“Civil War” with PVR: a riveting, pre-release experience!

Civil War with PVR : A pre-release premiere and screening

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Above image (Courtesy Susmita): We, the faint-hearted, before we knew what hit us!

This Sunday, 7th of April, i had the rare privilege of viewing a much-awaited movie prior to its scheduled release. Rare because i don’t work in the movie/media sector but do have a fine taste in critically acclaimed directorial ventures; and have dabbled in public policy and geo-politics stints. My presence at the screening was all thanks to the meticulous team at PVR Director’s Cut, PVR INOX, New Delhi, who under the stellar leadership of Mr. Sanjeev Bijli, are leaving no stone unturned in bringing quality global cinema to Indian audiences.

As a student in Delhi, i’d grown up watching movies at PVR Priya and PVR Anupam. So it was a delight to be at a red-carpet event hosted by their team. The last major movie from the world of journalism that i saw at PVR was Bombshell. But Civil War is a different genre, a separate league altogether…

Civil War with PVR: On-point, Hard-hitting!

I promise to keep my review post as crisp, on-point and as hard-hitting as the movie itself.

I was lucky to have been seated next to an actual veteran journalist who had done first-hand coverage of post-Mandal commission events and Uphar cinema fire incident in Delhi during her early career. I could absorb and relate from a different perspective in her presence and through anecdotes of her lived experiences in the field. My highest respects are reserved for journalists who risk their lives (and manage to survive) in order to present the reality to people…

And this post is a first-hand account of being witness to the epic war thriller. Without spoilers. No prior reviews having been read, you can trust this to be the “rawest” version of what i experienced in those 1 hour 49 minutes…

Strife and War, a no-go zone…

A long-time advocate and patron of peace, my motive behind watching the movie was to resonate with the futility of war. As an avid follower of international relations, it is my firm belief that war begins when diplomacy fails. But what about civil wars? Its less to do with internal factionalism than with the utter failure of administration.

And Wagner Moura gets to mock the country’s leadership twice: first as the notorious Pablo Escobar in Narcos, and now as the trauma-stressed journalist asking for a quote from a decapitated President!

And then i was there for Kirsten Dunst, who has not hidden her age behind layers of makeup. The intense character awes you as a seasoned war-time photo journalist.

This hair-raising war-thriller is sure to raise (many) eyebrows too. With it’s in-your-face portrayal of violence, a bit of puke, n lots of blood spewed all over. There were moments i thought the audience would be screaming. Or crawling for cover when the young protégé Jessie finds her way out after being thrown into a mass grave. That strenuous crawl must have been the longest 2 minutes of her life…

Civil War with PVR: A Character Sketch

Director Alex Garland couldn’t have put together a more appropriate cast. One shouldn’t be surprised to come across Cailee Spaeny as the surprise package. Without spoilers, must i add, i see this young actress as the next Jennifer Lawrence! Towards the end, she’s almost in a trance, following the rebels closely into covering every seminal moment of the wanton destruction that unfolds before you. You have to see the movie yourself to fathom the veracity of it all…

Kirsten Dunst has done supreme justice to her role as the raw, seasoned veteran photo-journalist. A long, long way from her Spiderman damsel days. Her Civil War character is relatable through natural ageing and a certain nonchalance that is must for dealing with crises of unprecedented magnitude.

When you are a mid-senior professional, Smith is especially relatable when a young aspirant follows your every move – by virtue of simply looking up to you? Her annoyance and reluctance turns into respect and trust as she hands over the mantle to Jessie to carry on the coverage in the more strenuous moments of the (civil) war. Talk about recognizing and honing young(er) talent…

Next is a character that will stay close to my heart, as someone who was the steal deal. The turning point comes up when Dunst asks him to stay off because he’s too old to run fast to save his life.

But seconds before she and Joel and Jessie are about to be gunned down, Stephen McKinley Henderson rushes in with the Press Vehicle, throwing the rebels off into the mass grave, riveting through the mess and saving their lives! Talk about someone experienced having your back… that was an edge of the seat moment at its best.

Going back to Pablo Escobar… err… Wagner Moura, he sure has added a tinge of “light-hearted black-humour” with his mis-interpretations, leisurely “processing”, and PTSD-induced reactions to events. And though is less tough compared to veteran Lee Smith, he gets to mock the helplessness of the administration and to have the last word… with the President.

Civil War with PVR: need to re-visit

Well, the movie was so intense, i have to view it again upon its release. I’m sure to have missed some major moments that were defining elements of the script.

Years of listening to death metal, reading and viewing the Godfather, binge watching Quentin Tarantino and zombie apocalypses had not prepared me for what was to come. Having experienced colossal loss, turmoil and viewing death closely in various forms, i was still not prepared for what was to come.

Civil War is scary because of its sheer resemblance and closeness to reality. Let that sink in… and you will see this movie in a very different light the second time!

I must applaud the fact that this film is made for discerning, intelligent audiences who celebrate the power of fearless journalism. You kind of know what you’re getting into. What you may remotely expect to see in those 109 minutes. So don’t be caught off guard.

And the smiles you see in my photos are symptoms of mere relief from having finished the movie, moved and shocked, but with your sanity intact! For i know of guests who had to walk away over some of the more shocking sequences. Might i say again, this movie is NOT for the faint-hearted…

To say the least, it’s a power-packed narrative and doesn’t waste a micro-second stating the obvious.

Yes, did i not say, this movie is for intelligent, discerning audiences? See it to believe it (and me!).

Vote of Thanks to PVR and Civil War

Again, without letting out spoilers or spilling too many facts about this magnum opus, I’d like to thank the Director, Alex Garland, for having sat through this movie that takes you out of the comfort zone every few minutes. While the dystopian genre seems to be his home turf, he sure has outdone himself with a hyper-real, cinematographically-rich, big-budget thriller like Civil War!

Ironically, it takes a lot of work to make a “movie” look real.

Would like to convey my special thanks to Mr. Bijli who has also brought Metallica, BTS and Taylor Swift Eras tour to India. PVR Cinemas is currently the 5th largest listed cinema chain globally! His visionary leadership is the force behind critically acclaimed global cinema being viewed across India. I also noticed his uncanny resemblance to Damian Lewis, the lead actor from Billions and Band of Brothers… guess the reason he takes cinema very seriously! Special thanks (2) to his friend & classmate from school, Ms. Barkha Dutt, former war correspondent and well-known media person, for gracing the event.

My gratitude to Ms. Nidhi from PVR, and Ms. Bhavana, an inspirational professional from the field of international relations, who has also worked in Afghanistan, for having me at the screening!

The movie releases only on 19th April in India.

Would i do this again? Hell yes!