(L to R) Kirsten Dunst and Cailee Spaeny in ‘Civil War.’ Photo: A24.
A24’s ‘Civil War’ takes a terrifying look at what would happen if the United States became fractured. The film follows a group of journalists who are determined to witness history no matter the cost – with chaos and fright at every corner.
While the movie seems inspired by the current political climate, it does not tell the story from either the left or the right. Rather, Garland focused on the battles between the citizens of the United States.
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Where Can I Watch ‘Civil War’?
Kirsten Dunst in ‘Civil War.’ Photo: A24.
The film premiered at SXSW on March 14, 2024, garnering positive reactions from critics and audiences alike. Originally scheduled for an April 26 release, ‘Civil War’ arrived in theaters on April 12. The film’s budget of $50 million makes it the most expensive movie to be released by A24. Since its release, it has grossed over $114.3 million worldwide. The movie has a runtime of 1 hour and 48 minutes.
Garland’s action-thriller became available on digital platforms as of May 24, 2024. Missed it in theaters? Now you can enjoy all the action from home – rent for $19.99 or purchase for $24.99 on VOD platforms such as Apple TV, Prime Video, Google Play, YouTube, and Vudu.
‘Civil War’ presents California and Texas as a united force, which seems an unlikely alliance given how far they are apart politically. However, Garland does not tell the story from either side of the political aisle. The director intends for the film to start conversations and spark debates.
The cast has also spoken on the topic. “The whole movie is open to interpretation,” said Dunst in an interview with Variety. Nick Offerman calls the movie “a brilliant piece of fiction” at the film’s premiere and says that his depiction of the President of the United States isn’t based on current or former presidents, “When you see the movie, it’s so unattached to anything in modern politics, not only in your country but any country.”
For physical media lovers, the action-thriller will be available on DVD, Blu-ray, and 4K UHD on July 9, 2024, and will include special features such as:
Torn Asunder: Waging Alex Garland’s ‘Civil War’ Six-Part Documentary
Theatrical trailer
Those who purchase the physical copy from Amazon will also receive an Amazon Blu-ray Exclusive special feature with their copy – a Q&A with the cast and director.
In a near-future America, the United States has collapsed into civil war as different factions prepare for a final assault on Washington D.C. to unseat the President. A small band of journalists race across a once-familiar and now-dangerous country to get to the frontline and witness what happens.
Who’s In the Cast of ‘Civil War’
Kirsten Dunst as Lee Smith
Wagner Moura as Joel
Cailee Spaeny as Jessie
Stephen McKinley Henderson as Sammy
Nick Offerman as the President of the United States
‘Civil War,’ written and directed by Alex Garland (‘Ex Machina,’ ‘Annihilation’) is a deeply upsetting and frightening film – and we mean that in the best way possible. Set in an America that looks and feels very much like the one we’re in now, this brilliantly made film presents a harrowing vision of a nation tearing itself apart – as well as the story of a small group of journalists determined to witness history no matter what.
Garland’s film is so unnerving because he almost underplays the conflict in a way – since the U.S. is so damn large, there are moments when he lulls you into thinking that vast swaths of the country are untouched by the disaster unfolding in its midst. But make no mistake, there’s a pervasive sense of dread throughout ‘Civil War,’ with terror and chaos lurking around every corner. The cumulative effect is devastating, and regardless of one’s politics, this is a movie that everyone should see – if only because we seem to be skating closer to the edge of the abyss that Garland and his cast so memorably portray.
Story and Direction
(Right) Director Alex Garland on the set of ‘Civil War.’ Photo: A24.
Sometime in the not-too-distant future, civil war has broken out in the United States. The reasons are left unsaid, as are the events that led to Texas and California forming their own union, the Western Forces, which plan a final assault on Washington D.C. to remove the President (Nick Offerman) from office. Another faction, the Florida Alliance, looms in the background. Either way, the events that got the country to this point are never explained, but it’s clear that the U.S. has turned into a geopolitical and humanitarian nightmare.
