‘Every Round Has A Purpose,’ Says Co-Director

When film critics hold forth on war films that purport to deliver a realistic treatment of combatthey are most likely talking out of their hat. Most of my colleagues, including me, have never served in the military, and, thus, haven’t the slightest clue as to what it feels like to have bullets whizzing by your head while ordinance explodes in your vicinity. Heck, many people who serve in the military don’t get that experience.

So when it comes to determining what’s realistic and what’s Hollywood, all you can do is consult someone who’s been in it. I’ve done this throughout my career as a critic, and the titles I hear most frequently as being the most realistic are probably “The Battle of Algiers,” “Come and See,” “Saving Private Ryan,” “Das Boot,” “Hamburger Hill,” and “Black Hawk Down.” And while François Truffaut once asserted that there’s no such thing as an anti-war movie, there is not a moment in those films that makes me eager to sling a rifle over my shoulder and get shot at. The excitement of combat is undercut by terror at every turn.

One recent movie that earned praise from veterans for its depiction of warfare is Alex Garland’s “Civil War.” The film presents a United States torn asunder by a violent uprising against a third-term president, and does not shy away from the pitiless savagery of armed conflict. It’s already horrifying to see U.S. troops pitted against one another, but Garland further frays our nerves by staging each firefight with a visual and aural ferocity that feels unremitting at times. As we clutch our theater seat armrest and ball up with tension, we wonder how anyone keeps their wits about them when confronted with the real thing.

The realism of Garland’s film was made possible thanks to the involvement of former Navy SEAL Ray Mendoza, and the filmmaker was impressed enough with his consultant’s insights into combat that he wrote and directed a new film with him titled “Warfare.” If you thought “Civil War” was a rough ride, it sounds like “Warfare” will leave you completely rattled. According to Mendoza, one of the film’s key components is its sound design.

/Film’s Bill Bria recently attended a screening of “Warfare,” a movie that’s based on memorywhich was followed by a Q&A during which Mendoza discussed the film’s intent and technical challenges when it came to capturing the concussive power of combat. Mendoza, who served in the Iraq War, told the gathered journalists, “If you’ve been in a firefight, you understand that it’s the confusion — initially, it’s confusing at first. So then you have to ask yourself, well, how do I convey confusion in a firefight? Like really convey it.”

For Mendoza, the sound of a firefight is unforgettable and startlingly unique. How did he replicate this for viewers who’ve never been hunkered down in such a situation? According to Mendoza:

“(T)he next step in a firefight is like, all right, where is the fire coming from? And then addressing that. What does that sound like once you do identify what fire is going on? So every aspect of this film is — even if you were to watch this film again — every snap, every round has a purpose. I just didn’t just throw it in there. (Not) like, ‘Oh, that f***ing sounds cool.’ So when there’s a snap, it’s very directional. So when you see somebody move or shift their gun, it’s motivated by something, and you may recognize it, but if somebody’s been in combat, you can say like, ‘Oh, yeah.’ You don’t know why it’s right, but it is.”

If it’s as disorienting as the opening of “Saving Private Ryan” or pretty much the entirety of “Black Hawk Down,” I guess we should prepare ourselves for a white-knuckler of a war movie. The press who were invited to the screening seem to back this up.

What to expect from “Warfare?” For /Film’s Briait “blends some of the expected war movie elements — tension, brutality, blood — with some daring ones, namely the depiction of the sheer mundanity of war (until, of course, that shifts).” He goes on to say that “Garland & Mendoza capture a compelling memory of war here.”

Fandango’s Erik Davis raved that Garland and Mendoza’s movie is “definitely the most intense film I’ve watched this year.” He added that “The cast is stacked with familiar names like Joseph Quinn, Kit Connor, Charles Melton, Noah Centineo, Will Poulter and Cosmo Jarvis, but the pace is so frantic and the energy so chaotic that the men truly disappear into their roles.”

Journalist Simon Thompson also offered up high praise, saying that “Warfare” is “one of the first must see movies of the year. An incredible tribute to the unimaginable sacrifice this brave band of brothers made. Incredible stuff. Flawless.”

Mendoza, who previously served as a technical advisor on films like “Jurassic World,” “Lone Survivor,” and “Act of Valor,” is making his directorial debut here, but he’s doing it alongside a formidable talent in Garland. It sounds like “Warfare” might be a special film. We’ll find out when it storms theaters on April 11, 2025.