'A War' puts the madness in a gray area

Danish army commander Claus Pedersen (Pilou Asbaek), the protagonist in Tobias Lindholm's courtroom drama "A War," should have requested a competent trial attorney.

"A War" deftly examines the emotional and psychological tolls that battle takes on army commanders, charged with protecting squads while remembering military protocol and anticipating political fallout from their decisions.

Pedersen and his Danish recruits, stationed in an Afghan province, come under fierce attack by Taliban forces. Without knowing the exact location of the hostiles, Pedersen orders an airstrike on a target. (NOTE: Read no further if you wish plot details to be preserved.)

Many innocent people are killed and Pedersen stands trial for murder as a result of a decision reached under life-and-death pressures.

His attorney never points out that the attack stopped immediately after the airstrike, suggesting the target was correct. He doesn't ask if suspected Taliban bodies were recovered at the scene, or some place close to the scene to determine where the Taliban actually were.

Meanwhile, to give Pedersen depth and humanity, "A War" periodically reports back to Denmark where Pedersen's wife Maria (Tuva Novotny) holds down the domestic fort with three kids wishing Dad would come home soon.

This drama tackles the ethical pitfalls of wartime choices with indecisive shades of gray (unlike, let's say the more commercial white hat/black hat mentality of a westernized "American Sniper.")

Tightly cut with scenes that capture the disorienting madness of conflict, "A War" makes a strong case for situational ethics, but has a courtroom plot hole in it big enough to drive a tank through.