Originally published to 8 News Now on January 31, 2024.

If the concept of director Alex Garland’s Civil War is taken on a surface level, it is easy to say that releasing a film like it during an election year is provocative, to say the least. However, after watching the movie, it’s clear that Civil War operates as a warning, free of blame or politics. But while the heavy tones are evident throughout the film’s runtime, does it make for great cinema? The results are mixed.

Civil War is a technical tour de force. Every camera shot is meticulously crafted and purposeful, creating a feast for the eyes. Every gunshot, every military jet flyby, rattles the viewer. On a technical level, cinematography, sound design, general direction, Civil War sings. All of those elements easily put the audience in the unsettling headspace of our protagonists.

Those protagonists, Kirsten Dunst, Wagner Moura, Cailee Spaeny, and Stephen McKinley Henderson, all portray their characters with a subtle nuance that augments the dread induced by Civil War’s subject matter. Dunst’s world-weariness, Moura’s wide-eyed embrace of the conflict’s violence, Spaeny’s innocence, and Henderson’s wisened veteran all help to create a world that audiences can feel. However, this may lead to the best and worst parts of the film.

Civil War is a dour, depressing drag of a film. Truly the feel-bad movie of the year so far, there is shockingly little levity here. This is a war film. The difference between Civil War and, let’s say, Saving Private Ryan or Dunkirk is that in those films, audiences could get behind a side. We knew — these were our heroes. These were the villains. That kind of backstory and development is not offered in this film.

Do not look for background or reason in Civil War. Indeed, this is not a “why” or “how” movie. The movie doesn’t explain sides, how we got to this point, the geographics of the war, or even which side stands for what. There’s not even a vague explanation of the timeline. It’s not clear how long the war has been going. We’re dropped into Civil War in progress, like cinematic paratroopers on the battlefront. 

In Civil War, it seems the message is — there is no good side. Everyone is bad in their own way. It’s a commentary that, while thought-provoking, does not make for the most engaging cinema. Perhaps Mary Poppins was right, and a spoonful of sugar would have helped this medicine go down. However, what Civil War offers is a bitter pill, and although a technical marvel, it can be hard to swallow as a result.