Warfare Review: Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza Rebuilt One Day in Ramadi in Real Time

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Alex Garland co-directed this one with Ray Mendoza, the guy he worked with on Civil War (2024). Mendoza was actually there. The film rebuilds one day, November 19, 2006, in Ramadi, from the testimonies of the platoon members he served with. It’s dedicated to Elliott Miller, who lost his leg and his ability to speak that day.

Short, compact, bang for the buck. Another excellent film from Garland. “An incident of warfare” is one of the ways he described it and it makes so much sense.

Brilliant initial scene. That was a great way to open the film and to contrast to everything that was going to happen.

Then it starts slow. The slowness made sense structurally and is quite honestly great writing. No pace issues here. The urgency of things that needed to happen, while nothing was happening, and we’re waiting for things to happen, was really well done. Then it becomes full of action and the anxiety is palpable.

And the whole thing runs in real time, which is amazing. That is what makes the waiting work. You sit in it for as long as they sat in it, so the boredom and the dread arrive at the speed they arrived for the platoon. No cutting away to buy time, no jumping ahead to the part where something happens. You wait with them, and then you don’t get to look away.

And even with the limited setting, it is jam packed with outstanding performances from a now all star roster of male actors. D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai from Reservation Dogs (2021) plays Mendoza himself. Cosmo Jarvis from Shogun (2024) plays Elliott Miller. Charles Melton from Beef season 2 (2026). Noah Centineo from the upcoming Street Fighter. Then Finn Bennett from True Detective: Night Country (2024), and Taylor John Smith.

Interestingly, a lot of them are connected to Marvel. Kit Connor is the new Cyclops, and admittedly he is the reason why we saw this film this weekend. Michael Gandolfini was in the latest season of Daredevil: Born Again (2026) as Daniel Blake. Will Poulter is Adam Warlock from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023). Joseph Quinn is the Human Torch in Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025). And Charles Melton has been widely rumored as the new Beast, though he still hasn’t been announced.

★★★★☆. Highly recommended.

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