Civil War & Wicked Little Letters

Set in the near future, "Civil War" is about a messy conflict in a deeply divided United States. Sound familiar? In this podcast episode, HCC film professors Marie Westhaver and Mike Giuliano agree that the film does not fully realize the political potential of its premise, and yet fully realizes the visceral power of accompanying several photojournalists who take a risky road trip from New York to Washington. Strong performances by Kirsten Dunst and Callee Spaeny make us care about a story that does not always hold up to analysis. Marie and Mike also discuss a very different film, "Wicked Little Letters," about a small English village just after World War I. Its colorful characters are mystified by a series of anonymous letters rife with a lot of naughty words. Viewers may find that the salty language wears thin and also may figure out the central mystery long before the characters do, but it's an enjoyable film in large part because of the engaging performances by the likes of Olivia Colman, Jessie Buckley and Timothy Spall.