Austin Chronicle 03/03/2016
3.5/5
A quietly searing drama about morality, priorities, and absolute truth. Go to Full Review
Matthew Lickona San Diego Reader 02/26/2016
3/5
Writer-director Tobias Lindholm's latest is a microcosmic and finely wrought war story in which everyone has their reasons. Go to Full Review
JD Duran InSession Film 08/19/2024
A
A War richly depicts, not only the physical war that Denmark was a part, but also this internal emotional war these characters faced. And the final product is beautiful and moving. Go to Full Review
Jordan Brooks Vague Visages 08/01/2023
More than a simple condemnation of war, of which there are plenty, A War seeks to deliver a thorough examination of human behavior. Go to Full Review
Michael J. Casey Michael J. Cinema 08/12/2021
2.5/5
The intent is purposeful, but the execution isn't entirely successful. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Georgan G 12/07/2024 A thinking person's war movie, this drama digs into the cost of war on a personal level. See more Steve C 02/14/2023 Now I know that the only Danish word I understand without subtitles is the F-bomb. See more nilufer e @Nilicim 05/24/2020 It was a pretty powerful drama about tough decisions in the line of fire. The family aspect and the war aspect were combined beautifully and I didn't lose interest the whole time. See more 04/23/2020 This is a much more reflective war story than many I've seen. It moves between the battlefield in Afghanistan and the family at home every so often to reinforce the human dimension and pressures that serving in a war brings. And when Claus returns home, those pressures increase and intensity. But at the centre of this story is the ethical dilemma faced by Claus. And the movie has the courage to allow the dilemma to be a "messy", grey one and the viewer is challenged to consider what the "right" answer would be for them. The acting is very good and realistic. The pace is slow but remains engaging and the directing is mostly good. I did feel that it was a bit clunky at times and the intensity could have been ramped up a bit but I guess that the understated nature of the story was to make it more realistic and keep us focused on the issues rather than distracting us with the typical high level action of a war film. Worth watching for the way in which it makes the viewer think about the realities of war and how easy it would be to make mistakes under pressure — if they are really mistakes. The ethical and moral dilemmas could, however, been explored in greater depth. See more andrew t 11/26/2018 A THOUGHT-PROVOKING AND BEAUTIFULLY ACTED DEPICTION OF THE TENSION BETWEEN THE LAWLESSNESS OF WAR AND THE LEGAL DUTIES IMPOSED ON INDIVIDUAL SOLDIERS. A FASCINATING AND MOVING FILM. See more nefasto r @Nefasto 10/26/2018 "A War" take its time to build up, and to be honest the journey is not as good as the message the movie wants to deliver in its second part. It is refreshing to watch a war drama where explosions are not the main character, it's just a shame it wasn't shaped better. See more Read all reviews
A War

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Movie Info

Synopsis A Danish commander (Pilou Asbæk) faces a courtroom trial after a judgment call leads to the deaths of 11 civilians during the war in Afghanistan.
Director
Tobias Lindholm
Producer
Rene Ezra, Tomas Radoor
Screenwriter
Tobias Lindholm
Distributor
Magnolia Pictures
Production Co
Nordisk Film
Rating
R (Some War-Related Images|Language)
Genre
War, Drama
Original Language
Danish
Release Date (Theaters)
Feb 12, 2016, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Apr 1, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA)
$121.6K
Runtime
1h 55m
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