Warfare: A Parable of the Crisis of Empire

Warfare: A Parable of the Crisis of Empire

Unlike Alex Garland’s Civil War, his Warfare, co-directed with war vet Ray Mendoza, is not just another attempt at a realistic portrayal of war, in all its blood and gore. Warfare, based on a true story, is really a parable about the overweening ambition and crushing failure of empire, a microcosm of America’s disastrous adventure in Iraq. A Navy Seal mission reconnoiters a neighborhood in Ramadi. “I like this house,” says the team commander, re…