In the midst of all this, Alex Garland’s film focuses on a band of four reporters – the hard-bitten, callous photojournalist Lee (Kirsten Dunst), the cynical Joel (Wagner Moura), the world-weary Sammy (Stephen McKinley Henderson) and the novice photographer Jessie (Cailee Spaeny) — who set out together from New York to travel to where the Western Forces are amassing for their final push into the nation’s capital.
Lee recognizes that Jessie has talent and reluctantly takes her under her wing, warning the young woman that there are far worse horrors ahead if she pursues her calling and that she must present the truth of what she sees with an unblinking eye. In some ways, ‘Civil War’ is the parallel journey of these two women – Lee has hardened herself to what she sees through her lens but may finally be breaking down and letting herself feel what’s happening, while the untested, somewhat naïve Jessie goes through a trial by fire to make herself into the crusader for truth that she hopes to become.
‘Civil War’ is also about journalism itself – and the necessity of journalists to report and document what they see without bringing their own biases to the table. That means a lie is a lie, the truth is the truth (not “your truth” or “my truth”) and even the most righteous-minded can do something unspeakable. Lee, Joel, and company are there to chronicle what happens – and let historians and future leaders figure out what it means.
‘Civil War.’ Photo: A24.
But even they, of course, are only humans and flawed ones at that: at one point in the film, our four protagonists and a couple of other reporters they meet up with – who have all been a little cavalier up to this point — are given the brutal realization that all the press badges in the world will not protect them anymore, and that events are spinning out of control faster than they might have thought. This is brought home in one of the film’s most terrifying scenes, featuring an uncredited Jesse Plemons (which you’ve seen a bit of in the trailers).
The scene involving Plemons is the most unnerving in the film, yet it’s one of many that feature imagery straight out of a U.N. war zone: Garland and DP Rob Hardy expertly blend widescreen shots of the American countryside – parts of it still pristine – with more close-up, documentary-like footage of refugee camps, burning urban areas, and hand-to-hand combat. Tanks rumble through American streets as jet fighters scream overheard, anti-aircraft weapons firing at them from below. Even a quiet town tucked away somewhere in Pennsylvania, where it doesn’t seem like the war has touched anything, posts armed sentries on its rooftops. The America of ‘Civil War’ is both eerily recognizable and yet utterly, unspeakably warped.
In this and other ways, Garland channels another film about a violent conflict sinking into madness: ‘Apocalypse Now.’ At one point, our journalists come upon two soldiers who are pinned down by a sniper in a distant mansion. No one seems to know who’s the mansion or what side anyone is one. It’s directly reminiscent of the scene in Francis Ford Coppola’s Vietnam epic when Martin Sheen and his crew come upon a remote U.S. outpost that’s descended into chaos: “Who’s in charge here?” Sheen asks a dazed soldier. “Ain’t you?” the soldier replies.
Garland punctuates this accumulation of disturbing images with both an ominous, pulsing score by Geoff Barrow and Ben Salisbury, as well as jarringly delicate folk songs and somber pop numbers, bringing a wistful, overwhelmingly sad emotional undercurrent to the horrors unfolding onscreen.
The Cast
(L to R) Kirsten Dunst, Wagner Moura and Cailee Spaeny in ‘Civil War.’ Photo: A24.
Kirsten Dunst easily gives one of the finest performances of her career as Lee, the combat photographer who says at one point, “Every time I survived a war zone, I thought I was sending a warning home: don’t do this. But here we are.” Lee has seen it all and then some, and at the film’s outset, it almost seems as if nothing will either rattle her or get to her emotionally. But that changes once she meets Jessie, as she sees something of her younger self in the inexperienced photographer and wants to both nurture and protect that.
It’s a subtle, complex performance by Dunst, and it’s complemented by Wagner Moura’s charismatic turn as Joel. The Brazilian ‘Narcos’ star gives Joel an easy charm, a rakish demeanor, and a compassionate undertone, all of which is gradually chipped away as the film goes on. Like Dunst’s lee, Moura’s Joel undergoes a gradual transformation, reaching his goal of getting an interview with the President but perhaps not in the way he initially envisioned.
