CIVIL WAR

America's at war with itself, the union against the Western Forces (made up of Texas and California). The reasoning for this highly unlikely alliance is to not single out any one party as well as show what we're capable of once we put our differences aside. The story follows 4 journalists: Lee (Kirsten Dunst), Joel (Wagner Moura), Jessie (Cailee Spaeny), and Sammy (Stephen McKinley Henderson) on their way to Washington D.C. (well, technically 3 as Sammy is only hitching a ride on his way to Charlottesville to see the fighting on the front lines). Joel wants to interview the President upon his arrival while Lee is a seasoned wartime photographer who takes young Jessie under her wing as Lee is someone whom he looks up to and aspires to be. Surprisingly, I was a little bored with the film. Jessie's character arc held my interest the most, followed by Lee, who was the team leader throughout. Some scenes are built for shock value which had very little effect on me. I'll again give the film credit as while it's dealing with a sensitive issue during these overly sensitive times, it doesn't take sides. The story focuses on us as Americans, not which party we affiliate with, which is effective in that regard as we're obviously stronger together than divided. 5.5/10