Modern war stories can be a tricky beast to get right. There’s an inherent challenge in keeping true to the horrors of war without overwhelming the ever-important human focus of storytelling. Too little, and the narrative feels toothless. Too much and it becomes too horrifying to stay emotionally connected to the characters.

To its credit, A Life’s Worth finds the right balance between all these elements to be human and horrifying all at once. Bolstered by a strong execution both in-front of and behind the camera, the Swedish miniseries is a tremendous watch. A Life’s Worth never relents in the horrors of war, but it also knows that the key to any compelling story is the human element that remains firmly at the heart of the show.

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Focusing on the true story of the first Swedish UN battalion to take part in the Bosnian War and based on Magnus Ernström’s novel, A Half Year, an Entire Life, A Life’s Worth is explores the highs and lows of humanity in a powerful miniseries. Set across six episodes, A Life’s Worth centers around four soldiers — Forss (Maxwell Cunningham), Babic (Toni Prince), Strand (Edvin Ryding) and Kilpinen (Erik Enge) — as they follow their commander Andreasson (Johan Rheborg) into the conflict that tests their humanity and restraint.

The mini-series does a terrific job juggling not just the perspectives of the soldiers caught in the conflict but the civilians stuck in the middle of the chaos, with a focus on the humanity of everyone involved that makes it a particularly powerful watch, especially as the soldiers bear witness to more and more horrifying things. The violence on display is not for the faint of heart, but it critically never feels exploitive or pointless.

Director Ahmed Abdullahi does a terrific job in both the intense firefights and the uneasy calm that surrounds it, never losing sight of the people caught in these situations. There’s a focus on character work that is commendable and consistent throughout the series. Whereas other wartime adaptations can lean one way or the other, too heavily into the soldiers or too far away from the humanity of everyone involved, A Life’s Worth finds a strong balance that speaks to the specific stress all these young men are under.

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That it works as well as it does speaks to raw humanity that writers Mona Masri and Oliver Dixon bring to the scripts and that the cast find in their characters. The miniseries proves to have an impressive handle of tone, flipping between harrowing and heartening with ease. There’s the romance between kitchen worker Alma and the snarky Strand stands in direct contrast to the show’s blunt and often horrifying portrayal of the horrors of war. One such depiction of the latter, late in the show’s run, is one of the most haunting scenes of any show this past year. That isn’t even diving into the darker elements of the show, which focus on the four being held prisoner.

For American audiences who may not know much about one of the bloodiest European conflicts of the past thirty-five years, A Life’s Worth is a solid history lesson. For any viewer, however, the miniseries proves to be a powerful showcase of humanity at its best, worst, and in-between. There’s a raw authenticity to the show that makes it painfully compelling and impossible to look away from. A Life’s Worth is great, and well-worth the deep-dive.

A Life’s Worth will be available to stream on Viaplay on Oct. 30