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Civil War Movie Review

Name: Civil War Movie Review
Item: Civil War
Rating: 3
Author: Giridharan M

Civil War Movie Review English Movie Review

Written by

Review for the film " Civil War"

Runtime: 01 Hour 49 Minutes

Certificate: A

Released: 19-04-2024

Genre: Action, Epic

Similar To: Ballerina (2024), The Man With The Iron Heart, Zombieland 2, Beverly Hills Cop 4

Critic Review
User Review

3 / 5.0

3.38 / 5.0

CAST & CREW

Kirsten Dunst

Nick Offerman

Wagner Moura

MORE CAST & CREW

Producer:

Gregory Goodman

Andrew Macdonald

Allon Reich

Music Director:

Geoff Barrow

Ben Salisbury

Editor:

Jake Roberts

Director:

Alex Garland

Supporting Actress:

Cailee Spaeny

Art Director:

Jason Vigdor

Mark Dillon

Director of Photography:

Rob Hardy

Supporting Actor:

Evan Lai Hipp

Stephen McKinley Henderson

Wagner Moura

Nelson Lee

Justin James Boykin

Jefferson White

Vince Pisani

Actor:

Kirsten Dunst

Nick Offerman

Wagner Moura

Actress:

Kirsten Dunst

Click Here For Full Cast & Crew

Civil War is a war drama film written and directed by Alex Garland. This film features Nick Offerman Nick Offerman was born on 26th June, 1970 in Jolli >> Read More... (President), Kirsten Dunst She’s one the most glamorous actress and garnered >> Read More... (Lee), Wagner Moura Wagner Moura is an actor from Brazil. The full nam >> Read More... (joel), Jefferson White (Dave), Nelson Lee (Tony), Evan Lai (Bohai), Cailee Spaeny (Jessica), Stephen Henderson (Sammy), Vince Pisani (Concierge), and others. Geoff Barow, and Ben Salisbury have given the music for this film. The producers of this film are Elisa Alvares, Timo Argillander, Gregory Goodman, Andrew Macdonald, Allon Reich, Joanne Smith, and Kenneth Yu. Rob Hardy is the cinematographer of this film. Jake Roberts is the editor of this movie.

Plot

Civil War starts with the President of the United States’ address to the nation delivering the news that he doesn’t quite believe himself. The Western Forces, a Texas- and California-based band of secessionists, has been squashed and a similar group in Florida is on their way to become neutralized. Kirsten Dunst’s Lee is a war photographer capturing an uprising in New York Click to look into! >> Read More... City. New York, as after 9/11, has become a frontline in some neighborhoods. The latter includes a business-class hotel where Lee, Reuter’s writer Joel (Wagner Moura), and an elder statesman of field reporting Sammy (Stephen McKinley Henderson), are held up.

At a protest, Lee saves Jessie and ultimately becomes a reluctant mentor to her when Joel invites Jessie to join a road trip to Washington, D.C. Along the way; Jessie is exposed to an initial horror at a gas station a few miles down the road from a military checkpoint. After agreeing to pay for fuel in Canadian currency, Jessie wanders off to photograph her first atrocity: a soldier has strung up a guy he knew in high school for looting and asks Lee and Jessie to decide what their fate should be. Will they succeed in their dangerous pursuit of interviewing the President?

Star Performances

The performances in the film heighten the sense of uncertainty and fury that overtakes during Civil War. Dunst through her character conveys journalistic advice that's cheeky and sincere to newcomers, and that’s never to get emotionally involved. The thanklessness and gut-punching effort that goes into becoming a renowned journalist is beautifully shown by her onscreen. Her performance is phenomenal with a emotional range of a pro. One doesn't doubt her as Lee, a veteran war photographer, for a moment, even though she barely says anything. Wagner Moura is equally brilliant. His character-Joel is chaotic, wild, and hedonistic. The depiction of war journalists by these two actors is so precise: the bizarre, adrenaline-fueling addiction that it seems to require. They're not just the characters: they're the whole point of the film. Moura’s adrenaline seeking character, Joel is giddy with excitement as artillery shells explode in the background but inconsolably distraught after a run-in with Jesse Plemons Jesse Plemons also known as Jesse Lon Plemons is a >> Read More... ’ pink sunglasses-wearing bigoted soldier. The evolving relationship between Lee and Jessie will go down as one of the year’s top character studies. Garland’s cast is everything as observers of the worst who cannot stop what they see but document so others can; left reckoning with history’s repeated follies, their impassioned reports do nothing but recycle humankind’s inability to change doomed patterns.

Analysis

Garland’s Civil War will undoubtedly go down as one of the most provocative films of the year. While most of the war drama films explore the devastating repercussions of war or war like situations have on the people’s life, “Civil War” is less interested in the causes of conflict and more about front lines as the Western Forces march towards the White House through the East Coast, turning small towns into battlefield, while creating an immersive epic that is primarily about capturing the horrors of war. It is a superbly directed action thriller that uses the IMAX format to expand the impact of its violence; an angry cautionary tale; a call for peace; and a critique of journalism as the neutral arbiter, the first draft of history, and the necessary alliances formed between reporters and newsmakers to break critical stories. Garland dispassionately presents hell, making the least multiplex-friendly IMAX picture imaginable. Garland and his team don’t hold back while showing the cost of violence; images evoke some of the modern front lines in Ukraine and Gaza. The film’s scope and scale is quite minimal. Giant set pieces keep a narrow perspective, leaving quite a lot for audiences to unpack and imagine. The film is ultimately about the fog of war, the alliances and politics of its characters remaining a bit unclear. One could conclude that Civil War, simply by way of that which it’s critiquing, is about insecurity. It serves as an indispensable stepping stone, one that leads to the conversations that each and every one of us have a responsibility to engage in. It is littered with atrocities and real-life war footage that gives the viewers idea about the devastating effects of a war-like situation Garland incredibly scripted and directed the intense battle scenes. The sound supported the sequences of the film to create tension among the audience. But, more that sound, what really excites viewers’ senses is the use of silence in the film. When you’re making a movie about war photographers, it had better be both pretty and gritty, and cinematographer Rob Hardy threads that needle adroitly. Also, the film’s music mesmerizes with its amalgamation of modern melodies with soothing and slow-paced songs. Garland’s technical prowess behind the camera, Composers Ben Salisbury and Geoff Barrow borrow from twangy American folk songs for acoustic guitar plucks and country-loving instrumental rambles, Brilliant performances by the star-cast, and the grant production value results in a beautiful representation of a dreadful story.

What’s There?

The performances by the stellar star cast help give this raging war film an emotional core.
The phenomenal camera work by Lee enhances the experience of viewers.
The choice of music is satirically apt.

What’s Not There?

The raw brutality shown may not be suitable for some of the viewers.

Verdict

Garland gives a blockbuster film whose XP is its Story and performances. I will hardly doubt if the film wins one or two Oscars as well. The thrilling and bold approach to showcase a dystopian possibility from an angle, no one has explored till today, Garland hits the bull’s eye. This movie is a must watch not only from the cinematic perspective but also the brutality of war and aggression and the repercussions. It's dark & terrifying. This is the sheer dread and despair of war: there is no questioning that the film is staunchly anti-war: the cost of it all feels so palpable.

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