Civil War
In the not so distant future, the United States is fractured by succession and split ideologies. Now, as Civil war has raged on with significant casualties on both sides, a group of embedded reporters embark on a journey to Washington D.C. to conduct what could be the President’s last interview, conversely it could also be their own last interview attempt. Navigating complex lands and hostile locals might be too much for this intrepid crew.
Written and Directed by Alex Garland this high tension piece effectively puts the audience on notice and edge from the outset holding the viewer in what can best be described as an effective cinematic jujitsu arm bar applying and releasing pressure snaring the victim deeper with each turn. Meanwhile solid acting from the entire ensemble including Kirsten Dunst, Wagner Moura, Cailee Spaeny, and Stephen McKinley Henderson sells the illusion with an intentionally bipartisan screenplay. Of note, Jesse Plemons appearance at a particularly fevered pitch leaves a haunting impression of the horrors of war, questioning “what’s American, and who’s to say?” The end result is a win for Garland in one respect which is a solid mirroring of what could be, but also comes up glaringly thin and exposing with the specifically non-political stance; scratching beneath the superficial there are way too many unanswered questions, harrumph, more subtext please. Beautifully assembled none the less, and with election season just around the bend, Civil War is poised to serve as a warning conveniently packaged into a one hour and forty nine minutes of runtime. Civil War is rated R.