Stephen McKinley Henderson in ‘Civil War.’ Photo: A24.
Somewhere between both of them is Stephen McKinley Henderson’s Sammy, an older New York Times reporter who is at this point not physically up to the strenuous journey ahead but willing to keep going no matter what. One of our great character actors of the stage and screen (with indelible recent performances in films like ‘Fences’), Henderson effectively portrays Sammy’s world-weariness and cynicism, even as he remains alert and savvy to what’s happening around him. Compassionate as well, his sense of humanity is pushed to the brink by what he experiences on the road to D.C.
While we admire Cailee Spaeny’s work here (and in last year’s ‘Priscilla’), we’re not as effusive about her character’s narrative. Jessie is initially cheerful, headstrong, and somewhat naïve about the job she wants to do, and as the story goes on, she becomes more shell-shocked and terrified by what she experiences. But some of her decisions, as well as her rather abrupt latter turn into a fierce photo-warrior – throwing herself into danger to get the shot – feel somewhat rushed and contrived, making a character who should be more of an avatar for young audience members into a plot device.
Final Thoughts
Nick Offerman in ‘Civil War.’ Photo: A24.
Moviegoers are going to bring their own politics into ‘Civil War’ and read it the way they want, which is part of what makes Alex Garland’s film so excellent. There has been some criticism online of Garland’s decision to keep the reasons for the war offscreen, as well as his choice to unite California and Texas – two states that nowadays couldn’t seem further apart politically – into a seemingly unlikely alliance. But to make Nick Offerman’s brief turn as the President into a take on Biden or Trump, and to make the film into a blue state-red state polemic, would not only instantly date it but create a more concrete polarization that would miss the point.
‘Civil War’ doesn’t detail how we got to this point; the film instead asks, “Okay, we’re here now. What are you going to do about it?” The fact that the film doesn’t offer a definitive resolution or simple answer is perhaps the most unsettling thing about it. With ‘Civil War,’ Alex Garland shows us one possible future in all its terrifying plausibility – what we do about it will either keep this film in the realm of speculative fiction or make it a prophetic document of a great nation disintegrating due to its own distrust, misinformation, and fear.
‘Civil War’ receives 9 out of 10 stars.
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What is the plot of ‘Civil War’?
In a near-future America, the United States has collapsed into civil war as different factions prepare for a final assault on Washington D.C. to unseat the President. A small band of journalists race across a once-familiar and now-dangerous country to get to the frontline and witness what happens.
Who is in the cast of ‘Civil War’?
Kirsten Dunst as Lee
Wagner Moura as Joel
Cailee Spaeny as Jessie
Stephen McKinley Henderson as Sammy
Nick Offerman as the President of the United States
Joaquin Phoenix in director Ari Aster’s ‘Beau Is Afraid.’
‘Beau Is Afraid’ on wide release now, represents filmmaker Ari Aster cashing in the creative credit he’s earned with the buzz and box office of horror movies ‘Hereditary’ and ‘Midsommar’ and taking a gigantic swing for the creative fences that will surely end up in the “love” or “hate” column for most viewers.
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What is ‘Beau is Afraid’ about?
Aster’s latest is the story of nervy, milquetoast Beau Wassermann (Joaquin Phoenix), who lives alone in a downtown apartment building where every moment is a waking nightmare. His home is squarely in a city block that might be a war zone for all the chaos that seemingly constantly breaks out on the streets.
Prone to anxiety and paranoia, he visits his longtime therapist (Stephen McKinley Henderson), who prepares him for his imminent journey to visit his mother Mona (Patti LuPone). But mayhem ensues on the eve of Beau’s departure, spinning his life in a surreal new direction.
Unable to reach his destination in a world gone insane, traveling on roads that don’t appear on any map, Beau is forced to confront his own life and the lies he’s been told by those closest to him.
