Civil War (A24 - Alex Garland, Spring 2024) • Page 19

Not only does the film not understand the role of journalism, it doesn't understand that all of the decisions we make in life are a result of choices and preferences. It isn't just how journalists cover something, it is what they choose to cover at all. It is why any time Trump is in trouble for something you will find NBC/MSNBC/CNN/ABC/CBS talking about it and FOX will be covering some rural Wisconsin teacher who lectured a student about pronouns. There is no objectivity in journalism.

Americans in general don't understand how much something is political until it confronts something they do not want to think about. People wanted politics out of football when players were kneeling but games literally start with military jets flying overhead. The decision to go to a movie theater and pay for tickets and popcorn is a political choice; you could have spent that time and money donating to the poor or working in a soup kitchen or attending a protest. Those journalists made the political choice to cover a war instead of what celebrities were stepping into the new fancy night club. Ideology is everywhere and the claimed absence of ideology is in and of itself a political choice.

 

it’s okay to be wrong sometimes.

 

Yeah Tetra basically echoed all the reservations I had about going to see it. Sorry @Aaron Mook

 

Rewatched Ex Machina after this, still a really great directorial debut.

Annihilation
Civil War
Ex Machina
Men

Even at its worst, to me, Men feels like an ambitious failure. I just really like what Garland does. I find his films to be unique and stylish and always fascinating, for better or for worse.

 

Haven’t seen ex machina since it came out but having civil war above it is wild!

 

I haven't seen Ex Machina since it came out either but I'd definitely put Civil War above it based on my memory of it. I'd probably like it more now though so I should revisit it at some point.

 

EM is wildly better than CW in my opinion

 

Unless I misunderstand you, i think you might be conflating politics with morality in your last few statements. I’m saying this because I’m not sure what it says about someone’s political leanings when they choose to go catch a flick instead of volunteering.

 

Men was horrible

 

There is a scene that clearly establishes that electricity is spotty and goes out regularly so when Dunst decides to go to her hotel room, after the power went down temporarily, she gets mad when a hotel clerk warns her she could get trapped in the elevator and maybe take the stairs.

 

I know I’m not that poster, but it’s not so much about political leanings as it is about (big picture) political positioning. We are all very aware of myriad issues going on in the world, and we are in a position to make a choice to enjoy leisure time while that’s going on. I don’t think it’s inherently immoral to go to the movies instead of volunteering, but I am of the opinion that all decisions and most conditions that are made by people are in some way political.

To that point, I think that’s a good way to position criticism of this movie. The journalists are treated by Garland as objective presenters of a war. And it’s clear he sees himself similarly. But to that poster’s point, that’s not actually an objective position. What they choose to capture in film, much like the way Garland chose to depict a modern Civil War in America, is inherently just as political as actively advocating for a side. They pick an ideology - specifically, one that takes a smug pride in itself for NOT being an ideology.

Anyways, i liked seeing this movie in the theaters pretty well because it was a big loud movie and I think there were some effective scenes in it.

 

The Andy Ngo stuff is bad, but it is especially stupid because Ngo amplifies and even helps to provoke the content that he wants and then presents it like he is a real journalist. It is literally the opposite of the claim the film tries to make.

 

I definitely need to watch this again, because it was very different than I was expecting it to be, and I am curious how I would feel about it after a rewatch.

I can't see myself liking it better than Ex Machina though. That movie was incredible. Annihilation was pretty great too.

 

I’m ok with the criticism of the film & whatnot. But I take issue with thinking every action a human makes these days needs to be viewed through a political lens. I think that perceiving every action the world in that way and that way alone is a dangerous reach and also is contributing to our current political state in a negative way.

 

Thinking most of our actions aren’t political has way more to do with our current state

 

Like, im at a taco join right now getting some grub. What does that say about my politics?

 

You’re anti-Italian

 

that you aren't supporting Starbucks

 

Whether it is a chain or an independent place tells us something. Where the restaurant is and the city you are in tells us something. Whether you are alone or who you are with tells us something. All the other things you could have been doing instead tells us something. The decision to eat out instead of cooking tells us something.

It's not "he likes tacos so he must believe in the death penalty". It is the difference between people who post about Palestine on social media versus ones who risk arrest to protest. It is the difference between saying it is sad how animals are treated in farms versus going vegan. The journalists in the film who decided to be on the front lines are making a political choice.

 

I think you’re taking it more personal than it is. It’s essentially another way of saying “no ethical consumption under capitalism” - not your/our fault that we live where we live. But our country/culture that we live in is the way it is because of political reasons, and we make choices within that country/culture that will inherently say something about our views or principles.

 

That sounds like an exhausting way to live. But I haven’t seen this movie so what do I know.

 

It is lol

 

what i've learned in English classes is "art is personal and the personal is political"

but i also don't necessarily think every decision ever deserves to be scrutinized under a microscope

 

Nobody is saying that every decision does. But to act like most decisions aren’t political ignores the world you live in. Which is fine to do, and probably healthy to do for the most part, but the statement itself isn’t crazy.

 

It’s not that it needs to be scrutinized, in my opinion. There’s times it can and maybe should be, but there’s other times when our decisions are not within our control. This movie is one in which the characters - and the director - are trying to say they’re objective but are sending a subjective political message.