IN A BETTER WORLD—-from Denmark in 2010, directed by Susanne Bier, this won an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film.  A doctor (Mikael Persbrandt, flawless) faces twin crises: one in Africa, where he volunteers treating victims of a merciless Sudanese warlord, another in his seemingly idyllic home town, with his troubled son and the boy’s new friend, who also has some serious issues at home. The kids plot to get even with a bullying local, and things threaten to go from prankish to lethal.

When back in the Sudan, the doctor must treat the wounded warlord who has caused so much agony to the other patients. Conscience and morality, menace and honor, duty and revenge all swirl through 119 minutes, co-scripted by the director with her frequent collaborator Anders Thomas Jensen.  Superior cinematography enhances a story rich in mood and sense of place. Superb acting from Triny Dyrholm, Ulrich Thomsen, Markus Rygaard, William Johnk Nielsen.  It drew a decent $9,630,000 at the box-office.