In A Better World

The next film in my quest to see all of this years Oscar nominees for Best Foreign Language film take me to my ancestral home of Denmark and the film that won the award.
I think it must hard to choose the film that wins in this category considering the nominees. Susanne Bier is an excellent director and has crafted a wonderful film that explores many complex issues. It is one of those things where people need to pay more attention to those around them. The fathers in this film spend a lot of time away from their children and as a result the boys in the film resort to actions they may not have if kept properly supervised. The film also teaches us how anger and violence can manifest itself in many different ways. It can be lurking under the surface and you don't even know it.
Susanne has assembled an excellent cast for this film who all give brilliant performances. Mikael Persbrandt is nicely subdued. He is lets his anger fester under the surface. He is able to bring calmness to his performance so that when he explodes it is all the more threatening. His fatherly counterpart Ulrich Thomsen is nicely clueless about his son's actions. The kids in the film are the real stars though. William Johnk Nielsen is brilliant as the very angry Christian. His cold expression is excellent. You can see his nasty thoughts by looking in his eyes. Markus Rygaard is equally as good as the boy who comes under Christians spell. Drawn into the web of violence.
An excellent adult drama that explores many complex themes and issues that occur in the family. Makes you realise we need to be more observant of those around us.