You know those wars you hear about on the news? To stop terrorism and bring democracy to the Middle East? Well, it's not only Americans fighting the battle. Just watch Suzanne Bier's melodrama "Brothers" and you'll see that there are actual Danish soldiers on the battlefront. These Nordic soldiers have blond hair and blue eyes, but they suffer too. In case you forgot, war is hell.
Michael (Ulrich Thomas) is the quintessential middle class, middle-aged good guy. He has a beautiful wife, Sarah (Connie Nielson in her Danish feature debut), and two adorable, wide-eyed daughters. They live in a house with comfortable IKEA furniture. Michael seems especially commendable in comparison to his younger punk brother Jannik (Nikolah Lie Kaas), who has recently been released from prison. Unfortunately for the family, Michael has chosen a dangerous profession: the military.
Connie Nielsen and Ulrich Thomsen in Susanne Bier's "Brothers."
But life goes on in native Denmark. Michael's wife and brother grow close in his absence, leaning on each other through all those hard, sad months. When the broken soldier returns, he finds this new relationship unbearable. Consequently he freaks out, breaking the IKEA furniture, terrifying his kids, and wringing his loyal wife's neck. Director Suzanne Bier has a knack for capturing the ordinary nuances of daily life. The good wife Sarah, for instance, wears the same dowdy jacket and pink scarf throughout the film. Bier's most recent film was the acclaimed Dogme success "Open Hearts." "Brothers" also has a Dogme-like feel, yet that is not necessarily a strength. Bier tries to give us bleeding humanity on a plate; the result is unpalatable.
