For the viewer moved by dramatic tales of journalism and truth-seeking, captivated by the atrocities of war, or gripped by flawless execution of every technical aspect,Civil Waris a must-see. Set in a war-torn dystopian America, a group of journalists makes the trek across the East Coast seeking to capture the president’s first interview in over a year or to witness his surrender; whichever happens first. StarringKirsten Dunst,Cailee Spaeny,Wagner Moura,Stephen McKinley Henderson, andNick Offerman,every frame is an edge-of-your-seat experience.
The cinematography is stunning, the editing is jarring in all the right moments, and the premise is thought-provoking and terrifying.Civil Waris a film that stands amongthe greatest multi-genre dramas and the best of 2024. Whether audiences caught theAlex Garland-directed featureopening weekend at the theateror plan to save it for the watchlist for its streaming debut, there’s a selection of movies just like it to satisfy the craving for hard-hitting storytelling.
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10’Minamata' (2020)
Directed by Andrew Levitas
Minamatademonstrates the power of photography as told through the lens of real-life war photographerW. Eugene Smithas he documented the environmental disaster in Japan.Johnny Deppstars as the celebrated photojournalist in 1971 when he travels to the Japanese city of Minamata on one final assignment forLife Magazineto capture the damaging effects of mercury poisoning plaguing the locals.
While thefeature succumbs to the added melodramatic natureof an “inspired by true events” label,Minamataintroduces a unique binary of Smith’s internal story. A remarkable war photographer, Smith photographed the events of World War II in Japan, the feature depicting him as a recluse until returning to capture the atrocities of post-war Japan.LikeCivil War’s character arcs with its photographers,Minamatadetails who’s behind the lens and the visual impact of what they’ve seen, making it a worthy stream for any audience member captivated byCivil War.
Minamatacan be streamed in Prime Video in the U.S.
Watch on Prime
9’Beasts of No Nation' (2015)
Directed by Cary Fukunaga
This Netflix original depicts the unfiltered human cost paid during war and the impressionable minds of the youth fighting it.Beast of No Nationtells the story of a boy, Agu (Abraham Attah), as he is trained to be a guerrilla soldier by the unforgiving Commandant (Idris Elba) in a West African country. The war drama is based on the novel byUzodinma Iweala, inspired by the use of child soldiers in various conflicts throughout the world.
Under the careful eye of director Cary Fukunaga, the camera engrosses audiences as almost a character participant in the carnage of the film’s setting.The masterful camera work allows audiences to go deeper into the story and Agu’s fall from innocence into an active force in the war.Beasts of No Nationuses the cruel reality of war to tella disturbing coming-of-age story.
Beasts of No Nation
Beasts of No Nation is a war drama that was released exclusively on Netflix in 2015. The film centers on a young boy named Agu, who is forced to become a child soldier in a Civil War in an unspecified African country. The film is based on the 2005 novel of the same name by Uzodinma Iweala.
Beast of No Nationcan be streamed on Netflix in the U.S.
Watch on Netflix
8’Wind River' (2017)
Directed by Taylor Sheridan
Written and directed byTaylor Sheridan,Wind Riverleaves the viewers stunned in silence from the opening scene until the closing credits. In the unforgiving winter of the Wyoming wilderness, a young woman is found dead on the Wind River Reservation. Local wildlife officer and expert tracker Cory Lambert (Jeremey Renner) assists FBI agent Jane Banner (Elizabeth Olsen) in her investigation into the woman’s death.
From the heart-pounding shoot-outs to the haunting silence of the brutal landscape in which it’s set,Wind Riveris an investigative thriller that leaves the viewer staggering.The masterful performancespaired with the devastating narrative and reality of crimes committed on the reservation place this film in company withCivil Warand its search to document the truth.
Wind River (2017)
Wind Rivercan be streamed on Prime Video in the U.S.
7’Blow-Up' (1966)
Directed by Michelangelo Antonioni
An obscure crime thriller set against the backdrop of 1960s London and fashion photography,Blow-Upvisualizes the power of a lensand the truth it captures. The Oscar-nominated film follows Thomas (David Hemmings), a photographer who believes he may have captured evidence of a murder after taking pictures in a park.
Where doesBlow-Upmeet withCivil War?Both features rely on the power of the photo and the version of the truth captured within, taking audiences on an immersive experience and asking them, what do you think?These films, while opposite in genre, are on a quest to find meaning in the images captured, with both directors demonstrating a mastery of the craft through their technical expertise.
A fashion photographer unknowingly captures a death on film after following two lovers in a park.
Blow-Upcan be streamed on Apple TV in the U.S.
Watch on AppleTV
6’Spotlight' (2015)
Directed by Tom McCarthy
A Best Picture-winningode to investigative journalism,Spotlightis one of the many modern films that cleared a path for the quest-for-truth genre. Centered around the true investigation of theBoston GlobeSpotlight Team, a group of journalists uncovered dozens of cases of child molestation within the Catholic Church, a scandal that forever changed the way in which the church is viewed.
With an A-list cast includingMichael Keaton,Rachel McAdams,Mark Ruffalo,Liev Schreiber, and so many more, the impact of thisbased-on-true-events featurecannot be understated. WhereSpotlightrocks viewers is in its dramatic storytelling of something that actually happened.Moviegoers escape reality by sitting in that theater seat or searching for streaming titles; however, this film places reality—dramatized for effect, but reality nonetheless—right back in their faces with crippling facts that were covered up.Where it aligns withCivil Waris in its quest to find the truth and capture it, not to be blinded by the politics of those in power.
