These are expanded thoughts on the A24 film WARFARE that was talked about on the April 15th, 2025 episode of Geek Girl Riot.
I can’t think of a theater experience like the one I had when watching a war film, as I did when watching the new film WARFARE, co-directed by Ray Mendoza and Alex Garland. Garland was known first as the screenwriter of films like 28 Days Later and Sunshine and is now known for his directorial efforts like Ex Machina and last year’s Civil War. You have an idea of what you’re going to get.
This film, though, is really co-director Ray Mendoza’s film. Based on the memories of Mendoza and his fellow Navy SEAL platoon members about their experience in 2006 in Ramadi, Iraq. Here, the movie doesn’t try to explain the sides and reasons of the conflict or why the soldiers are there. The film captures these soldiers’ experiences of a situation going very badly and how they are trying to get out with their injured comrades. You could say the whole film is just an action setpiece, but that is pretty reductive, as there’s so much emotional conflict and such an overwhelming sense of immersion in this film.
The film is full of young actors, some of whom you know and some whom you might not recognize, but all give great performances. D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai plays Ray Mendoza, who was a communicator / JTAC, is the closest we get to a POV character and, at times, feels we’re supposed to connect to as much. As Erik, Officer in Charge, Will Poulter also gave a very good performance, and we spent a lot of time with him on screen during this battle. You get a great feeling for how hard the situation must’ve been when, even though you’re trained, everything seems like pure chaos, and he has to make sure his guys get out of the situation. My guy Charles Melton is in this as Jake, Assistant Officer in Charge, who you really don’t see until about halfway through the film. Melton is one of my favorite young actors working right now. I’ve been watching him since season two of Riverdale and have seen him grow as an actor.
For me, most of the performances work as they all convey the tense and chaotic nature of the situation. This is a film from a specific perspective of the US soldiers, and you do get zero perspective of the Iraqi people in this. The families that essentially get kidnapped in their own homes as the SEALs take it over to use as a base is a frightening thing to see. They sell the film on it being based on memory. Still, the memories of our soldiers, and while it’s harrowing to see and experience on film, it does make you think about what the experiences of those on the other side were and the people in these houses that our soldiers just took over.
WARFARE is one of the best war films I’ve seen in recent memory, especially focused on modern warfare, but it does end up making you feel uneasy about what they experienced and what you saw, and I think that’s the point.
Score: B
