Civil War is set in the future and is about journalists on a mission while the country breaks into Loyalist states, faithful to the President and secessionist movements, who want to throw him out. The plot is imaginative and that itself adds to the curiosity and director Alex Garland has done justice to it. By showing the madness from the eyes of war journalists, the impact is manifold. The film also ends up depicting how scribes survive in tough conditions to click the award-winning pictures, sometimes at the cost of morality. The second half is very gripping, especially the climax and the last scene. The biggest problem of the film is the absence of a back story. Also, the absence of subtitles makes it difficult to understand certain dialogues. Kirsten Dunst, however, delivers one of the best performances of her career. Cailee Spaeny (Jessie Cullen) is a great find. Wagner Moura (Joel) is impressive while Stephen McKinley Henderson (Sammy) shines. Nick Offerman (USA President) and Jesse Plemons (militant) are too good in cameos. The camerawork and sound design are so good that it feels like you are in the midst of the firing and all the chaos. All in all, Civil War is a great surprise and surely worth watching.
My rating – *** ½ out of 5!