Warfare review: New British war film is so realistic it left me shell-shocked | Films | Entertainment

Last year, 28 Days Later’s Alex Garland released Civil War, a dystopian imagining of the Second American Civil War set in modern times.

And now, the British writer-director returns with Warfare, an edge-of-your-seat action thriller set during the Iraq War, co-helmed by former US Navy SEAL Ray Mendoza.

Set during the Battle of Ramadi in November 2006, this explosive new film is based entirely on the memories of his SEAL team and presented in real-time.

The impressive ensemble cast is dominated by Brits playing the American platoon (Will Poulter, Cosmo Jarvis, Joseph Quinn, Kit Connor) as they take control of a house and position a sniper to monitor jihadi activity in the area.

Free of Hollywood gloss, Warfare’s historically accurate portrayal moves between the SEAL’s juvenile banter (dancing to 00s pop hit Call On Me) to the tense mundanity of waiting for something to happen in the calm before the storm.

Of course, when it does, all hell breaks loose – and then some – in this Iraq War Band of Brothers.

Caught in the chaotic aftermath of insurgent explosions, the SEALs find themselves surrounded and in need of immediate rescue as two of their critically injured men bleed puddles, screaming for morphine on the dusty ground. What follows is a factual recreation of the platoon’s desperate situation against the clock. By the end of this 90 minute thriller we were somewhat shell-shocked by the hyperrealistic cinematography that makes you feel like you’re there, especially in the IMAX format.

Without spoiling how it ends and the fates of the real-life veterans involved in the battle, the film concludes by depicting the actual SEALs themselves. Behind-the-scenes footage shows them on set alongside Mendoza’s direction, guiding the actors in their performance. Truly, this incredible new film will go down among the greatest modern war films with the likes of Dunkirk, 1917 and The Hurt Locker.

Warfare hits UK cinemas on Friday.