It’s the unmissable of the week in cinemas: this nervous and intense war film is going to be a slap in the face for spectators.
The year 2024 offers some great cinema releases that should not be missed. This week, it is possible to discover a war film and a shocking, nervous and captivating thriller, which is likely to spark debate and which will definitely not leave spectators indifferent. This is the must-see film in theaters in the coming days.
The pitch: in a fictitious future perhaps not so distant, the USA is fractured by the secession of some of its states. While the country is at war between the federal government which is clumsily trying to regain control and the states which are imposing their law, a group of journalists committed to reporting the events as closely as possible leaves for a road trip across this America in crisis, with the aim of reaching Washington where the epilogue of this war will soon be played out.
Directed by Alex Garland (Ex Machina, Annihilation), Civil War is a real slap in the face. The feature film describes, for less than two hours, the violence and divisions that plague the fictional United States. A situation which may not seem so uchronic after the assault on the Capitol on January 6, 2021. Proving once again that he has perfectly mastered the art of tension, the filmmaker spares the viewer no violence, as much in his spectacular and shocking staging as well as in the soundscape which populates the film and leaves a lasting impression on the audience.
But don’t think that Civil War or a political commentary on the United States. We will know very little about this civil war. And with the exception of a few key scenes, the director doesn’t seem to take sides. Garland instead adopts the point of view of its journalists who bear witness to the violence they observe on a daily basis, in the most neutral way possible. Civil War is therefore more of a reflection on contemporary journalism, on the power of the image, on the importance of the role of reporters. The film takes a critical point of view on the way news is produced today, asking a question that stays in mind until the end of the film: what is their role, and how far to go to tell the world story ?
Kirsten Dunst soars above the cast in her nuanced and subtle interpretation of a veteran photojournalist in the midst of an existential crisis. Facing her, Cailee Spaeny (Priscilla), a young budding journalist, is increasingly standing out as a new face in Hollywood to follow very closely. Civil War is a film to be seen exclusively in cinemas on Wednesday April 17, 2024.