# Civil War (2024) Seen It Thread **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [April 13, 2024, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/civil-war-2024-seen-it-thread/1000243 "2024-04-13T20:52:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2024, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/civil-war-2024-seen-it-thread/1000243/1 "2024-04-13T20:52:56Z")
I won’t post any spoilers in the first post but I liked it quite a bit. It seems to have some success as the theater I saw it in was full. Did anyone else see it? ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2024, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/civil-war-2024-seen-it-thread/1000243/2 "2024-04-13T21:41:37Z")
Here is a trailer: > **[Civil War | Official Trailer HD | A24](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aDyQxtg0V2w%2F)** > > SUBSCRIBE: http://bit.ly/A24subscribeFrom writer/director Alex Garland and starring Kirsten Dunst, Wagner Moura, Stephen McKinley Henderson, and Cailee Spaen... I haven’t seen it. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2024, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/civil-war-2024-seen-it-thread/1000243/3 "2024-04-13T22:58:08Z")
It’s on my 2024 anticipated list, but I’ll be waiting a bit, still. **Men** from the same director was kind of amazing. ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2024, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/civil-war-2024-seen-it-thread/1000243/4 "2024-04-14T16:10:06Z")
Saw it the other day and really liked it. Saw one reviewer say it falls into the category of “dystopian roadtrip” which is pretty accurate and a type of movie I like. Last spring we had visited DC and took an evening shuttle/walk tour so got to walk around the Lincoln Memorial and the White House at night. The final siege of DC felt very real at like we had just visited the set. Not my favorite of these type stories (best book: The Road, best movie: Children of Men) but still very good. I know they said they purposefully didn’t want it to be a left/right conflict so they left it vague however it was hard not to see the president as a Trump stand-in. Right from the beginning with him formulating a speech with the patented “many people are saying” and the superlative “perhaps greatest in history”. ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2024, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/civil-war-2024-seen-it-thread/1000243/5 "2024-04-14T16:18:02Z")
I was on the fence about seeing it; I think substantial political violence this year is quite possible. Then I read that the film chose to use footage from Andy Ngo, who supplied information about journalists to neo-nazi accelerationist groups. So, probably not going to support it with my money. ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2024, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/civil-war-2024-seen-it-thread/1000243/6 "2024-04-14T17:04:11Z")
If it did use footage from him (and I agree he is terrible and a liar) it would be a half second clip at the beginning where they show some clips that were real world. The movie is aggressively apolitical most of the time. It’s a series of vignettes and in most cases you don’t even know what side the people who are fighting are on (untill the very end when it becomes more a traditional urban warfare movie). Edit: it is clear The President is the one who generated the conflict so in that sense it does take a side but it isn’t easily pigeon holed into Red and Blue politics. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Borgia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/larry_borgia/32/156_2.png) [@Larry\_Borgia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Borgia)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2024, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/civil-war-2024-seen-it-thread/1000243/7 "2024-04-16T23:44:14Z")
I really could not give less of a shit if they used 1.5 seconds of Andy Ngo footage at the beginning. Certainly the neo nazis in the flick come off as utterly horrible, as does the fascist president. I’m glad he steered clear of heavy handed commentary on The State of Politics Today. The improbable western alliance was a good trick. It was basically a dark journey through an unlikely apocalypse. Really well done. ---
**Author:** ![velomont](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/8491ac/32.png) [@velomont](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/velomont)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2024, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/civil-war-2024-seen-it-thread/1000243/8 "2024-04-28T21:31:47Z")
My wife and I just saw it. I really didn’t know how it would be done (eg would it just be some cheesy action movie?). As it turned out I was really impressed. The development of Jessie the aspiring photojournalist was very well done, I thought and I really liked the combat scenes, which were unencumbered by soundtrack music and slow motion shots; they appeared extremely realistic to me. There was almost a ciné-verité aspect that I really appreciated. I personally find that too many film makers use too much (almost any amount is too much for me) background music, as if the audience won’t know how to feel otherwise. This was never done in this movie. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2024, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/civil-war-2024-seen-it-thread/1000243/9 "2024-05-24T16:33:35Z")
It starts streaming today on Amazon Prime and Apple TV+. May watch it this evening. (Price is a bit steep, though: $20 to rent on Prime. But it’s about the same for two people to see it in the theater.) ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2024, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/civil-war-2024-seen-it-thread/1000243/10 "2024-05-25T02:09:33Z")
Just watched it via Amazon Prime: It wasn’t a typical Hollywood film. Had an indi feel to it, which I liked. Very violent. No intellectual depth, theme, or message. Just _scenes_. Not a great film, in my opinion. But it does make me wonder what could happen in our country if we become too fragmented. It was interesting, and I’m glad I watched it. ---
**Author:** ![dougrb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/76d3ee/32.png) [@dougrb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dougrb)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2024, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/civil-war-2024-seen-it-thread/1000243/11 "2024-05-25T21:38:24Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > what could happen in our country if we become too fragmented. Just watched the Trailer. This one line “OK, what kind of American are you?” sent a chill down my spine. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2024, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/civil-war-2024-seen-it-thread/1000243/12 "2024-05-25T22:11:20Z")
In my case, I’m wondering if it is one of those films where repeated viewing is required to appreciate it. I’m going to watch it again. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Borgia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/larry_borgia/32/156_2.png) [@Larry\_Borgia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Borgia)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2024, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/civil-war-2024-seen-it-thread/1000243/13 "2024-05-26T02:14:29Z")
I thought it was cool. It’s basically a horror film. Like I said earlier, I’m glad the war didn’t track to American pathologies. I just liked it as a surreal voyage through a broken US. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2024, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/civil-war-2024-seen-it-thread/1000243/14 "2024-05-26T03:29:51Z")
The Civil War. Wow. So harrible and yet so beautiful. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2024, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/civil-war-2024-seen-it-thread/1000243/15 "2024-05-26T17:06:10Z")
> [@dougrb](#): > > Just watched the Trailer. This one line “OK, what kind of American are you?” sent a chill down my spine. It’s one of the best scenes in the actual movie. ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2024, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/civil-war-2024-seen-it-thread/1000243/16 "2024-05-26T17:29:38Z")
Your stomach turns during that entire scene. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2024, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/civil-war-2024-seen-it-thread/1000243/17 "2024-05-26T19:17:35Z")
> [@Quimby](#): > > Your stomach turns during that entire scene Pretty much. I don’t think this is Alex Garland’s best movie, though. I still give that to Men. Still, I have become a fan of his and he is on my list of director’s I follow and anticipate their next work. ---
**Author:** ![velomont](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/8491ac/32.png) [@velomont](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/velomont)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2024, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/civil-war-2024-seen-it-thread/1000243/18 "2024-10-29T17:14:15Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > In my case, I’m wondering if it is one of those films where repeated viewing is required to appreciate it. I’m going to watch it again. A very interesting point. As it turned out, I happened to have a flight to Europe and back over the last two weeks, and “Civil War” was one of the entertainment offerings. I watched it on both flights (my wife and I saw it in the theatre several months ago). With MAGA BS getting increasingly bizarre and openly Nazi, seeing it just seemed equally increasingly relevant and important.