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Plot Summary: A journey across a dystopian future America, following a team of military-embedded journalists as they race against time to reach DC before rebel factions descend upon the White House.

Director: Alex Garland

Writer: Alex Garland

Runtime: 1 hour 49 mins

• Nick Offerman as President
• Kirsten Dunst as Lee
• Wagner Moura as Joel
• Jefferson White as Dave
• Nelson Lee as Tony
• Evan Lai as Bohai
• Cailee Spaeny as Jessie

Review by: Samuel

What I Did Not Like

We will start here, because there are only 2 things I didn’t like, and they aren’t necessarily the movie’s fault. First, I think this movie could have unintended impact. This dystopian future wasteland where our countrymen are at war with each other is all too real and ominous. The idea the states can secede and wage war against the federal government is the catalyst of the film, and it is something that we have heard more and more in recent times in America. When the credits rolled, a stranger next to me exclaimed how he was scared by what we saw and that he wanted everyone in the theater to get together to go for pizza and beer and just get along. Now, the opposite reaction is also a possibility- it is VERY realistic that one could watch this film and get on board with the idea of secession and feel empowered in that belief by the end of the film.

Secondly, I did not care for the main characters. They are all journalists so they aren’t really “taking a side”- which is smart of the movie since it doesn’t make it seem as if the film leans towards one way of thinking or another. But, because they are so callous, uncaring, and stoic it can get frustrating watching them not react to some seriously messed up things happening around them.

Again, both of these are not really negatives that detract from the film- just some things I personally felt that left a less than stellar taste in my mouth.

What I Did Like

There is a lot here I am excited to speak on. This film was a once in a lifetime experience- and by that I mean I’m glad I saw it once but I don’t ever want to see it again. That’s not an insult, it’s a testament to how real and impactful this film was. Our journalists, led by Kirsten Dunst’s Lee and Wagner Moura’s Joel are on a journey from New York to DC to photograph and interview the President before the rebels inevitably get to him. These rebels, known as the Western Front (WF) started in Texas and California but have spread throughout the country so violence is everywhere. This means the journey to DC won’t be a direct shot down the interstate and our protagonists have to go a round about way. And, it is because of this extended journey that we learn about the world we’re watching. What’s cool about this film is there is very little exposition thrown at you, and you are instead dropped into the middle of this war with no context outside of the film’s title. So as these characters speak you pick up on things and your mind start’s asking “Wait, how is the government losing this war?” “How did the WF get a foothold in so many states?” “Why doesn’t the President have support?” “How did this President get a 3^rd term?” “Why are the media hated by one side and beloved by the other?”

Normally, not knowing and not really having an answer shown is frustrating in films, but so is overly long exposition dumps. This film was FANTASTIC in giving you pieces of information that helped you understand bits of the world but not it’s entirety, and that keeps you engaged as you remain curious about and enthralled in this world for the full run time.

Next let’s get this all of this out of the way- camera work, production design, acting, directing all A-list. This was A24 first big budget film, and they knocked it out of the park. There are staggering amounts of production value in every shot, and Alex Garland along with his actors do an excellent job in bringing this world to life.

 I want to shout out the sound engineers specifically. Anyone reading this has likely heard gunshots in some form or fashion within the last 48 hours whether it be video games, television, film, social media. However, you’ve never heard gunshots like these. I’m not normally one to promote theaters over streaming but in this case I must. Being in a theater as bullet fire reverberates through the speakers is not something you can recreate easily. It adds to the atmosphere because each shot sounds like it’s directly in front of you. I haven’t jumped out of my seat from a jump scare in quite a while, but when I first heard the bullets fly in this film…I felt like I was about to have a heart attack EVERY SINGLE BULLET sounds like it could be the one that takes out one of our main characters.

I also really enjoyed the pacing. The movie kind of just starts with an impassioned speech at the beginning and doesn’t let up for it sub 2-hour runtime (a time that is seeming like a luxury the 2020s).

Hopefully, I’ve expressed how the world is interesting, the protagonists feel like real people, and the moments of action are on the scale of Roland Emmerich and Michael Bay; in fact, I’d say the final act of this movie has the best wartime battle sequence since Saving Private Ryan.

But, I want to end my likes with a reaction to one scene in particular. It’s shown in the trailer when Jesse Plemons’ character – a soldier- finds the journalists and you see him ask “What kind of American are you?” I want to point out this scene because it stands out as the moment when you learn 2 things – 1) there isn’t really a good or right side of this war. It really is just about complete extermination of those who go against your ideals and 2) the world outside of the battle zones is not somewhere you want to be. Before this scene, we had only really seen the journalists in danger that they put themselves in; otherwise they were driving along just fine.  Jesse Plemons does an Oscar worth job here to show us that the outside world has really devolved to anarchy. I don’t know if I blinked during his time on screen, because I truly felt like no one was safe. This scene added so much context about that world and thrilled me more than any actual thriller films in recent memory.