Blaine: The Danish title for this movie is “Drunk.”
a Thomas Viterberg film
Plot (Spoiler Alert)
Norwegian author, and psychiatrist Finn Skarderud had a theory that people would feel happier and creative if they drank. He also believes that people are born with alcohol in their blood. Four high school teachers, Martin, Tommy, Nikolaj, and Peter, want to feel alive and drinking is the answer. They experiment with all different types of alcohol.
Blaine: I don’t drink alcohol so I don’t know what that experience feels like, but I do pay attention to how it effects others. Alcohol can do a lot of things. It can kill you if you drink too much, it can ruin one’s life, it can cause problems, but it can also bring joy, take away any pain you are feeling and can make you a party animal. “Another Round” explores the different sides of alcohol, mainly the good side. Filmmaker Thomas Viterberg and his co-writer Tobias Lindholm wanted to make a movie about drinking after reading Finn Skarderud’s theory on alcohol. They spent seven years putting this project together. The first draft they wrote for “Another Round” was more of a comedy and they did want humor in the story, but they also wanted it to be a drama. It also had to be about friendship. The main characters started off working at a control tower at an airport, but then it was decided that they would be school teachers instead.
Thomas Viterberg had worked with Mads Mikkelsen on “The Hunt” and while they were making that movie, Thomas told Mads that he was planning to make a movie about people exploring alcohol. There wasn’t much detail to it at the time and there was no script, it was just an idea. Mads had a feeling “Another Round” would turn out great because he knows how talented Thomas is. Seven years later, Mads finds himself on the set for “Another Round.” Thomas worked with a lot of people on “Another Round” that he has worked with before in the past, not just actors, but the crew as well.
Four days after principal photography had begun, something bad happened. Thomas’ eldest daughter, Ida, had been killed in a car crash and he was devastated when he got the news. Production on “Another Round” was put on hold so Thomas could have time to grieve.
Before she died, Ida looked at the script for “Another Round” while she was visiting Africa. Ida wrote to Thomas telling him how much she loved the script and how it would make a terrific film. It meant a lot to Thomas that his own daughter was a big believer in “Another Round.” Ida was supposed to be in the movie too, playing a concerned teen that Mad’s character, Martin, would deal with. After Ida’s funeral, Thomas went back to work on “Another Round” and dedicated it to his late daughter. Everyone involved with “Another Round” was there for Thomas and did whatever they could to make him happy.
Martin isn’t living a happy life. The way he teaches is boring and he feels there is no life in him. Martin gets together with his friends, Tommy, Nikolaj and Peter, for dinner. Finn Skarderud’s theory is mentioned during dinner and the boys decide to drink and get a little drunk. Martin hasn’t had that much fun in years. He also hasn’t felt so alive and he doesn’t want it to stop. Martin starts bringing liquor to school. He doesn’t want to drink too much, just enough to make him feel good about himself. Martin is finding himself through drinking.
During his research on alcohol, Thomas looked up world history and discovered how many people have achieved something in life while being drunk. Alcohol has become Martin’s favorite subject and he uses it to make things more interesting as he teaches class. He talks about famous historians and their love for alcohol. In Denmark you don’t have to wait till you’re 21 to drink. You are allowed to drink by the time you reach 18. Martin’s students are at that age and they enjoy drinking too. The students didn’t think much of Martin, other than being boring, but he is showing a better side of himself and he has made learning fun for them.
Martin tells Tommy, Nikolaj and Peter what he has been up to and they all agree drinking is making them feel like they have been reborn again. They make it look like they are drinking the Fountain of Youth, only it makes them younger on the inside than the out. They experiment and study people’s history with it, just like what the screenwriters did for this movie. Martin uses a breathalyzer to make sure he is on the right level between drunk and sober. The boys are having too good of a time with alcohol. They even sneak drinks into school as if they are underaged teenagers.
Peter is telling his friends that he regrets never having children. He’s too old to be starting a family. There’s a line Mads Mikkelsen says in that scene that I like. He says “You have your students. They’re gonna remember you forever.” The next day, Peter sees a student, Sebastian, looking down. Sebastian has been held back a grade and he’s worried it’ll happen again. Peter is there for him and suggests he drink a little to help calm him down. Alcohol is something they bond over. Peter really helps Sebastian get through things and now Sebastian is finally going to get his diploma. Sebastian will defiantly remember Peter for what he has done for him. If it wasn’t for Peter Sebastian wouldn’t be graduating. Sebastian gratefully appreciates Peter for being there by his side. Peter has developed a father son relationship with Sebastian.
Drinking alcohol has not only become the boys’ habit, but their way of life. They decide to take things to the next level. They drink something strong and it makes them feel spectacular, but it also gets them drunk. They go out to have a good time, even though they are not well balanced on their feet and continue to consume more alcohol so that the party can continue.
