Civil War Is So Terrifying That I Almost Left The Theater
Different things scare different people. Granted, a good jump scare can get even the best of us, but that's not necessarily something that leaves a lasting impression. That's more of a "You got me!" sort of thing. But when a movie can rattle you deep down to your bones? That's something special in its own f****d-up way. That's precisely what director Alex Garland did to me with "Civil War," which is in theaters now. I am here to share my (spoiler-free) experience not because my ego is such that I feel everyone is dying to know why a movie scared me, but as more of a PSA.
Without getting into the specifics, Garland's movie imagines a near-future U.S. where the various states have divided into warring factions. We come into the film near the end of the war and follow several journalists who are trying to make their way across a particularly hectic part of the country en route to Washington D.C. for a pivotal event. It's a POV of war that we rarely see. Journalists must approach things dispassionately and bring facts to the world (ideally, anyway), which makes Garland's film pretty unique. It's war's hell through and through, which is at the heart of what's terrifying from an experiential standpoint.
Yes, the idea of war scares me — as it should scare any sane person. But what got me when I saw the movie at an IMAX screening during SXSW was the gunfire itself. I have never been a fan of guns, to put all of my cards on the table. But so often, movies sort of trivialize the scariness of gunfire. It's loud. It's deadly. It's jarring. Garland made sure all of that was on full display, and it deeply affected me, so much so that I nearly had to leave the theater multiple times.
Alex Garland scared the s*** out of me
There is an overarching sense of dread that permeates "Civil War." But nothing is quite so jarring as the first time a gun goes off through those IMAX speakers. I jumped in my seat. My heart felt like it hit my ribcage. My eyes were wide. I did not like it. To reveal a further truth, I've never really liked loud noises. Fireworks. Thunder is a big one. So gunshots are right up there. I'm not trying to be dramatic when I tell you that the gunshots in this film feel real. They made me want to hit the deck every single time.
For the rest of the film, to say that I was tense would be an understatement. It's sort of like a horror movie with jump scares and tension. You know another jump scare will come, you just don't know when. Here, Garland makes it clear that bad things can happen at any time, so I was never ready for that next horrifying gunshot. I never got used to it. I never felt at ease. It was a true blue cinematic experience, for better or worse.
There were times when the people sitting next to me seemed keenly aware of how uncomfortable I was. Looking back, I'm not even sure why I stayed. I was invested in the movie, and what Garland accomplished here is nothing shy of spectacular, even if it was earnestly dreadful for me for most of the film's runtime. Case in point, when I got to the afterparty, several of my friends marveled as my hand was literally shaking when I tried to drink a little bit of whiskey to calm me down. I'm not much of a drinker, but I needed a f*****g drink that night.
Alex Garland made guns scary in Civil War
The only other time that guns felt nearly this real to me was the shootout in Michael Mann's crime thriller "Heat." But that movie is a bit more overtly entertaining, so when the gunshots come, it's far less detrimental to my blood pressure. Garland, for his part, definitely went out of his way to make sure the guns in this movie came off as terrifying. /Film's own Jacob Hall spoke to him about the portrayal of guns in "Civil War," and here's what he had to say about it:
"A gun sound is, in a way, terrifying. A modern automatic rifle or machine gun or 50-caliber machine gun, whatever it happens to be, these are machines that are constructed to kill. That is what they're there for. They do this in this incredibly efficient fashion, and there is something sinister in the noise of something that really only exists for that purpose. So what we did was we used exactly those noises. We used guns that fired blanks, and we put full flash blanks in them and we recorded that noise as faithfully as we could. That will include the sound of the gun, but also the way it reacts with objects around it."
I leave you with this: I'm not saying not to go see this movie. I'm also not saying not to go see this movie. I am merely sharing a personal experience that I believe others will have as well, specifically in a theater. More specifically, a premium format theater, which more and more moviegoers are seeking out these days. It's an experience viewers should be prepared for. Not to end on a pun here, but a trigger warning, if you will. It's rare that a mainstream film should come with such a warning, but Garland managed to make me feel like this one should. It's a testament to what he accomplished here.
"Civil War" is in theaters now.