And that’s the most basic description –– there is so much more lurking within here, including weird, grieving suburbanites (played by Nathan Lane and Amy Ryan) who initially help and then effectively adopt Beau, much to the endless frustration of their teen daughter Toni (Kylie Rogers). A forest-dwelling theatre troupe with whom Beau links up end up shattered by tragedy. And when he does finally get to his mother’s house, there is some truly surreal weirdness to follow.
Wreathed through it all are flashbacks to his time as a teenager (where he’s brought to life by Armen Nahapetian), spending time on a cruise ship and elsewhere with his demanding, highly strung mother (here played by Zoe Lister-Jones). It’s on the cruise that a crucial moment in Beau’s development –– or the arrest of it, at least –– occurs, when he meets and falls for Elaine (Julia Antonelli), only for her to be snatched away by her mother. It really gets to the roots of his problems.
(L to R) Nathan Lane, Joaquin Phoenix and Amy Ryan in ‘Beau Is Afraid.’
Cast Performances
Beau is such a sniveling, seemingly unlikable protagonist that it’s credit to Aster and Phoenix that he’s actually watchable on his crazy journey. While it often feels like things are more happening to Beau than he’s ever driving the story, he remains a worthwhile anchor for our attention.
Indeed, it’s credit to the actor that he holds your attention, and he’s joined by some suitably skilled co-stars, including Richard Kind, Hayley Squires, and Parker Posey, who arrives late on as the adult Elaine, and makes an impression with her limited screen time.
Some of the cast –– especially Kind –– feel like they’re wasted in tiny roles, but you can see why they might want to come and play in Aster’s strange sandbox. Lister-Jones, meanwhile, has more to chew on as Beau’s overbearing “smother” who evolves into the more distant version played by LuPone.
If you were expecting an easy, entertaining watch or something simple to take a date to, this is not the movie for you –– unless you’re a fan of complicated, weird, and downright standoffish arthouse fare.
(L to R) Joaquin Phoenix and director Ari Aster on the set of ‘Beau Is Afraid.’
‘Beau’s driving themes are guilt, fear and the endless, driving chaos of the modern world, reflecting on how we internalize our feelings, and they start to poison us. There are rampaging killers, Freudian images, and stories of how Beau’s father died in the act of conceiving him.
This is, as we’ve said, not a film that will inspire mild responses. You’re likely to either love or loathe it, depending on whether you get on board. And even then, the abrupt ending (after near three hours of surreal oddity) might jolt you out of that positivity.
Long tracts of the story are likely to invoke boredom if you’ve no tolerance for whimsy or ideas that appears to be weird for weirdness’ sake. Aster throws every cinematic trick in the book at this one, including animated sequences, and an opening scene that makes Beau’s journey through the birth canal into an unforgiving world appear like a battlefield thanks to a discordant soundtrack. There are grotesques and grime, and even a sequence where Phoenix, naked, wrestles with a man who unexpectedly drops into his bath.
Given the director’s history, there is also bloody violence, a big dose of satire and some real shocks here and there, though it’s also shot through with a lot more humor than either of his previous works. Through it all, you can feel like Aster has big issues on his mind but isn’t always able to communicate them in a way that makes you want to listen or understand.
And that’s a big problem at the core of ‘Beau’ –– though it’s good to see a director given free rein to make the movie he truly wants to –– there’s a big question of whether anyone really needed to see it in the first place. Plenty of films have explored child/parent relations, guilt, and emotional crises, and in a way that tries to connect with the audience. Aster seems more interested in the strangeness he can invent to get those concepts across.
Yet even as large swathes are almost designed to turn you off, there’s something to be said for the tone and the soundscape, which end up trickling into your subconscious and, unless you truly reject everything the movie has to offer, could still have you thinking about the story days after you see it.
Final Thoughts
What we have here is a confronting, unique movie, but not always for the good, and with . In all honesty, we’d say watch it if you’re in the mood for something challenging, but don’t say you weren’t warned.
‘Beau Is Afraid’ receives 6 out of 10 stars.
Joaquin Phoenix in director Ari Aster’s ‘Beau Is Afraid.’
