Having just seen In A Better World I am convinced Susanne Bier is one of the best filmmakers currently around. After Brothers and After The Wedding she brings us another film not afraid of tackling difficult themes, and yet without ever losing the ability to tell a good story.
When I saw the poster I was afraid of one of those extremely ethical films focusing on problems in Africa, one you feel bad about, but one which would never get close to your own world. And here it is where Bier succeeds where others with better intentions have failed: this is a fantastic film that actually reaches out and touches you. By mixing the stories of two young lonely boys and their difficulties with the far more serious and yet remote problems in an unnamed country in Africa where one of their fathers works, the film achieves a perfect but troubling metaphor on the nature of violence in all its forms.
Especially from the point of the 'innocent' as Bier herself mentioned in an interview. The road to hell is paved with good intentions, a statement that has never rung more true. We have been manipulated by a long history of (Hollywood) film to sympathize with motives of revenge and the process of achieving power and self-confidence while helping others. And yet, what is it that drives us when we search for violence? Is there ever a situation where it can be tolerated, even needed?
When watching a film there is nothing more satisfying than seeing evil being punished, in fact the pleasure is so great that when it is prevented we cannot help to feel frustrated, angry even, for there is nothing more thoroughly infuriating than injustice. It is this frustration with the powerful triangle of injustice, revenge and violence that Bier tackles in her film.
And yet, at the heart of it remains a simple and thoroughly recognizable story of a family with difficulties; parents on the verge of divorce, a family death from cancer and a boy being bullied. Actually, it is this bullying that echoes throughout the film. On many levels characters are being subjugated to the will of another, violated in several different ways. It burns under your skin and it makes your blood rush, it is hard not to feel an anger rise within. This film has a powerful message but also makes us feel very strongly. It has been a while since I have wept in front of the screen.
When I saw the poster I was afraid of one of those extremely ethical films focusing on problems in Africa, one you feel bad about, but one which would never get close to your own world. And here it is where Bier succeeds where others with better intentions have failed: this is a fantastic film that actually reaches out and touches you. By mixing the stories of two young lonely boys and their difficulties with the far more serious and yet remote problems in an unnamed country in Africa where one of their fathers works, the film achieves a perfect but troubling metaphor on the nature of violence in all its forms.
Especially from the point of the 'innocent' as Bier herself mentioned in an interview. The road to hell is paved with good intentions, a statement that has never rung more true. We have been manipulated by a long history of (Hollywood) film to sympathize with motives of revenge and the process of achieving power and self-confidence while helping others. And yet, what is it that drives us when we search for violence? Is there ever a situation where it can be tolerated, even needed?
When watching a film there is nothing more satisfying than seeing evil being punished, in fact the pleasure is so great that when it is prevented we cannot help to feel frustrated, angry even, for there is nothing more thoroughly infuriating than injustice. It is this frustration with the powerful triangle of injustice, revenge and violence that Bier tackles in her film.
And yet, at the heart of it remains a simple and thoroughly recognizable story of a family with difficulties; parents on the verge of divorce, a family death from cancer and a boy being bullied. Actually, it is this bullying that echoes throughout the film. On many levels characters are being subjugated to the will of another, violated in several different ways. It burns under your skin and it makes your blood rush, it is hard not to feel an anger rise within. This film has a powerful message but also makes us feel very strongly. It has been a while since I have wept in front of the screen.