Spotlightcan be streamed on Starz in the U.S.
Watch on Starz
5’Sicario' (2015)
Directed by Denis Villeneuve
The debut feature from writer Taylor Sheridan anda box-office success from directorDenis Villeneuve,Sicarioleft audiences at a crossroads about the right and wrong sides of the law to stand on when it came to the war on drugs.Emily Bluntstars asKate Macer, an FBI agent recruited for a special task force targeting the cartels and their drug operations, led by the unorthodox Matt Graver (Josh Brolin) and his “bird dog” Alejandro (Benicio Del Toro).
Instead of capturing the corruptions of societal war, this Oscar-nominated feature spotlights the win-by-any-means-necessary mentality of the drug war at the border.Even with its slow-burn nature, the action scenes are heart-stopping, and the moments of exposition are exquisitely thought-provoking, asKate’s internal war about what’s rightgoes against the grain of the task force’s wrong methods for the right reasons.
Sicariocan be streamed on Prime Video in the U.S.
4’Hotel Rwanda' (2004)
Directed by Terry George
Based on the events of the genocide in 1994,Hotel Rwandaplaces audiences right in the center of a war-torn country during 100 days of terror as approximately 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus were murdered. The drama centers around hotel manager Paul Rusesabagina (Don Cheadle) as he shields Tutsi refugees from violent deaths at the hands of the Hutu-led government and militia. While the film features dramatized elements for cinematic effect,Rusesabagina’s real-life efforts saved 1,200 peopleduring the events of the genocide.
Much like scenes inCivil War,Hotel Rwandapacks a terrifying punch in several key moments as the characters fear for their lives, the film cohesively blends sound, editing, and acting to force audiences to witness death and destruction at its most inescapable brutality.Depicting the horrors of the darkest moments in Rwanda’s history was a feat requiring special care and consideration, and one that, for directorTerry George,earned the film three Oscar nominations.
Hotel Rwanda
Hotel Rwandacan be streamed on Tubi in the U.S.
Watch on Tubi
3’City of God' (2002)
Directed by Fernando Meirelles & Kátia Lund
One ofthe best movies of the 2000sis designed to make viewers incredibly uncomfortable. Filmed on location in the poorest neighborhoods of Rio de Janeiro, the provocative tale ofCity of Godpresents two young men in the 1970s as they choose different paths in life, ultimately converging within the violence of the neighborhood. The film’s protagonist, Rocket (Alexandre Rodrigues), dreams of being a professional photographer, but his inability to escape the slums plants his lens right in the middle of the drugs, violence, and individuals perpetuating it all.
The visceral, unforgiving depiction of poverty and youth transcends the language barrier, inviting audiences from around the world to immerse themselves in the experience this drama provides.Where this Oscar-nominated film additionally draws theCivil Waraudiences is in its offering and positioning of moral questions that, by the end, movie-goers are unable to answer.City of Godput Brazilian cinema on the mapwith its careful crafting byFernando MeirellesandKátia Lundto produce a narrative that leaves a lasting impression long after the credits roll.
City of God
City of Godcan be streamed on Apple TV in the U.S.
2’The Killing Fields' (1984)
Directed by Roland Joffé
The Killing Fieldsis a foundational film that depicts true eventsthat occurred when journalism and civil war came face-to-face.Sam Waterstonstars as Sydney Schanberg, a correspondent for theNew York Timeson assignment, who travels to cover the Cambodian Civil War alongside photojournalist Al Rockoff (John Malkovich). The pair documented the escalating violence before the U.S. military pulled out with the help of a local interpreter and journalist named Dith Pran (Haing S. Ngor); however, Pran stayed behind to capture the atrocities of the events unfolding.
The seven-time Oscar-nominated feature, winning three, is based on the events ofCambodia’s Pol Pot’s “Year Zero” in 1975, which saw millions sent to work camps and mass killings targeting doctors, lawyers, and journalists, among others.The Killing Fields, likeCivil War, offers a compelling story about the human element in the face of war, opting to avoid the usual overblown side effects of a Hollywood-adapted war story.
The Killing FIeldscan be streamed on Apple TV in the U.S.
1'20 Days in Mariupol' (2023)
Directed by Mstyslav Chernov
WhileCivil Waris a fictional depiction of the ties between journalism and war,20 Days in Mariupolis a real-life, timely account of the atrocities of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.The Oscar-winning Best Documentary Featurechronicles the journey of a team of Ukrainian reporters trapped in Mariupol during the invasion and their courageous efforts to document the horrific destruction of the city and the human lives within it.
20 Days in Mariupolis a must-see documentary that provides an inescapable view of the immersive cruelty that unfolds at the hands of war.Civil Waris divisive and, to some, foreboding, butMstyslav Chernov’s feature is the real deal, haunting, harrowing, and a cinematic feat that should not be left out of the conversation.
20 Days in Mariupol
20 Days in Mariupolcan be streamed on YouTube in the U.S.
Watch On YouTube
KEEP READING:‘Civil War’ Ending Explained: Who Wins When America Fights Itself?
