Alex Garland – 'Civil War' movie review

Based entirely on the story unfolding in a dystopian America that’s become embroiled in the titular conflict and releasing the same year as a presidential election, Alex Garland‘s Civil War was always going to be a lightning rod for controversy and hot-button discussions.

Although that may not have been the filmmaker’s intention specifically, the increasingly divided nature of politics in the United States made it an inevitability. However, it’s hard to see where the battle lines can be drawn between the typical ‘red’ and ‘blue’ party divides when the movie is so intentionally evasive of what ignited the Second Civil War in the first place.

Politicians barely factor into the story, either, with Nick Offerman’s dictator-like incumbent of the White House not even being given a character name. In one respect, he exists solely to drive the story forward in that he’s a three-term president pitting countryman against countryman on his watch, but it’s impossible not to see the parallels between the erstwhile antagonist and a certain Home Alone 2 star.

Garland may paint the battleground in broad, nationwide strokes, but the narrative zeroes in on those with their boots firmly on the ground. Kirsten Dunst’s photojournalist Lee Smith and Wagner Moura’s reporter Joel embark on a road trip to Washington with Stephen McKinley Henderson’s veteran Sammy and Cailee Spaeny’s aspiring photographer Jessie in tow, trying to make it to Washington for the story of a lifetime before the commander-in-chief is overrun and executed for his crimes.

That’s the entirety of Civil War in a nutshell from a storytelling perspective, which is no bad thing by any means. Dunst outwardly projects the personality of someone immune to being knee-deep in a warzone, but that gradually reveals itself to be a façade. Joel thrives on being in the thick of the action, Sammy urges caution having been around the block several times over, while Jessie finds herself torn between the visceral thrill of living her dreams and the harsh realities it brings.

The quartet bounce off each other effortlessly as they navigate the increasingly hostile terrain, with deafening gunshots, thunderous explosions, pinned-down snipers, and a scene-devouring mass murdering Jesse Plemons all contributing to paint the picture of a country divided what may well be beyond repair.

There’s no explanation given for why the Civil War started in the first place, and the opposing forces are loosely divided into Texas and California, uniting as the ‘Western Forces’, where they defeated the ‘Florida Alliance’ along the way. Putting two such politically opposed states together to combat a fascistic leader feels like Garland urging the audience to look at the bigger picture, but it’s never made clear enough what that bigger picture actually is or what it’s supposed to mean in the grand scheme of things.

Civil War tries to stay as apolitical as possible, but that regularly puts it in direct opposition to what it’s trying to say. The president doesn’t get a name, the other side of the conflict doesn’t get a name, the political parties don’t get a name, and only a scarce few of the characters outside of the central four get names, but that deliberate muddying of the waters makes it hard to gain a clear understanding of the overarching events outside of the journalists.

That’s kind of the point, in fairness, with Lee, Joel, Sammy, and Jessie remaining objective in the face of the horrors they witness. On a micro level, it’s hauntingly effective in conveying how they – and, by extension, society at large – have become numb to the terrors of everyday life. On a macro level, though, obfuscating why things have devolved to such an extent that the president has ordered airstrikes on civilians leaves too many questions unanswered for Civil War to land with maximum impact.

It’s a visceral, hard-hitting, and intensely immersive thriller that’s close to flawless on a technical level. It’s also another sign that Garland is one of the most distinctive visualists working today, but as much as exposition can often be the death knell of any movie with a lot on its mind, Civil War would have benefitted immensely from leaving a lot less unsaid.

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