WAR GAME
(directors: Tony Gerber, Jesse Moss; cinematographers: Thorsten Thielow, Wolfgang Held, Daniel Carter, Tim Grucza, Brett Wiley, Keri Oberly; editor: Jeff Gilbert; music: Pawel Mykietyn; cast: Janessa Goldbeck (Game Producer) Kristofer Goldsmith (Red Cell Leader), Chris Jones (Red Cell Operative), Ralph Brown (Lt. General Roger Simms), Steve Bullock (President John Hotham), Linda Singh (Chief/National Guard Bureau), Elizabeth Neughmann (Homeland Security Advisor), David Priess (Director of National Intelligence), Joe Reeder (General Counsel, Department of Defense), Doug Jones (Attorney General), Marshall “Will” Williams (Secretary of the Army), Wesley Clark (Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff), Heidi Heitkamp (Senior Advisor to the President), Jeffrey Buchanan (Commander/USNorthcom), Ben Radd (Game Designer), Eric Schmeltzer (Game Consultant), Samantha Libraty (Game Consultant), Bill Kristol (Red Cell Operative); Runtime: 94; MPAA Rating: NR; producers: Mark DiCristofaro, Jessica Grimshaw, Todd Lubin, Jesse Moss, Nick Shumaker, Jack Turner; Submarine Deluxe/Quaker Moving Pictures; 2024)
“A curious film that freely speculates on possible future events.”
Reviewed by Dennis Schwartz
Co-directors of this slick political documentary, the San Francisco-based Tony Gerber (“Full Battle Rattle”/”Side Streets”) and the Emmy winner Jesse Moss (“Girls State”/”Mayor Pete”), do a decent enough job to keep the American public terrified that their democracy in real-life is under attack by MAGA.
The provocative documentary dramatically plays out the fictional threat proposed as a follow-up to the historical January 6, 2021 insurrection. The focus is on a bipartisan group of US defense, intelligence, and elected policymakers spanning five presidential administrations as they stage on Jan. 6, 2023, in locations around the US Capitol, an unscripted role-playing exercise. They portray a fictional President of the United States (Steve Bullock) and his advisors as they confront a political coup backed by rogue members of the US military in the wake of a contested 2024 presidential election.
It takes shape as a thriller, with the players having only six hours to save American democracy. I found it a curious film that freely speculates on possible future events and shows how social media and the news could possibly be weaponized.
It played at the Sundance Film Festival.
REVIEWED ON 9/22/2024 GRADE: B
dennisschwartzreviews.com