A challenge that writers always face is deciding what to include and what to omit from the narrative. With a concept so vast as a modern civil war spreading across the United States, there would be enough material to fill several seasons of a television series. Writer/Director Alex Garland tells a brilliant story that portrays the reality of war, as Americans turn their weapons against each other, in less than two hours.

You may have heard that war consists of long periods of boredom, with brief periods of pure terror, and that is reflected in the pacing of Civil War as four journalists travel across the United States. One minute the main characters are laughing, enjoying a brief respite from the constant tension, and the next moment they emersed in the nightmare that the United States has become.

Alex Garland’s decision to use the shared experience of the four journalists, allows the story to flow smoothly. Because they aren’t combatants, the focus isn’t on who is responsible for the conflict, but on the human suffering that results from it. Although the action scenes are overwhelming at times, they don’t distract from the story, they enhance it. The theme that permeates the movie, is that once a war begins, the value of a human life becomes negligible.

What makes this story so compelling is the reality of instability caused by growing divisions within the Untied States. Civil War is an important movie, because it reminds Americans of the high cost when citizens become convinced that violence is their only choice. I pray that God will guide the United States to a path that does not result in Americans killing Americans. The world becomes more unstable by the moment, and the world needs the United States, united.

Copyright © 2024 by J. Paul Cooper