A new film from directors Jesse Moss and Tony Gerber illustrates the possible outcomes of January 6, 2025. Essentially a tabletop exercise, “War Game” walks the audience through a possible nationwide insurrection where members of the U.S. military defect to support the losing presidential candidate.
A nightmare scenario to be sure, but one we would do well not to ignore. In fact, given the distribution challenges “War Game” faces, I strongly urge civic organizations, higher education settings, lifelong learning venues, and all who care about saving democracy to consider hosting a screening. Details can be found here.
I saw “War Game” as part of the Nantucket Film Festival last week. The film was so well attended that festival organizers had to add a whole row of seats to accommodate the crowd. Followed by a deep-dive convo with Director Tony Gerber, as well as several people who appear in the film, no wonder the theater was packed.
One of the panelists was Janessa Goldbeck, who plays the role of Game Producer in the film. A real-life Marine Corps veteran, she is also the CEO of Vet Voice Foundation. This organization boasts over 1.5 million members; its mission is to mobilize veterans to have a voice in our democracy.
More familiar faces in the film include former Montana Gov. Steve Bullock playing the part of a fictional President John Hotham. Likewise, former Alabama Sen. Doug Jones appears here as a make-believe attorney general. Retired Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman acts as a game consultant in “War Game.” In real life, he directs the Informed American Leadership program at Vet Voice Foundation.
But the film is not partisan. Indeed, there are several former Trump administration folks here, such as Elizabeth Neumann and Marshall “Will” Williams. The former served as a senior advisor and deputy chief of staff at the Department of Homeland Security, while Williams was the acting assistant of the Army for Manpower and Reserve Affairs from 2018 to 2021.
Neumann also took part in the post-film discussion. I was impressed by her synthesis of social science research and talked briefly with her about her new book, available here. Mostly, I was relieved to meet someone like her who seems to have left the Trump train in the dust. Although she and I probably have little in common politically, I know she is serious about saving our democracy.
Of course, “War Game” also features others from the Clinton, Bush, and Obama administrations, too. And Goldbeck is certainly not the only veteran in this docu-thriller.
What makes “War Game” so compelling is how realistic it now feels, given January 6, 2021. It is frightening and reassuring at once. Naturally, I want everyone to see it sooner rather than later.
However, as I mentioned at the outset, “War Game” has yet to find a distributor. Some prospects may incorrectly assume the film is political, while others do not want to face retribution in the future if they support the film in the present.
Understandable positions both, yet lacking the courage to see “War Game” for exactly what it is: an emergency management simulation. In healthcare, we do these all the time, from simple fire drills to pandemic planning to mass casualty incident training.
Democracy deserves no less. Yet “War Game” will screen at a number of college campuses in August, then go to video on demand in October. Securing a distributor would be wonderful. Short of this, I cannot recommend “War Game” highly enough to readers of The Edge.
Democracy is on the edge, and “War Game” goes right up to the edge, too. No surprise, given how the film was inspired by a Washington Post op-ed, “The military must prepare now for a 2024 insurrection.”
Oh yeah, enjoy tomorrow night’s debate!
Correction and update, June 27, 2024: “War Game” does have a distributor, Submarine Deluxe, who will release the documentary on August 2 at Manhattan’s Film Forum. View the trailer below:
