We’ve had many cinematic duos, but I never thought I would crave more of this Nordic one, consisting of Thomas Vinterberg and Mads Mikkelsen. After The Hunt (2012) or Jagten, I was down to watch anything these two will decide to make next. And Another Round (or Druk) not only delivered, it reminded me why I love how much attention and well-deserved recognition movies from foreign countries are finally getting.
The story is pretty funny on the surface as the basic premise is; what if people were born with negative alcohol levels and we “must” drink a little every day to be… happier? More adjusted? More relaxed? Or all of these above? It isn’t as “random” as it sounds, as the film’s premise is based on a (now debunked) study (you can read it for yourself here) that explored that very idea. What is fascinating about this is you can immediately tell the difference between cultures and people from different backgrounds approaching the same thing. You can’t convince me that many American directors would have made this into this uplifting comedy with some dramatic elements. But in the hands of Europeans, this turns into a darker drama about life, alcoholism, almost this meditation of what it means to be alive. Yes, there are some purely comedic scenes, but Another Round is not a comedy; by any means.
One aspect of this film is the idea of enabling, what happens when this (slowly increasing how much you drink per day) goes too far. And this will hit close to home for many people, as alcoholism is, unfortunately, quite a universal problem; that knows no race, gender or border. It would be almost impossible to find a person who at least doesn’t know somebody affected by alcoholism. And since it’s such a prevalent addiction, it’s been put to film many times, but somehow, Vinterberg found a new “spin” on it and made a film that resonated with people everywhere. After all, he did win the Oscar for “Best International Feature”.
What I liked the most about this film was that it never came across as “judgemental” or “preachy”, despite having every right to be. All four characters start like extremely loveable people, only for pretty much all of them to descend into some sort of “hell”. They all hit bottom, and as it happens with alcohol, some take a while to get there, whilst others get there quickly. And for a few, there is no way back. Without going into spoilers, there is a clear “price to pay” for this experiment for all our protagonists; only some pay a much higher price than others. That brings me to this movie’s end.
Again, without going into spoilers, the ending is so beautifully bittersweet; I have heard some people were confused by it. And to a degree, I honestly believe it’s intentionally “vague”. Another Round managed to showcase all the dangers of alcoholism without any judgment, but it makes its stance clear. However, that doesn’t mean the character(s) will follow it. What do I mean? We all know what is good for us; we should exercise regularly, eat cleanly, sleep well, read, constantly educate ourselves… the list goes on and on, we all get the drill. However, how often do you do all of these? People take shortcuts and often don’t follow the “best advice” even if they know, deep down, they should. It’s the complexity of being human; we all know what is good for us, yet we don’t follow it, and sometimes we just straight up ignore it. Another Round encapsulates this uniquely human experience and gives it to us “raw”. It’s a complex film about complex characters, so no wonder the finale would also be complexly bittersweet. The end reminded me of the famous quote by Nietzsche: “Beware that, when fighting monsters, you yourself do not become a monster… for when you gaze long into the abyss. The abyss gazes also into you.” Just to be clear, I don’t think our main protagonists becomes a monster, it’s just a bit complicated than that. And you may watch this film and read this ending entirely differently, and that right here is the true power of art.
Overall, Another Round is an excellent film full of characters you may recognise. That is usually a good thing, but given this film’s topic, I don’t think anyone wants to recognise somebody they may know in this, or worse, realise one of those characters may be them. It is a more serious film than you may expect, but it is worth the watch. And that ending… is just an ambivalent cherry on top of this bittersweet cake. And you will hum (if not sing) “What a Life” by Scarlet Pleasure for a few months onwards, I guarantee it.
That’s all for this one! Did you see it? What did you think about it? Let me know!
Until next time,
Luke