Civil War
Do we have to see it? Do we?
Mary and I travelled to the Adirondacks to experience the eclipse this past weekend, a spiritual and totally non political event we’d been looking forward to for years. Four days in the mountains brought a peace one can count on when leaving the city for nature. And the eclipse something everyone could enjoy and discuss comfortably, unlike so much these days. I equated this moment to when we watched the Wizard of Oz as kids, mesmerized, with us all talking about it in school the next day, if only to say we saw it. Common ground.
This week, when we returned on Tuesday evening, I could instantly feel the intensity of our urban life creep back in. Not a bad feeling, but remarkably different. With this feeling, I understood why people leave.
“You have it all up there,” I said to my brother Jim. “You have a natural wonderland out your back door.”
“Yes, but you have a movie theatre down the street.” He said.
Yes we do, and I was excited to come back to Brookline and to a new slate of movies at our favorite theatre, The Coolidge. Especially given the newly opened expansion, which adds two new theaters to the existing three. Certainly there would be something for us to see on our upcoming regular Date Night. To my surprise and immediate revulsion, I found Movie House One at The Coolidge would be showing a new movie I’d not foresee coming — Civil War.
“I don’t think so,” I thought immediately. Mary and I can no longer take dark and violent movies. We’ve gotten soft some would say, but actually we each got to the point as a couple where we recognized how important it was not to be upset by the films we attended. “Life’s hard enough”, we said to each other, “we need an escape.” About the same time we had kids, we stopped going to movies which made us anxious. Same applies for the few series we watch on Netflix, so I don’t need anything more than the title of this movie to tell me to steer clear. And yet why am I reconsidering seeing this, especially given that the movie’s not even highly rated? Bad movie. Disturbing topic. Walk away.
A day or two later, I find articles worried that the movie might be prophesying the eventuality of such a thing. Then I found another piece stating we need to face this possibility head-on. Feel it. This argument has me thinking, “do Mary and I need to see this?”
“Forget it,” Mary said when I brought it up. “The review wasn’t even all the good.”
Noetheless, I like Kirsten Dunst, and have since she starred with Michelle Williams in Dick, a spoof about Watergate. If you haven’t seen Dick, do. Especially if you hated Tricky Dick Nixon and his Watergate cronies. Dan Hedaya plays Nixon to comic hilarity. Dunst the foil.
In Civil War we understand Dunst returns to DC, not to walk the president’s dog, as she and her teenage bestie did in Dick, but as a photo journalist trying to get to the White House. A podcast I listened to this week says Dunst is terrific in the movie, wearing the pain of the conflict on her face without the need for a ton of dialogue. Do I need to feel her pain to understand the threat? Maybe. The podcast also said this movie is violent, and doesn’t end well. Great.
This is not a review of the movie, because I haven’t seen it. This isn’t even a preview, because I haven’t even read the formal review. And yet I feel compelled to write this post, and put it out there for others to reflect on. These are not normal times. I can’t ignore the threat. I’ll let you know if we end up going. In the meantime, watch Dick. It will make you smile at a time when we all need more comic relief.
