Civil War
For as long as anyone can remember, war films have always made their indelible mark on the film conversation. Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now is lauded as one of the greats, Saving Private Ryan is often seen as one of Spielberg’s best, Kathryn Bigelow’s The Hurt Locker took the 2010 Best Picture Oscar home, and Alfonso Cuaron’s more dystopian Children of Men is regarded as a modern classic. Yet, what do these films all have in common? All take place in some foreign country far from the shielded and seemingly invincible United States of America. Both in fiction and reality (until now, at least) have the frontlines of war as we know it today (alien invasions and shlocky action flicks aside) been distant from the American terrain. And for many Americans, the idea of war and the atrocities synonymous with it are inconceivable and a mere distant thought. They’re simply images on a TV screen or videos fed through the social media algorithm, leading many to become desensitized and adopt a false sense of immunity to such occurrences. Alex Garland dares to go where no film has before as he takes the imagery oftentimes seen in the arid deserts of the Middle East or dense jungles of South Asia and places the frontlines onto our homefront. Civil War is Alex Garland operating at the top of his craft to deliver a propulsive thriller that transparently depicts the hard-hitting truths of war and the ethical balancing act that is the art of journalism.
After a war breaks out within the United States, seemingly due to a fascist President’s (Nick Offerman) reign over the nation, the country finds itself divided into four factions – The Western Forces of Texas and California, the Southeastern Florida Alliance, and the New People’s Army and the Loyalist States of which is what remains of the original United States. Amongst all this chaos, journalists Lee Smith (Kirsten Dunst), Joel (Wagner Moura), Jesse (Cailee Spaeny), and Sammy (Stephen McKinley-Henderson) try to record the current climate of the nation through images. Despite each having their respective personal motivations, the guerilla-style group aims to traverse the war-torn United States of America with one shared goal: reach Washington D.C. to get an interview and “the perfect shot” of the president of the time.
Lee (Kirsten Dunst) instinctively taking on a mentor role to protect up-and-coming war photographer, Jesse (Cailee Spaeny), amidst the chaos and violence.
In Civil War, Garland frames the horrors of war through the objective lens of war journalism. Across our protagonists’ journey, we encounter dire situations and predicaments far worse than a crumbling Statue of Liberty or a jam-packed Interstate of crashed cars. In Garland’s vision of war on U.S. land, even the most mundane of activities – like filling up on gas – become life-or-death situations. Just going down the wrong road apocalyptically dressed with Christmas decorations in the middle of Summer could result in getting sniped. In one instance, the group embroils themselves with a hardcore nationalist – played demeaningly by Jesse Plemons – who appears to kill as he pleases as he dumps a truckload of non-uniformed dead bodies into a ditch.
Garland doesn’t shy away from showing the harsh casualties of war on the screen. Victims will plead incessantly for their lives before being pummeled with bullets, their blood pooling on the floor, and staining their comrades’ hands as they attempt to save them. Individuals foam at the mouth to get their piece of the action, assault rifle in hand, as their trophy victims hang from a noose alongside them, beaten, bloody, and bruised. But Garland takes things a step further and discusses much more than the senseless violence brought upon by war.
Through the lens of war journalism, Garland frames our protagonist’s use of the camera as their choice of weapon — a weapon of justice and truth but one that ultimately takes a toll on the human spirit of its user. Spaeny’s character, Jesse, is introduced as a newcomer to the scene of war photography. In trying to get her foot in the door, she connects with Dunst’s Lee – a decorated and seasoned journalist – amid a tense altercation. After Joel’s mischievous inclusion of the ambitious, young woman into the group, Lee hesitatingly takes her under her wing. As the film progresses, it’s evident that after years of capturing such images, Lee faces a handful of demons and mental trauma. As Dunst portrays the desensitized Lee with gravitas, her character cautions Jesse, about the road she’s heading down and its ethical implications. Through this mentor/mentee dynamic, Garland asks “Where does the line between civil duty to report these war crimes and one’s ethics and values start and stop?”.
A glimpse at Garland’s vision of a war-torn United States
Aside from a few not-so-subtle cues of xenophobia and moments of blind patriotism that could work against the film at times, Garland refuses to blatantly play into the sensationalization of bipartisanship and lets the unfolding events speak for itself. Who’s fighting for what and who has what ideals is beside the point Civil War is trying to make. At one point in the film, Joel, in a moment of revelation, states to a random civilian partaking in a cat-and-mouse-like sniper showdown, “You don’t even know what side you’re fighting for,”. This refusal to explicitly demonstrate what any of the fictional parties in this film believes in and this particular character’s blind participation in this war begs the viewers to ask themselves: Is any belief worth causing a war for? Is all of this tragedy and loss of innocent lives ever justified? And it sheds light onto the innate primal instincts that these situations, often instigated by tyrannical leaders, seem to provoke.
Despite discussing the ethical weight of a journalist’s camera, Garland doesn’t fail to recognize the importance of their existence and role in informing the public of mankind’s despicable actions. His camera empathizes with the emotional burden they bear and the mental turmoil depicted is only brought to life through the cast’s talents. Dunst shows no hesitation in acting as the film’s anchor point, coming off as hardened but soon giving way to her character’s sensible side. Acting alongside her as a fellow Sofia Coppola leading lady is Cailee Spaeny who shows a promising future ahead of her. For as immature and impulsive as her character is, one can’t help but feel for her when she’s initially vulnerable and susceptible to what is unfolding around her. Spaeney is more than convincing and even relatable in her desire and drive to prove herself equal to her peers, but as the runtime progresses, these ambitions become more worrisome. As support, Wagner Moura as Joel, the adrenaline junkie counterpart whose motivations are debatable, is charming and Stephen McKinley-Henderson’s Sammy delightfully acts as both the comedic relief and voice of reason.
Jesse (Wagner Moura) taking Jesse (Cailee Spaeny) under his wing and navigating the disarray and horrors of the modern American Civil War in pursuit of a career-defining image.
Civil War is essentially the culmination of everything that made Garland’s previous work memorable, filtered into one hell of a bombastic film. The square-like 1.85 aspect ratio makes for a completely immersive experience and the sound design is all-encompassing and ruthless. Bullets whiz by, helicopters hover overhead, tanks roll in from behind, buildings crumble from the left and right and a warzone is made out of the very theater itself. Working under A24’s largest production budget to date, the film sees the director operating on a scale never seen from him before, reflected in every detail of the film – from the artistry of which the shots are framed, to the expansive sets, and the extensive amount of effects (both digital and practical) needed to visualize such disarray and destruction.
The release of Civil War signifies a new era for A24 for the production company has managed to front a film of its stature without sacrificing the singular integrity the studio has garnered its status for. As much as journalists wield their cameras to chronicle the unspeakable, Garland uses his to force the audience to confront the reality of our current domestic and international political climate. He brings what once was thought unfathomable to life through his harrowing depiction of war on American soil and emerges victorious in his complex exploration of a war journalist’s moral integrity. The result is an urgent and unflinching reminder of the human cost of military affairs packaged in the spectacle of blockbuster filmmaking at its peak.
Verdict: Garland takes a swing and lands himself a Nick Pick with his refreshing take, if disheartening, on the casualties of war. (5/5)