Writer-director Alex Garland (Ex Machina, Annihilation, Men) helms this war movie set in a dystopian near-future America where Texas, California, and other states—in the face of an increasingly autocratic and fascist U.S. President (Nick Offerman) who appoints himself to a third term—join forces to depose him. The story follows four journalists—Lee (Kirsten Dunst), Joel (Wagner Moura), Jessie (Cailee Spaeny), and Sammy (Stephen McKinley Henderson)—as they travel a circuitous route from New York to Charlottesville and beyond as the so-called Western Forces advance on Washington, D.C. (109 min.)

• Photo Courtesy Of A24
• WAR-CORE DESPONDENT Kirsten Dunst stars as Lee Smith, a hardened journalist covering a new American civil war, who's racing to Washington, D.C., as the seceding states' militias invade, in Civil War, screening in local theaters.

Glen Like all great war movies, Civil War is staunchly anti-war, depicting the carnage, the horror, the senselessness, the brutality, and the ugliness of combat. Telling the story through the eyes of journalists makes sense. Joel is an adrenaline junky who gets off on the rush of war. Lee is weary of conflict, realizing her attempts through her work to show the world the futility of war have failed—war never stops. Sammy is their seasoned mentor who begs for a ride to Charlottesville. Jessie is just 23 and idolizes Lee, a renowned war photographer. Against Lee's wishes, she convinces Joel to let her tag along. There's a heartbreaking moment between Lee and Jessie when after facing death Jessie says how she's never felt more afraid or more alive. Lee looks at her with such sad resignation because she knows the path Jessie has started down brings nothing but pain. This is a heart-wrenching film.

Anna The whole cast takes these roles on with gusto, but Kirsten Dunst is especially forceful as Lee. The reality of war wears on her face. Along their travels, the group stumbles upon a small town where at first glance the fact that a civil war surrounds them seems to go unnoticed. They stop into a boutique where the clerk (Melissa Saint-Amand) dryly tells them the town simply doesn't want to think about or acknowledge the conflict; however, the armed men on the rooftop across from the shop may feel differently. Jessie convinces Lee to try on a dress, and looking at herself with a puffed organza shoulder and V-neckline reminds Lee just how far war has brought her from life's normalcy. She sees herself in Jessie, and in that she sees the difficulty that lies in front of her young admirer. Jessie may think she wants to be in it, to be on the front line, but the reality of death and destruction is a lot less romantic than the thought of being a famed photojournalist. When real lives of people that you know get into the mix, all romance is gone. There's just death and blood and heartbreak. I'll be thinking about this film for a long time to come.

Glen Another harrowing moment comes when they stumble across some soldiers led by a nameless psychopath (Jesse Plemons, Dunst's real-life husband), who's absolutely frightening as he casually pours lye onto a mass grave. At gunpoint, he asks the journalists, "What kind of American are you?" It perfectly sums up the tribal partisanship gripping the U.S., where each side believes its political opponent is an existential threat. Could this actually happen in America? The scene is also a reminder that in war, war crimes and atrocities are inevitable. The mass grave wasn't filled with enemy soldiers. It was filled with murdered civilians.

Anna I thought the choice to put Plemons' character in bright red plastic sunglasses was telling. He literally saw red. Those were no rose-colored glasses. As the journalists trek on toward Washington, D.C., they start to wonder what it's all for. Will it be worth it? Joel has the intention to interview the president, and Lee has the intent to photograph the takedown, but what comes is the unmistakable mess of war. Sometimes the wizard is just a man behind a curtain, yet so much revolves around his whims. This film should not be missed. Δ

Senior Staff Writer Glen Starkey and freelancer Anna Starkey write Split Screen. Comment at [email protected].