Civil War
Society, Politics, and Humanity
Art has always had the important role of bearing witness to the evolution of civilization and of representing the state of mind of Man during various historical moments. Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” is a crucial testimony of how insecure and afraid of life society was in the Middle Ages. In the 18th Century, the Baroque Art movement represented Humanity’s fear of nothingness; it was the bearer of the concept of “horror vacui”. At the start of the last century, Albert Einstein redefined our concept of time, and that changed every Art form, as it was clear that nothing, not even time, could escape the rationality that Science brought. Even our fantasies were in danger.
In 2024, the film studio A24 released “Civil War”, and in my opinion, this is a film destined to be remembered as one of the most vivid visions of our time, a terribly effective photograph of the feeling of violence that modern man tries to repress, but which is slowly starting to emerge again. Alex Garland’s latest (and sadly last) film is a perfect portrait of our time and a jaw-dropping, bone-chilling picture.
DIVIDED WE FALL
While Alex Garland set this film in the U.S.A., the whole political and social situation can be applied to today’s world. In 2024, the world’s international political crisis is more evident than ever. More and more countries are starting to reveal their hostilities towards other nations, disagreements that have remained dormant for too long and which, in today’s world, free from the memory of the war that was, are starting to emerge again. I’m not just talking about the situation between Israel and Palestine, but about the entire structure of global politics. Tensions are rising, and alliances and pacts are coming to a head. Nuclear war is upon us, and Man, despite everything, still equipped with his gift of curiosity, is leaning onto that porch of death. In Garland’s film, the U.S. is going through a civil war (you’d never have guessed that, right?), and the so-called Western Forces, which are California and Texas, are going against all the other American states, which remained loyal to the President. Despite the sci-fi turnaround that made Cali and Texas team up, in my opinion, these divisions go way beyond America, and this discussion could be extended to various nations worldwide. Alex Garland didn’t want to take any political standoff and chose to remain neutral, this being one of his most controversial choices, but I think he nailed it. In this way, he can show us the rot of every political standing, and I hope this will make people realize an important thing: our governments have been screwing us with this factional thing for years. As time goes on, citizens become more and more bitter against each other and, meanwhile, those in power continue to become richer and richer. In war, no faction wins. War makes war win, which does nothing but enrich the rich and impoverish the people. The common people. That’d be us.
VIOLENCE
In recent years, there seems to be a lot more films about non-glorified violence. There, obviously, are a whole lot of films with violence and about violence in history, but the “banality of evil” concept seems to have found a new life in recent years. The two films that I immediately think of when talking about this are Martin Scorsese’s“Killers of the Flower Moon” and Jonathan Glazer’s “The Zone of Interest”. The film industry seems to be really interested in guilt and regret, and the act of violence incarnates that feeling quite a lot, I guess. Garland’s film isn’t about regret, but it surely is about violence, but not in the way many would expect. “Civil War” doesn’t try to glorify violence, it doesn’t weaponize massacre, and it does not support murder and killing in any way. But that being said, it doesn’t quite oppose it either. The only way you could think the violent scenes in this film are an accusation towards all acts of violence is only through your morals. And you know we all have different ways of thinking of violence. (Ain’t that right, supporters of American gun laws?) The intent of the film is just to show violence. As plain as it is. Garland does not suggest that war is bad or whatever. The audience is being handed the choice of accepting and interpreting the various messages that the film tries to hint at. Not only “physical” violence is displayed throughout the picture, but psychological violence is discussed, too.
In my opinion, the film also talks about racism. If you’ve seen the film, there’s that one scene with Jesse Plemons… what a terrific performance by him. Once again, Garland’s film proves to be more than a portrait of modern America. The theme of racism is universal, and that one scene reminded me of the Israel-Palestine situation. What we really are left with after the credits roll are a whole bunch of existential questions. Are we in the right, or are we convinced of being so? Are our morals something we reached through our humanity, or just something that was taught to us by others? What is justice, and what is not justice? You won’t find any answers in this film. Just questions, important and crucial questions that we have to answer if we want a better future.
ART, BUT AT WHAT COST?
Alex Garland puts us in front of a moral dilemma that widely resonates with anyone who has made Art their way of life: What boundaries are to be crossed when real life is being put against our artistry? What is the cost we must pay to achieve Art? This subject touches a wide range of people, from war photographers (i.e. the protagonists of “Civil War”) and photographers in general, to street artists, documentarians, journalists, etc. Some time ago, I found myself shooting a documentary about a particular zone of my city, and this dilemma is actually the founding basis of all these jobs. Sometimes, we had some really great material we couldn’t use, because the people involved wouldn’t permit us. It was frustrating, but we had to accept that it was part of the process. Garland manages to convey this message without being too rhetorical or sentimental, something that has long been missing from cinema.
Thanks to everybody that has read my review of “Civil War”. I’d like to use this spot to also thank everyone who has followed me during the past 12 months, and to everyone who has been reading my articles during this time, because 4 days ago was my one-year anniversary on Medium! Time really flies when you’re having fun, and struggling with your studies. :)
