When their authoritarian president dissolves the FBI and announces he’s staying on for an unprecedented third term, the American states of Texas and California form an alliance and go to war with their own, in an attempt to overthrow the tyrannical leader.
That’s the set-up for director Alex Garlands latest, which has more than a little air of plausibility about it, given the current state of American politics.
The story is told from the viewpoint of Kirsten Dunst’s jaded war photographer Lee Smith as she documents the conflict alongside her journalist companion Joel (Wagner Moura) and grizzled New York Times veteran Sammy (Stephen McKinley Henderson).
With the president’s perilous grip on the country hanging by a thread, the trio travel south from the relative safety of New York City to Washington DC in the hope of securing an exclusive interview with the country’s leader before he is deposed.
Much to Lee’s chagrin, Cailee Spaeny’s young photo journalist Jessie shoehorns her way onto the road trip before they leave for DC, lending the group an interesting family dynamic.
The film is a departure for Garland, who has almost exclusively worked in the Sci-Fi genre before now, but his skill at building tension is apparent once again.
Dunst excels in her portrayal of Lee, a weary and mostly emotionless photojournalist, worn down by years spent in war zones and desensitised to the brutality going on around her. Spaeny, an accomplished young actress with a string of interesting work already on her CV, is not quite as believable as the rookie photographer, although her wide-eyed enthusiasm does shine through.
The casting of Nick Offerman is an interesting choice as the president, with Garland treading a fine political line, never outwardly naming or siding with either party, presumably in an effort not to alienate half his audience, however his allegiances and that of his characters are easy enough to spot if you’re looking for them.
The films stand-out moment features Dunst’s real-life husband Jesse Plemons as an intimidating soldier who demands the group reveal ‘what kind of American they are’, while detaining them at gunpoint. It’s an absolutely chilling scene that sets the films action packed, heart-in-mouth finale into motion, with Plemons completely terrifying in his few minutes of screen time.
Garland has publicly stated he won’t direct films anymore after falling out of love with filmmaking. But on this evidence that would be a crying shame.
Refusing to shy away from the bloodshed and horrors of war, Civil War is a visceral, thoroughly immersive experience that explores the impact warfare has on those who report on it.
If this is to be Garland’s final effort, it’s a film that will stick with you long after the credits roll over it’s disturbing final image.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Paul Steward
03/05/24
X @grittster