Thomas Vinterberg’s Another Round is a film that celebrates life. Though apparently, it looks like a film to celebrate alcohol, it goes beyond that. Life becomes boring and meaningless when it is engulfed by mid-life crises. No matter how many ways we try to restrict life under routines, it always tries to break the normal daily life. Life itself is indomitable and uncontrollable. Vinterberg’s Another Round celebrates the boundless, careless, ceaseless, free, and indomitable spirit of life.
The story of the film revolves around four friends, Martin (Mads Mikkelsen), Tommy (Thomas Bo Larsen), Peter (Lars Ranthe), and Nikolaj (Magnus Millang), who are teachers in a school in Copenhagen. All of them have been suffering from mid-life crises and find their lives boring. The unattentive students in the school add fuel to their frustration and depression. They could neither maintain family life nor teach properly. The spouses of Martin and Nikolaj are very much frustrated over their behaviors. All four friends meet at Nikolaj’s 40th birthday party and Nikolaj draws a reference to Norwegian psychiatrist Finn Skarderud’s theory that humans are generally born with less than 0.05 blood alcohol content (BAC). They can lead a more enjoyable and cheerful life once BAC reaches 0.05. All four of them start their endeavors to maintain BAC at 0.05.
Soon, they find rejoice and relaxation in personal life. They also find energy and enthusiasm while teaching in school. Once 0.05 BAC is achieved, they gear up for 0.1 BAC by binge drinking. However, they vow not to drink after 8 pm and over weekends. All of them become alcoholics and engage in different fun activities. One night, these four friends arrange a party and return home drunk. Martin and Nikolaj are confronted by their wives. Martin has a heated argument with his wife Anika (Maria Bonnevie). During the confrontation, she admits to infidelity. Martin gets her out of the house. Finally, the group stops drinking.
Though Martin, Peter, and Nikolaj have stopped drinking, Tommy has become a chronic severe alcoholic. One day, Tommy appears drunk in front of his colleagues and the school principal. He is subsequently sacked from the job. After a few days, he boards his rowboat with his dog and assumably commits suicide jumping off the boat. After Tommy’s funeral, the remaining three friends meet over dinner and only consume the served alcohol but do not engage in binge drinking. While dining, Martin receives a message from his estranged wife that she wants to give their marriage another try. The recently graduated students drive by the harbor and the three colleagues join them in celebration. Martin, a former jazz ballet dancer, dances overwhelmingly with energy and enthusiasm and leaps into the sea. The film ends with his frozen frame mid-air.
Another Round neither is about maintaining blood alcohol content nor celebrating alcohol. It is a story about breaking limits, traversing beyond boundaries, and seeking a relaxing life. When human life gets enclosed under mere formalities, it loses its true color and charm. Daily life becomes mundane and formula-driven. With the passage of time, people get bored and lose interest in works and family life. Vinterberg’s Another Round highlights that the ultimate purpose of life is not just living but celebrating it. However, it also shows that a reckless life can damage both work and family life. So, there should be a limit without destructing the free spirit. Uncontrollable life should not linger permanently. The true spirit of life is always constructive but never destructive. It portrays limit amidst limitless.
Director Thomas Vinterberg lost his daughter Ida in a road accident just at the starting of the filming. This film is dedicated to her. She loved and was extremely attached to the script. Vinterberg’s direction is precise, to-the-point, and thought-provoking. Mads Mikkelsen is brilliant in the film, especially at the dance sequence in the last scene. All the actors are brilliant in their respective roles. The cinematography by Sturla Brandth Grovlen is vibrant and colorful. The interior lighting especially during the dinner is brilliant. Another Round was nominated for Best Director and Best International Feature Film winning the Oscar for Best International Feature Film at the 93rd Academy Awards. It won the BAFTA award for the Best Film Not in the English language at the 74th BAFTA awards. It was also nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at the 78th Golden Globe Awards.