New Portman, Gyllenaal thriller 'Brothers' a remake of Danish thriller 'Brødre" by Susanne Bier

Lionsgate will release Brothers, a new thriller about a returning war veteran starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Tobey MaGuire, and Natalie Portman nationwide in the United States on December 4, 2009.

But did you know it is a remake of a Danish film, Brødre, from 2004 written and directed by Susanne Bier?

“In our part of the world, we’re dealing with an abstract war, a war we can’t see that we’re in, which is a very strange thing,” Bier told journalist Jessica Winter in 2004 when the film was released during the London Film Festival, not long before Bush started pulling out all the stops in Fallujah. “It’s not tangible, but it’s there, and that must be really terrifying for most people...”

Bier's film was terrifying and emotionally devastating. Hopefully the remake will have as much of an impact and not skimp on the violence or consequences of war and mental instability. Bier is credited as a writer on the new script, but how much input, or whether she had any at all, into the new film version is unkown.