Dane Bundy
The Imagination and Purpose of Alex Garland's Civil War (2024)
“That movie had no purpose,” one of my friends said a couple months ago. Collectively, as a leadership team were discussing how to think biblically about the upcoming election. And yours truly brought up the topic of movies or shows that approach politics in a thought-provoking way. We quickly agreed that “West Wing” was a good example. Then I brought up Civil War (2024) and that’s when my friend made that dismissive comment about Alex Garland’s newest movie. My best comeback was, “I have a movie review for that!”
Garland's Canon
It’s true. The review was still in the works. A few months ago, I sat down with my wife, Megan, to watch Civil War (2024). I’m always a little suspicious when Rotten Tomatoes says the critics received the film better than the audience, which it did (81% critics and 70% audience). But I enjoyed Garland’s breakout film, Ex Machina (2014), although I had mixed feelings about Annihilation (2018) on the first viewing. I recently rewatched this strange sci-fi filmed and enjoyed it more.
Garland also wrote and created the tv show “Devs,” which was well received by critics. I finished the 8-part series a couple months ago and found it fitting well in Garland’s canon: dark, thought-provoking, and packed with social commentary. Garland engaged with the biblical story in this series in a deep way, focusing on garden imagery and themes of redemption, hope, and heaven. Ultimately, I’d argue that he engaged in a subversive manner, using the Christian story to topple it and replace it with a humanistic one. I don’t agree with his conclusion, but I still found elements of it beautiful and revealing.
Dystopian America (Some Spoiler's Ahead!)
Civil War feels less like his other works that are more in line with the sci-fi genre. This 2024 film is a fictional, dystopian story in which the country is on the brink of dissolution. California and Texas have seceded from the United States and formed a coalition called the Western Forces. (I know! A strange, strange world.) We experience the violent brink of chaos through the eyes of four journalists, specifically a grizzled veteran, Lee Smith (Kirsten Dunst), and a novice journalist, Jessie (Cailee Spaeny).
Their aim is to go to Washington, DC. Why? Joel (Wagner Moura) is bent on interviewing the president. It’s a dangerous mission, but they decide to take it, and we–the audience–are in for quite a ride.
One of Alexa Garland’s strengths is transporting us to an alternate, and sometimes future, reality. As someone who enjoys sci-fi (and some fantasy), his movies capture my imagination, especially Ex Machina, which explores artificial intelligence and advanced robotics. When his films end, they leave you with questions and a haunting dread of what could happen.
Civil War does both things well here. Ironically, especially in our current political state, Garland’s film is not overtly political. Sure, it follows the battle of power over the United States, but the movie is not pushing an agenda from a pulpit. This subtle approach fits nicely with our protagonists–journalists who committed to capturing the story and, in doing so, remaining objective. It looks like Garland is doing the same with this movie.
Purpose in Catastrophe
To answer my friend from earlier, if there’s any message that came to life through the characters, it’s the importance of fulfilling your purpose during catastrophe and chaos. In one scene, both Lee and Jessie reflect in disbelief on their parents’ response to the current war. They’re sitting on their farms, pretending the war is not happening. In the scene, the journalists stop in a small town and go into a clothing store. The atmosphere was peaceful, but eerie. One journalist asks the clerk if she knew a war was going on, and she just brushed it aside, eager to live in ignorance.
I can’t help but think of C.S. Lewis’ essay, “Learning in Wartime,” in which he argues for learning and scholarship despite the World War that was raging. Lewis doesn’t dismiss in any way the valiant efforts of the soldiers, but he argues we cannot wait until there are no wars. That will never happen. Human history has always had wars.
While the film looks poorly on those who pretend the war isn’t happening, trying to live in the past, it highlights that there are multiple ways to serve the cause. Fighting certainly is one option, but so is accomplishing the work of a free press.
The dogged determination to get the story causes them to attach themselves to militia. In SWAT-like situations, Garland morphs the journalists into soldiers, but instead of guns, they wield cameras. They put themselves in the heart of crossfire just to capture the photo. At one point, Lee says that if she were to die, she’d still take her picture. This cold objectivity eventually melts as she grows fond of Jessie—an important part of her character arc.
Broken Imaginations and the God of Grace
Civil War is a violent and, sometimes, terrifying movie that made me thankful I’ve not yet had to live through something like this. But it brought to memory the many times in history, in which civil war was reality.
You hear often that the United States is more polarized than ever and it hasn’t been this bad since the American Civil War. What can I say about the future of our great nation? I offer no foresight other this than this: leaders rise and leaders fall, nations rise and nations fall. Scriptures tells us they are all in the hands of the Lord. I pray that our country would remain steadfast and that God would bless us with wise and strong leaders. Most importantly, our trust must be in Him.
As I finish this review, the election day has come and gone, and the American landscape doesn’t look like the one Garland offers here. For that I’m grateful, our sovereign God showers a common grace on the good and evil (Mt. 5:45).
In conclusion, without spoiling too much, Civil War is a broken story, a cautionary tale with plenty of violence and language to warrant its R-rating. In response to it, I say: may the brokenness of this world, real or imagined, cause us to look to God, the one who has ruled, is ruling, and will always rule the cosmos with wisdom, justice, and love.
Does this film have a purpose? I think so, but I'll leave that up to you if you choose to give it a try.
