# Winter Brothers

Winter Brothers (Danish: Vinterbrødre) is a 2017 Danish-Icelandic drama film written and directed by Hlynur Pálmason, in his feature-length film debut. It stars Elliott Crosset Hove and Simon Sears as a pair of limestone worker brothers, whose disparate traits collide as issues of masculinity, isolation, and brotherly love are broached. The film won numerous awards, including two Bodil Awards and nine Robert Awards—each of which resulted in victories from their respective ceremonies' highest honor, Best Danish Film.

## Cast

* Elliott Crosset Hove as Emil
* Simon Sears as Johan
* Vic Carmen Sonne as Anna
* Lars Mikkelsen as Carl
* Anders Hove as The Long-Haired Man (Neighbor)
* Michael Brostrup [da] as Michael
* Peter Plaugborg as Daniel
* Birgit Thøt Jensen as Helle
* Laurits Honoré Rønne as August
* Frédéric André as Nick

## Release

Winter Brothers debuted in the Concorso Internazionale section at the 2017 Locarno Film Festival on 3 August 2017. It was screened in the Discovery section at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival. It later premiered in the USA at the 47th annual New Directors/New Films Festival at Lincoln Center in Manhattan, NYC.

## Reception
### Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 91% of 11 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.7/10. Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 63 out of 100, based on 8 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.
Film critic Jessica Kiang of Variety magazine called the film "an impressively original, auspiciously idiosyncratic debut, one that scratches away at truths about masculinity, lovelessness, and isolation, that are no less true for being all but inexpressible". Film critic Neil Young of The Hollywood Reporter called it "a confidently handled, promisingly edgy feature debut from Copenhagen-based, Icelandic writer-director Hlynur Pálmason".

### Accolades

Winter Brothers won the 2018 Bodil Award for Best Danish Film and Best Cinematography (Maria von Hausswolff). Both Elliott Crosset Hove and Simon Sears received nominations for Best Lead Actor and Best Supporting Actor, respectively, for portraying the titular brothers.
At the 2018 Robert Awards, the film won the Robert Award for Best Danish Film, as well as eight other merit awards: Pàlmason for Best Director, Crosset Hove for Best Lead Actor, Vic Carmen Sonne for Best Supporting Actress, as well as the Roberts for Best Cinematography, Best Production Design, Best Sound Design, Best Costume Design, and the Robert Award for Best Makeup. In addition, both Sears and Lars Mikkelsen earned Best Supporting Actor nominations. The film earned three further nominations in the categories of Best Screenplay, Best Editing, and Best Score.
| Year | Award | Category | Recipient | Result |
| 2018 | Robert Awards | Best Danish Film | Hlynur Pálmason (filmmaker) Per Damgaard Hansen (producer) Julie Waltersdorph Hansen (producer) | Won |
| 2018 | Robert Awards | Best Director | Hlynur Pálmason | Won |
| 2018 | Robert Awards | Best Screenplay | Hlynur Pálmason | Nominated |
| 2018 | Robert Awards | Best Lead Actor | Elliott Crosset Hove | Won |
| 2018 | Robert Awards | Best Supporting Actor | Lars Mikkelsen | Nominated |
| 2018 | Robert Awards | Best Supporting Actor | Simon Sears | Nominated |
| 2018 | Robert Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Vic Carmen Sonne | Won |
| 2018 | Robert Awards | Best Cinematography | Maria von Hausswolff | Won |
| 2018 | Robert Awards | Best Costume Design | Nina Grønlund | Won |
| 2018 | Robert Awards | Best Editing | Julius Krebs Damsbo | Nominated |
| 2018 | Robert Awards | Best Makeup | Katrine Tersgov | Won |
| 2018 | Robert Awards | Best Production Design | Gustav Pontoppidan | Won |
| 2018 | Robert Awards | Best Score | Toke Brorson Odin | Nominated |
| 2018 | Robert Awards | Best Sound Design | Lars Halvorsen | Won |
| 2018 | Bodil Awards | Best Danish Film | Hlynur Pálmason | Won |
| 2018 | Bodil Awards | Best Lead Actor | Elliott Crosset Hove | Nominated |
| 2018 | Bodil Awards | Best Supporting Actor | Simon Sears | Nominated |
| 2018 | Bodil Awards | Best Cinematographer | Maria von Hausswolff | Won |