Here are Cinephile Corner’s 10 recommendations for movies like Civil War:
Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant
The Covenant effectively sandwiches two rescue missions back-to-back in a tightly controlled narrative. It’s a two hander, sneakily becoming an anthology of several strong stories and ideas working within one another. Jake Gyllenhaal and Dar Salim headline the movie, and each get half of the film to take the lead.
Warfare
Warfare is the kind of war film that forgoes grandiosity in favor of raw, boots-on-the-ground immediacy, and the result is a lean, harrowing experience that feels startlingly real. Co-directed by Alex Garland and former Navy SEAL Ray Mendoza, the film comes just a year after Garland’s more polarizing and thematically ambiguous Civil War—a movie that aspired to be a socio-political reckoning but often buckled under the weight of its own ideas. In contrast, Warfare is stripped down and visceral in a way that’s much more effective.
One Battle After Another
Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another is a movie of firsts that never feels tentative. It is his first modern-set feature since Punch-Drunk Love, his first collaboration with Leonardo DiCaprio, and his first film of this scale, reportedly in the $130 to $175 million range. What is not new is the command. From the first explosion to the last chase, this is PTA in full control, turning a feverish political thriller into one of 2025’s most purely thrilling big-screen experiences.
Read our full review of One Battle After Another
A House of Dynamite
If what you want is impeccably mounted doomsday procedure, this delivers on a scene-to-scene level. If you want a political thriller that actually lands a blow, it taps out when it matters most. A House of Dynamite proves Bigelow still knows exactly how to build pressure, then chooses to vent it into thin air.
G20
G20 is not just a misfire, it’s a symptom of a larger streaming trend: high-concept projects stretched thin by weak scripts, formulaic direction, and over-reliance on big names to carry the weight. Viola Davis has led action movies far superior to G20.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is an admirable demo tape for director Wes Ball. The movie shows his talent for directing large-scale action sequences and consistent CGI-driven work, but it doesn’t quite have the succinct and emotionally powerful story to match.
Snowpiercer
It’s taken me multiple viewings to fully warm up to Snowpiercer (no pun intended). Bong Joon-ho’s first primarily English-language film is both brilliantly executed as a sci-fi thriller—boasting stunning set pieces and an inspired apocalyptic bullet train setting—and burdened by an overly on-the-nose allegory about class warfare that at times dulls its impact.
Captain America: Brave New World
The MCU has had missteps before, but they were rarely this sloppy. With The Marvels also suffering from poor execution, it’s becoming increasingly clear that Marvel Studios is stretching itself too thin, churning out rushed, compromised projects that dilute the franchise’s once-dominant hold on pop culture. Captain America: Brave New World isn’t just another disappointing MCU entry—it’s a glaring warning sign that the franchise is losing its grip.
The Creator
Gareth Edwards’ latest movie, The Creator, blasts onto the screen with the force of a nuclear warhead, throwing audiences into a sprawling sci-fi epic that’s equal parts awe-inspiring and occasionally frustratingly shallow. Like a perfectly sculpted sandcastle frailly built on a windy beach, The Creator boasts breathtaking visuals and an ambitious scope, only to slightly crumble under the weight of its own narrative shortcomings.
All Quiet on the Western Front
Director Edward Berger and cinematographer James Friend come together to create 2022’s signature war epic All Quiet on the Western Front, which pushes stylistic boundaries for the genre not seen since before the pandemic. It is terrifying and riveting at its best moments, and slightly formulaic at its lesser ones. Combined with a saddening performance by Felix Kammerer, the film is one of Netflix’s best ones of 2022.
READ MORE: Civil War (2024), Alex Garland Movies Ranked, Best Movies of 2024
