Warfare (2025) – Review

Quick Thoughts

• Grade – B+
• Cosmo Jarvis and D’Pharaoh Won-A-Tai steal the show. 
• Get ready to have the Eric Prydz song “Call On Me” stuck in your head
• Don’t expect the bombast (big speeches, epic moments) of other war films. Warfare tosses you into the action and doesn’t have time for extraneous plot.
• The sound mix is the MVP
• Mendoza and Garland (co-directors) shot it in 21 days. Dang…

Shot in sequence over 21 days, Warfare is an effective and lean experience that comes from the memories of the Navy SEALs who fought alongside co-director Ray Mendoza during a 2006 mission in Ramadi, Iraq. The 95-minute film takes place mostly in real time and refreshingly doesn’t have time to feature big speeches, over-dramatized theatrics or pretty much anything outside of what’s happening to the NAVY seals. 

After working as a technical advisor on movies and TV shows like Lone Survivor, Act of Valor, Jurassic World, The Terminal List and The Outpost, Ray Mendoza was hired to be the Military Advisor on the Garland-directed film Civil War. Mendoza impressed Garland with his technical know-how and ability to stage well-executed skirmishes (especially with the final gunfight). After production wrapped Garland asked Mendoza if he had any stories that could be adapted into a feature-length film. Mendoza told him about a particular mission in 2006 when one of his fellow SEALS was injured during a skirmish and didn’t remember the event or the lengths his platoon went to keep him alive. The two then co-wrote a script with events pulled from the memories of Mendoza’s former platoon members who were there with him in Iraq that day. During a Q&A, Mendoza stressed that Warfare isn’t one of those “based on a true story” films that play fast and loose with a true story. Instead, Warfare closely sticks to what was remembered about the event and it’s an interesting storytelling exercise because it adds an authenticity to the proceedings that is lacking in most war movies.

Instead of opening with a massive battle or dramatic skirmish, Warfare opens with Eric Prydz’s famous Call on Me music video that features the scantily-clad Australian dance choreographer Deanne Berry teaching an absurd aerobics class. It comes across as gratuitous but that’s when editor Fin Oates pulls off the best editing transition of 2025 (so far) by cutting to a platoon of SEALS loving every second of Berry’s dance routine. It’s a fun moment and most importantly it features all the main characters in front of a computer screen as they enjoy a moment of levity before they engage in warfare.

After the fun moment, the platoon led by Erik (Will Poulter) enters Ramadi under the cover of night and selects a home to run their operation out of. The strategic location allows them to see in all directions, however, there is a walled-off section that separates the two families who live in the concrete two-story home. The decision is made to knock the wall down, which alerts local soldiers to their whereabouts and leads to a large gathering of soldiers who encircle the platoon. The following morning the local soldiers start probing the second floor with gunfire, and sniper Elliott (Cosmo Jarvis) is injured. His hand injury is bad enough for medical attention to be needed so a tank transport is called to get him back to base for medical attention. The major inciting incident comes when the tank hits an improvised explosive device (IED), which seriously injures Elliott and Sam (Joseph Quinn) Because of the IED, future transports are called off, and it’s up to another platoon led by (Charles Melton) to come to their aid. 

Warfare is the type of film where concussive blasts rattle brains and cause concussions. Nobody walks away from explosions in slow-motion and there aren’t any hero moments. Because of this, every single skirmish is stressful because if one of the thousands of bullets fired by the soldiers on either side hits a soldier – it could mean death (this isn’t Commando). The dialogue written by Mendoza and Garland is interesting because it’s mostly radio chatter about enemy movement, and then characters repeat the radio chatter so it can be handwritten into their notebooks – which they are constantly writing in. All of the artifice is stripped down and the 95-minute running time forces it to be supremely focused on warfare (which makes sense considering the title). 

Another neat tidbit picked up during the Ray Mendoza Q&A is that the film is dedicated to a platoon member named “Elliott,” who is played by Cosmo Jarvis (watch Shōgun). It’s because of this that Jarvis is given the most to do before his character’s legs are almost blown off. Whether it’s taking a much-needed stretch break after being propped on a table for hours, or making silly faces at D’Pharaoh Won-A-Tai (who is playing Ray Mendoza), Jarvis can show off a little more personality than most of the actors. That being said, the actors give authentic performances  and even though they are wearing matching uniforms and helmets, each one of them comes across as an individual with a personality. Also, it’s nice that it’s a mostly young cast because it’s a reminder that the average age of most Navy SEALS is around 27.

The cinematography by longtime Steadicam operator David J. Thompson is fantastic as he moves through the London-based set with fluid movements and a welcome avoidance of shaky cam. His years working on Homicide: Life on the Street, Civil War, Oz, and The Wire, have taught him how to keep things grounded and real. Also, the production design by Mark Digby (Ex Machina, Annihilation, Men) is fantastic as the houses feel suitably solid and the geography of the locations is easy to understand. A special shoutout needs to go out to Ben Barker (Civil War, Men, Devs), Glenn Freemantle (Civil War, Men, Devs), and Mitch Low (Annihilation, Men, Ex Machina) for their sound mixing and editing. The sound mix and design are essentially characters and whether it’s the noise created by a fighter jet creating a “show of force” or the tinnitus created from the concussive blasts – I was constantly wowed by the impressive ways sound is used.