The boys have had too much to drink and they’re wandering around without carrying about how they look or what they do. Acting like you are really wasted was a challenge for Mads Mikkelsen and the other actors, Thomas Bo Larsen, Magnus Millang, and Lars Ranthe. Drinking is never allowed while making a movie, even when you are supposed to play a drunk. Thomas found YouTube videos of drunk people to show his actors. The actors would try to make Thomas laugh while shooting that scene where their characters are really drunk.
Alcohol can turn you into a jerk. There’s daddies/husbands you’ve seen in other movies who are alcoholics and can be hard, violent or abusive with a family member. Martin has a fit while having an argument with his wife, Anika. It’s not as bad as the men I am referring to. Martin is nowhere near that type of person. He will get mad, but he won’t be violent or abusive. Martin and Anika are having problems. Martin meets with Anika and she is having a hard time accepting him, even though he is sober now. She orders a white wine. She needs something to help with the stress she is holding in and that’s another thing alcohol can do. Martin wants to work things out with Anika, but she feels this marriage doesn’t work anymore. Even before Martin started drinking, the marriage was having problems. Things were average.
Martin, Nikolaj, and Peter have been taking it easy on the alcohol for more than a week. Martin’s students are asking why he is back to his old boring self? If Martin told his students that his wife might not love him anymore I’m sure they would understand.
Tommy is not doing a good job at hiding his drinks and keeping a low profile. The school is aware that someone has been sneaking in drinks and Tommy is making himself the obvious suspect because he is drunk. He has become an alcoholic. It’s hard to tell if Tommy was fired from his job, or not. If not, alcohol hasn’t ruined Tommy’s life, but it is about to end it. Tommy is found dead on his boat. It could have been alcohol poisoning or consuming too much alcohol. Either way, alcohol is the cause of his death I know that. It’s sad for everyone that Tommy is dead. People won’t remember Tommy as a drunk, they will remember him as the good man he was.
Martin has lost his friend of 20 years and he has a toast with Nikolaj and Peter to honor Tommy. The boys decide to go out and have a good time because Tommy would have wanted them to enjoy themselves. Alcohol has become a bit of a problem over the past week, but Martin, Nikolaj and Peter can’t quit drinking because it was also a solution to the other problem, which was bringing out a side that wants to take advantage of life and enjoy it while you can. They’ll make sure not to drink themselves to death.
Things are lightening up for the boys. Anika text Martin saying she misses him and wants to work things out with the marriage. They’ve been together for so long and after putting a lot of thought into it, Anika realizes life would be difficult without Martin in it. There’s no other man out there that Anika would fall in love with and it’s no fun to be alone. Martin was made for her and they are soulmates. They can work on improving the marriage and spend the rest of their lives enjoying every minute of it.
The graduates are celebrating and Martin, Nikolaj, and Peter are invited to join the party because they love these guys. Everyone is spraying alcohol everywhere, and on themselves. They all smell like alcohol now. Let’s hope when they drive home they don’t get pulled over, even though they have been drinking, LOL.
Everyone loves how “Another Round” ends with Mads Mikkelsen dancing. During the dinner scene, Tommy mentioned that Martin used to be a great jazz dancer and the others wanted to see it for themselves. Martin didn’t do it because he was shy. During the scene where the boys take their alcohol experiment to the next level, Tommy, Nikolaj, and Peter were dancing to music and really getting into the beats. They wanted Martin to join in, but he decided to stay out of it because he was still shy. Martin dancing is what everyone has been anticipating for. Save the dance for last. At the celebration, Martin decides to release the dancer that is deep inside him. Now that things are brightening up again, he feels he should celebrate, not just with drinking, but dancing too.
There's people who have started their careers off as dancers, like Sofia Boutella, Alicia Vikander, Sonoya Mizuno, but I never knew Mads Mikkelsen started that way too. He started off as a gymnast, then he joined a ballet group by the time he turned 18. Mads also did a lot of musicals, “La Cage Aux Folles”, “Chicago” and “West Side Story.” Thomas knew Mads’ was a dancer and felt he should show off his dance moves to the world. Mads didn’t want to dance at first, but he did it for Ida. Ida mentioned in that letter she wrote to Thomas that she was really looking forward to seeing the dancing. Olivia Anselmo was in charge of choreographing the dancing. Mads knew he would be very rusty because he hadn’t danced for so long, but that was ok because Martin was the same. Martin hasn’t danced in twenty years and now he is revisiting a piece of his past and trying to relive it.
Martin is really showing what he is made of, not just to Nikolaj and Peter, but the graduates too. Mads Mikkelsen said Martin is so free with himself in that scene that he believes he can fly and that’s why he jumps at the end.
My rating on “Another Round” is five out of five stars
