In a Better World lives up to Oscar win

In A Better World tackles one universal question: How do we know what is right and what is wrong? Although the Danish movie won best foreign language film at the Academy Awards, there is nothing foreign about director Susanne Bier’s (Things We Lost In The Fire) examination of everyday decisions.

Anton (Mikael Persbrandt) travels between Denmark and Africa working as a doctor after leaving his two sons and scorned wife Marianne (Trine Dyrholm) behind. When Anton’s easily bullied son Elias (Markus Rygaard) starts being constantly harassed, a new student comes to his rescue.

Dynamic Duo · In a Better World presents a story about two children with very adult problems. The film has stellar performances and a narrative that presents important and universal themes of life. - Photo courtesy of Sony Picture Classics

Christian, brilliantly portrayed by William Jøhnk Nielsen, becomes fast friends with the timid Elias and displays an intense sense of revenge and anger, especially given his age. Christian’s absentee father Claus (Ulrich Thomsen) is hardly a model for managing emotions, as he struggles to cope with his wife’s recent death and his move from London to Denmark. As a result, the two young boys lean on each other for emotional support.

After a revenge plot against Elias’ bully comes close to serious penalty, the boys’ bond becomes dangerously one-sided, with the angry Christian as the stronger character. Anton remains involved with his own work in Africa and doesn’t realize his son Elias’ need for guidance. When Anton finally returns to Denmark, he’s involved in an altercation with hotheaded mechanic Lars (Kim Bodnia) as the two boys look on. Christian’s instincts kick in after Anton fails to fight back, and his revenge plot against the unruly Lars unfolds tragically.

Dramatic scenes of physical violence and raw emotion make a powerful statement in the film, yet there isn’t a single distinct message conveyed in In A Better World.

Perhaps due to Bier’s directing or simply the nature of the story, the themes of In A Better World are numerous, overwhelming and cause the audience to sometimes struggle with finding one moral point.

Although Christian’s new friendship with Elias could be easily taken as an anti-bullying message, Christian himself is not a paradigm of good behavior. He is at once a suicidal loner and a savior to another loner, and fails to convince the audience he is a good role model for Elias.

Although the audience learns that Christian’s mother’s death has weighed on him heavily, this hardly excuses his haphazard behavior.

Still, Nielsen’s emotional range in portraying Christian is astonishingly convincing, rivaling even the far more experienced Persbrant.

Anton, who touts taking the higher road against bullies and conflict, isn’t shown to be any more reliable or trustworthy than the angry Christian, seen as a role model for Elias in the end. Elias’ character does not offer hope at the end of the film, as he is still a pawn much like he was at the start, showing no validity in being a pacifist, a nerd or a “nice guy.”

What the characters show is an unidealized portrayal of humanity, the message being that people will be people and neither good nor greed will win.

These sensibilities make In A Better World a fitting title, since the realities of our world are not downplayed for a stereotypical happy ending in the film, and the viewer might come away wishing for the better life that never comes. Though mostly focusing on the world of everyday life, Bier creates a strong picture of human life in general.

Although at times predictable, Bier has created a dramatic and gripping film. Picturesque scenery and stunning cinematography makes the film’s visual appeal far more idyllic than its story, and that beauty alone is Oscar-worthy.

In A Better World is a powerful picture of the challenges the world forces us to face, whether we choose such difficult situations or they find us.

Though adults are left to be models for children who haven’t yet learned what is right and wrong, the film demonstrates that regardless of age or experience, knowing what is right is never easy.