I really wish Civil War did a better job of explaining what started the war

Alex Garland’s dystopian war thriller Civil war Provided a riveting story about journalists embedded in the front of a new war between the states, but I wish it had given a little more detail about how the new civil war started. The hard thriller is the most expensive project of production company A24 yet, and Civil wars ambitious and controversial narrative matches the significant investment. Kirsten Dunst, Cailee Spaeny and Wagner Moura play two photojournalists and a reporter, respectively, who are headed to the final battleground of the now well-worn conflict in the United States, Washington, DC.

at the end of Civil warThe conflict comes to a bitter end, because Nick Offerman’s already dictatorial president was killed by soldiers of the Western forces. It is made clear that the president who opposed the constitution and claims that a third term was among the main factors that caused the civil war, but this still does not clarify what led him to take such action, or what conditions have existed in America before. While I can respect Garland and keep the story focused on the journalists and not the war they covered, I wish I had a little more information about the conflict.

Civil war does not explain the beginning of the war hurt the movie

It provided little details, but no real backstory

Civil war Gives some clues throughout its runtime as to why and how the new Civil War began, but it never discusses the origins of the war, or how the lines were drawn where they were when the movie began. In some ways, not explaining any of the backstory of the war ends up hurting the movie. I wondered “why” at many different moments during the main action of the movie; After watching the movie a second time, I realized that while wondering about the backstory, I was missing out on other key moments and themes.

In not providing any details about the origins of the war, Civil war Also missed out on improving the backstories of the main characters too. Kirsten Dunst’s Lee Smith is a famous war photographer at the time of the events Civil war Take place, but relatively little is revealed about the other characters’ history. By digging into the origins of the war, the movie could have provided some intriguing insight into how Cailee Spaeny’s Jesse or Wagner Moura’s Joel came to be on the front lines, and where they might stand in regards to the conflict.

Alex Garland’s reasoning for not explaining the Civil War backstory is unsatisfactory

The origins of the war do not matter to the story he tells

Alex Garland was very open about what story he was trying to tell with Civil war; It is about the journalists, the people who document the war, and as such they are neutral observers. The point that Civil war is trying to make is related to the consequences of polarization and division, and it very deliberately takes no political stance to keep the focus on the journalists. To Garland, which matters for the sake of Civil war Is how the characters react and interact in the last days of a war that is all but exhausted, and What caused the war is simply not important.

Although Garland’s desire for political neutrality is admirable in this context, This is not a satisfactory reason to provide almost any details about the war That the whole story centers around. Understanding how something that has never felt more possible came to be is a perfectly natural line of thought for any American watching this movie, and Garland’s refusal to address it feels borderline stubborn. It acts as a point of frustration for myself and many others who have enjoyed it Civil war.