After The Wedding

Although its chaotic plot and emotional turmoil may be reminiscent of a daytime soap opera, Susanne Bier’s “After the Wedding” transcends such sentiments to reach a level of sincere poignancy. An intensely touching movie, the twists and turns of its plot also make it a fascinating examination of life choices and secrets.

Bolstered by an excellent script by Anders Jensen and phenomenal performances by each and every actor, it’s no wonder that this Danish film was nominated for a 2006 Oscar for best foreign language film.

“After the Wedding” opens with images from Bombay, India. Jacob (Mads Mikkelsen, perhaps better known as evil banker Le Chiffre from “Casino Royale”) has been living there for over 20 years, working at an under-financed orphanage. When a wealthy businessman in Denmark offers the orphanage a potential donation, Jacob finds himself back in his native land in an attempt to save his life’s work and the children he loves so dearly.

But his original mission soon devolves into a much more complicated tale. While in Denmark, Jacob meets the benefactor Jorgen (Rolf Lassgård), a man who seems curiously uninterested in the orphanage’s cause yet still considers giving it his donation. After a quick meeting, Jorgen casually invites Jacob to his daughter Anna’s (Stine Fischer Christensen) wedding that weekend. After the wedding, secrets long kept come to light, regrets from the past resurface, and Jacob’s relationship with Jorgen and his family turns from business to something a little more personal.

In order for the film’s characters to come together, they must first be driven apart. The audience is introduced to Jorgen as he tenderly reads a book to his young sons before bedtime, yet after Anna’s wedding, Jorgen turns into a belligerent alcoholic, yelling at his wife. Despite acting out of character, everything he does is for the benefit of his family, though viewers might believe otherwise (and won’t quite understand until the end of the film). Meanwhile, Jacob’s past confronts him, forcing him to understand that he needs to stop running away from it. As he does this, he is drawn into Jorgen’s household and learns the strength and significance of familial connections.

Strong actors carry the film, which features frequent close-ups of their faces. Emotions run the gamut in “After the Wedding,” and the characters’ eyes, whether tearful or pensive, tell all.

As the film is in Danish, the foreign -language factor could potentially scare away many casual viewers, but it would be a shame to miss this movie. Cleverly crafted and extremely well made, “After the Wedding” provides a powerful inspiration to reexamine life and reconnect with family—a lesson that deserves a hearing in any language.