Last month, a trailer for Alex Garland’s “Warfare” was released via A24. Garland actually co-directed the film with Iraq veteran Ray Mendoza. We’ve now learned that the film will be going the same route as last year’s “Civil War,” also directed by Garland. An April 11 release date has been set up for the film. Expect a world premiere at SXSW.
Last month, I spoke to a person who had seen “Warfare” and swore that it was, by far, Alex Garland’s best film. They weren’t a big fan of his previous efforts, and were shell shocked by how good this latest one was. “Warfare” is said to be an “extremely intense” film that doesn’t shy away from the violence and gore that comes with war. It’s a “powerful experience,” they tell me.
What Garland and Mendoza seem to have done is take the idea from “Civil War,” about why people senselessly and tribally kill each other, and blow it up into a single, 90-minute action sequence. Relentless, provocative, and powerfully anti-war. The film takes place in “real time” but it’s not like a ticking clock movie. It’s a true story about a troop of American soldiers, in an undisclosed mission during the Iraq War, finding themselves trapped in a firefight without support.
“Warfare” is being called a “small-scale” movie in terms of production. Pretty much all taking place in a single location, a house, and featuring a small 20-something person ensemble of soldiers. It’s not character-driven, and much more about the experience of war, rather than having character arcs, similar to “Dunkirk.”
The young cast includes Charles Melton, Will Poulter, Joseph Quinn, Kit Connor, Cosmo Jarvis and D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai.
Garland is coming off “Civil War,” his third collaboration with A24 — the most expensive A24 film had ever produced up to that point, with a budget of around $50 million. Spurred by strong reviews, the film ended up earning $126M worldwide, and is the second highest grossing film in A24 history.
Garland’s other credits include “Ex-Machina,” “Annihilation,” “Dredd” and “Men.” He’s also the screenwriter behind “28 Days Later,” “Sunshine,” and “Never Let Me Go.”
Edward Berger seems to have settled on what comes next. His Lance Armstrong biopic, starring Austin Butler, is now holding casting calls, with production eyed for January.