Tripwire Reviews Alex Garland’s Civil War

Stars And Strife

Tripwire’s senior editor Andrew Colman reviews Alex Garland’s Civil War out in UK cinemas on 12 April…

Civil War
Director: Alex Garland
Stars: Kirsten Dunst, Wagner Moura, Stephen McKinley Henderson and Cailee Spaeny

Alex Garland’s canon has generally focused on spectacle and concepts over commentary and polemic, and for this outing he has opted once again for a dystopian mise en scene in what is a superior action movie but little more. The setting’s the thing, and although we can glean something from this hyperreal melodrama it’s still a slick, empty concoction with high production values.

Set in the near future, the USA is riven between two factions – the American government and the Western separatist coalition of Texas, California, the Florida Alliance and the New People’s Army of the North Western states. In amongst the flying lead and guerrilla warfare are a small cadre of press photographers, led by battle-hardened veteran Lee (Kirsten Dunst) along with her friend Joel (Wagner Moura), their bluff mentor Sammy (Stephen McKinley Henderson) and Jessie (Cailee Spaeny) a young, inexperienced, yet hugely ambitious photojournalist who is the mandatory spanner in the works. The four leads have one mission – to make the several hundred-mile journey intact to Washington in order to take pics of the showdown between the two rival forces, as the separatists close in on their target.

Regardless of any qualms, the cinematography is beautifully framed and expertly mounted, while the snappy, spare and pared down direction certainly adds to the reportage-style feel of the piece, all nervy hand-held cameras, woozy deathscapes and jump shocks. There are some decent retro touches, with Garland using analogue tech rather than digital, and the alternative rock soundtrack is excellent (never thought I’d hear Suicide’s Ghost Rider in a movie). If anything this film is reminiscent of decades old post-apocalyptic movies, previous efforts by the director like 28 Days Later and of course Philip K. Dick’s Man in The High Castle.

Thematically however the focus is mostly about how the job of being a press photographer in such a post-urban situation is corrosive, mercenary and soul destroying, but even that’s shorthanded (I do hope they got paid!). The rest is skewed naturalism, the four leads going on a road trip that is episodically peppered with excessively violent and graphic set pieces. Plus, none of the characters are adequately fleshed out, with the possible exception of Kirsten Dunst’s troubled, seen it all lifer.

Critics have unanimously pointed to the film’s alleged strength as an allegory of current political mores, deep-rooted polarization and American exceptionalism, yet such matters are only interpolated on occasionally, such as when Dunst’s crew run into a far right militia headed by Jesse Plemons. It is here when everything clicks into gear, but it isn’t enough, and the lack of dramatic build up prior to the explosive denouement means that we really don’t care all that much for the ensemble. Such brevity reminds me of the MCU directive, which is to ignore character development and world building for action. It would’ve meant a considerably bigger budget, but the film really needed an extra half hour to illustrate who the belligerents were and what motivated them. Everything for the most part is hinted at, or barely seen, so what the movie projects is a broadly delineated portrayal of what we can expect should the planet, or at least America, experience complete meltdown and the loss of infrastructure.

All of that can be construed as something cinematic, or even a vision (as certain reviewers would have it), but its lack of breadth and depth means it’s not true cinema. There has to be something more than a series of admittedly atmospheric bottle scenes and visceral shoot-em ups for the film to transcend genre. Nevertheless, it’s bravura in places and is worth a look if you want to know what 2050 will look like.

Civil War is in UK cinemas from 12 April. Here’s its trailer