Just saw the movie “Civil War”

I'm disappointed. I really want to see it. Although Texas and California uniting together is a stretch.

It's kind of lacking in focus (pun intended). It shows the horror of civil war effectively (we knew war is horrible) and how complex a civil war in the US would be (we know that already) and we know war photography is a dangerous, stressful/exciting job. It's entertaining, shocking in places but not the great work of art it was touted as. Pretty average really.

The back story has been told the past several years in real time. You don't need an introduction to this film. We are living it.

I've got IMAX tickets for tomorrow, reviews have been all over the place so I'm curious and apprehensive

R4 Just leave your red hat at home.

[quote]There was no back-story about how it all started

Well, that's true if you aren't paying attention. Because it's noted very specifically that:

1. The president is in his third term. So it seems we have a president with presumably a significant number of supporters in Congress, who has disregarded the Constitution.

2. The president has disbanded the FBI. It wouldn't be much of a leap to assume that he did that because he was doing illegal things and wanted to get rid of any investigations.

3. The president has ordered military strikes on US civilians.

[quote]Although Texas and California uniting together is a stretch.

In the real world of today, yes. But in a world where the president has throw out the Constitution, maybe it isn't so far-fetched. Maybe it's an alliance of convenience. Maybe the leaders of the two biggest states with the biggest economies realize that this president threatens the future of both. By uniting, no matter their differences, they can hopefully assure their own survival.

I wasn't concerned about the backstory. To me, it was more interesting to see a war play out on American soil. Other than the attack on Pearl Harbor, we haven't been directly affected by war since the 1860s. For most Americans, the devastation and destruction of war is something that happens on the other side of the world. It's abstract and hard to fully comprehend. But show the wreckage of battle strewn about in a suburban Pittsburgh mall parking lot or put a refugee camp in an abandoned West Virginia football stadium, then suddenly war doesn't seem so abstract. The characters even comment on how their families back home in Missouri or Colorado, far away from the front lines of this war, are "just pretending none of this is happening."

War photographers… stunning and brave

Just saw it. Mind-numbingly blunt and dull, with dreadful dialogue and a pursed-lip performance from Kirsten Dunst (whom I usually love) that too many are hailing as brilliant. Also ludicrous at points -- among other things, the fact that 3 photographers would survive as long as, well, 2 of them did it in the endless final scene.

Agreed about the ludicrous survival of photographers - also, who would want the photographs anyway, it was obvious that the combatants didn’t care and the photographers even said their parents were ignoring the war anyway.

[quote]just kinda thrust you in

Pics please!

I was too busy drooling over Wagner Moura to care much about the plot. That man is sexy as hell in this.

R11 - that gross guy who was smoking and looked like a greasy, dirty mess? Do you sleep with hobos? That guy is disgusting! Cheap version of Pedro Pascal

I saw it in IMAX. The violence was horrifying. I don't think the movie had a point beyond "war is bad". I wish the director had the balls to make it normal people vs the fascists. He probably didn't want to alienate any consumers.

Civil Snore starring Kirsten Dunce?

This is Alex Garland's latest provocation. He is a known stunt queen, with an affinity for the grotesque. I find his work rather obvious.

Watch something far more fascinating.

War photographer Jana Schneider...

R12 I think Wagner cleans up nice.

Well... that was yet another well-made disappointment by Alex Garland. The Jesse Plemons scene was great, though. I wish I would've waited for it to stream and saved my $20.

r18, get glasses.

Critic’s Notebook: The Compellingly Packaged Cowardice of ‘Civil War’:

whatever divisions preceded the conflict are left to your imagination, at least partly because Garland assumes you’ve been paying attention to recent events.