Terrible acting, screenplay and direction.

Expected more

I saw this movie before reading any reviews, and I thought it was very funny. I was very surprised to see the overwhelmingly negative reviews this film received from critics.

The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

In 2001 the invasion in Afghanistan and especially the ensuing occupation took me by surprise. For in the eighties the Mujahideen had been glorified as the brave freedom fighters, who defended the sovereignty of their nation. President Reagan stressed their rights to live according to their religious beliefs and (backward) traditions. Since 2005, when the international occupation was extended to the hostile south, I was fascinated and indignant at our presence, in particular since the Dutch forces played a (relatively) appreciable role. Seventy years ago the Netherlands itself were occupied by the Nazi regime, without reason. What would this role reversal do to the minds of our soldiers? Although war films are not my primary focus, the Danish film "Brodre" interested me. For it elaborates on the theme of occupation, and Denmark is in many respects the sister nation of the Netherlands. The film tells the story of a Danish officer, who snaps morally during his mission in Afghanistan, and commits a murder. He returns to his family as a mental wreck. The mental problems of veteran soldiers after a military campaign in alien regions are well known since the Vietnam war, and add to the enormous costs of such operations. The narration in Brodre is credible and succeeds in upholding the suspense. We witness the incomprehension of the colleagues and the family with regard to the traumatized behavior of the returned soldier. Nevertheless I am not certain if I have truly grasped the message of the film, in particular the relation between the two brothers. Morally they switch sides: whereas officer Michael commits an atrocious crime, his brother Jannik puts an end to his past as a robber. Obviously the whole family balances on the verge of social dysfunctionality. The father of the two brothers is rude and for instance disposed to drunk driving. The wife of Michael is not the very picture of the faithful spouse. And his children are disobedient, and one of them even gossips without justice about a supposed affair between Jannik and her mother. In the beginning Michael seems to be the solid corner stone of this fragile family. The spectator does not expect that this man of all people is capable of committing a horrible murder. One is inclined to attribute the derailment to the particular borderline nature of his social environment. Still on reflection the story has a more general validity, since military personnel often originates from morally floating communities (few strong personalities will be willing to risk their lives in dubious expeditions). It is interesting that exactly the same theme was addressed in the Dutch film "Stella's oorlog", and therefore a comparison seems obvious. For me the comparison results in a draw. Brodre is more thrilling, whereas Stella's oorlog has the more credible story. In Stella's oorlog the traumas result from a derailed behavior during combat, and friendly fire. The atmosphere in these North-European films is strikingly different from American counterparts like "The deer hunter" or "Apocalypse now", that depict heroism, targeted aggression and inflexibility. If you are interested in the facts, you might consider seeing the documentary "Rethink Afghanistan".

The family man Major Michael Lundberg (Ulrich Thomsen) is happily married with his beloved Sarah (Connie Nielsen) and adores his two daughters Natalia (Sarah Juel Werner) and Camilla (Rebecca Løgstrup Soltau). His younger brother Jannik (Nikolaj Lie Kaas) has just left prison on probation for bank robbery and has issues with his father Henning (Bent Mejding). Michael invites Jannik to have dinner at home with their family. When Michael arrives in Afghanistan, his helicopter crashes and he is considered missing in action. However, he is captured and sent to a camp where he meets the radar technician Niels Peter (Paw Henriksen). After a long period imprisoned, Micahel is forced to kill Niels with a bar to survive. Meanwhile Jannick comforts Sarah and the children and he becomes close to Michael's family. When Michael is rescued, he comes back home emotionally detached and paranoid. Further, he is convinced that Sarah and Jannik have slept together during his absence. When the envious Natalia lies during the birthday dinner party of her sister telling that her mother and Jannik had shagged to upset her father, the disturbed Michael triggers an intense paranoia jeopardizing his family. "Brødre" is a powerful and realistic drama about lives destroyed by war. This film is extremely well-acted, with an adequate cast that gives credibility to the plot led by the gorgeous and excellent Connie Nielsen. The sensitive director Susanne Bier of "Efter Brylluppet" makes another extraordinary movie based on the family dynamics. Jim Sheridan remade this film in 2009, but in a shallow teen "americanization" version. My vote is nine.Title (Brazil): "Brothers"

Brothers (2004)A remarkable movie in several ways. The first is just that it's well made, with two main layers of story line that are compelling, and some surprising and mostly believable turns. The second is that we (in the U.S.) have a look at the war in Afghanistan from non-American eyes. The echoes are inevitable, and so are the differences, in attitude by the soldiers and in public reaction. The lead actor Ulrich Thomsen is compelling and versatile, and in some ways makes the movie. His range (which you have to see for yourself or you'll be tipped off) is terrific. His wife, played by better known Connie Nielsen (in her first Danish movie, even though she is Danish herself, and knows seven languages) is perfect, too, though she plays someone who is admittedly "boring" and so has less range. Finally, the lead man's brother, Nikolaj Lie Kaas, is charming and a wild card, making the trio appropriately imbalanced. I say all this because it's an acting movie, and a movie about relationships and therefore about plot. It's not a war movie, but more about the effects of war. It's recommended for people who have absorbed American movies like The Hurt Locker. But more than that, it's just a well made, emotional, human interest film. There are a couple flaws (including the key part about the helicopter crash, which just doesn't hold up to common sense), but they are small in the larger, gritty realism of the whole.

"Brothers" is another outstanding film from Danish Producer, Director and Writer, Susanne Bier. After watching "Open Hearts" (2002), "Brothers"(2004), "After the Wedding" (2006) and last but not least "Things We Lost in The Fire" (2007) a recurrent theme emerges from her filmography. In "Brothers", Susanne tells us the story of two contrasting brothers, Michael (Ulrich Thomsen) and Jannik (Nikolaj Lie Kaas). Michael is a scrupulous Danish Officer and family man who is sent to Afghanistan on a rescue mission. Jannik is the younger brother who can't keep himself out of trouble and has recently been released from Prison following a sentence for robbery. Assisted by a beautiful soundtrack and an amazing photography, Susanne shows us the beautiful depth of Michael and Sarah's (Connie Nielsen) love before Michael is sent to Afghanistan. There is a scene at the beginning where Michael tells his soldiers to expect the unexpected in the war-scenario. This scene introduces a sense of 'impending doom' and tragedy that at first seems to be confirmed when Michael's helicopter is shot down. The amazing twist of irony in the narrative, is that the real tragedy is still to come. Prompted by a dysfunctional and emotionally inept father, Jannik decides to help his sister-in-law and nieces through the difficult bereavement. Maybe moved by grief initially, Jannik ends up falling in love with Connie Nielsen and they kiss each other. At the same time and after having survived the helicopter crash, Michael is captured by a group of afghan troops and locked up in a warehouse with a young army technician he was meant to rescue. The captors then decide the young soldier is no longer useful and force Michael to kill him with a lead-pipe to save his own life. The camp is then attacked by British troops who rescue Michael and bring him back to Denmark. Unable to deal with the guilt of having killed the young technician, and consumed by jealousy, Michael starts experiencing bursts of anger and mood swings. The plot reaches its dramatic peak, when the eldest daughter of the couple attacks Michael at the dinner table and in a very crude way tells his father that he is resentful because Sarah prefers to have sex with his brother. Enraged, Michael assaults his wife and brother and is arrested by the Police. The film ends with Sarah visiting Michael in Prison and asking him about what had happened in Afghanistan. At this point, Michael breaks down and starts sobbing in a scene of high emotional intensity.