Subhechcha Ganguly 
In his most recent film, Alex Garland portrays a divided United States from the inside out. It’s an intense and visceral experience.In the hopes of interviewing the President, the movie tracks a motley crew of journalists headed by Kirsten Dunst’s Lee Smith as they travel from New York to Washington. They travel through refugee camps and battle areas, demonstrating to us the true cost of this war.The writer-director of science fiction/fantasy allegories such as Men (2022), Annihilation (2018), and Ex Machina (2014), Alex Garland, now tackles the actual world in his most recent film, Civil War. Garland chooses journalism as the glass through which he can reflect and refract the horrors of war since he has always had a controversial viewpoint.
Civil War has already generated debate since it appears to have a “both sides” stance. To be honest, the film functions as a sort of rorschach test, giving both liberals and conservatives the opportunity to portray themselves as the superior side. A character mentions the “Antifa massacre” at one point, but it’s up to the audience to determine if Antifa was indeed the ones being slaughtered or if they were the ones committing the killing. Furthermore, Garland flirts with the notion of the journalist as an observer. Ultimately, it’s unclear if he views journalists as vultures that prey on sorrow and sensationalism or as heroes whose holy duty it is to document events for future generations. It’s classic textbook Alex Garland storytelling, full of pointed questions and no simple solutions.
