| Brexit: The Uncivil War | |
|---|---|
 Promotional poster | |
| Based on | All Out War: The Full Story of How Brexit Sank Britain's Political Class byTim Shipman Unleashing Demons: The Inside Story of Brexit byCraig Oliver |
| Directed by | Toby Haynes |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Daniel Pemberton[1] |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| Production | |
| Producer | Lynn Horsford |
| Cinematography | Danny Cohen |
| Editor | Matthew Cannings |
| Running time | 92 minutes[2] |
| Production company | House Productions |
| Original release | |
| Network | Channel 4 |
| Release | 7 January 2019 (2019-01-07) |
Brexit: The Uncivil War (simplyBrexit in the US) is a 2019 Britishdramatelevision film written byJames Graham and directed byToby Haynes.[3] It depicts the lead-up to the2016 referendum through the activities of the strategists behind theVote Leave campaign, that prompted theUnited Kingdom to exit theEuropean Union, known asBrexit.[4]Benedict Cumberbatch stars asDominic Cummings, the Campaign Director of theofficially designated Brexit-supporting group,Vote Leave.Rory Kinnear stars asCraig Oliver, one of the leaders of the officially designated Remain-supporting group,Britain Stronger in Europe.[5]
It aired onChannel 4 in the United Kingdom on 7 January, and aired onHBO in the United States on 19 January.[6] The film received generally positive reviews from critics, with praise for its pacing, black comedy, and the depiction of the campaign as a thriller, and with particular praise for Cumberbatch's performance which was likened to his role in the TV seriesSherlock. The film received a nomination at the71st Primetime Emmy Awards forOutstanding Television Movie.[7]
The film opens in 2020, at a future (fictional) public inquiry, where a frustratedDominic Cummings attempts to explain to the panel that they have no understanding of the way in which technology is reshaping politics and therefore society in the United Kingdom.
In 2015, Cummings rejects an offer byUKIP MPDouglas Carswell and political strategistMatthew Elliott to lead theVote Leave campaign due to his contempt for "Westminster politics", but accepts when Carswell promises him full control. Cummings uses "algorithmic database-driven micro-targeting tools" delivered via social media/internet, instead of a traditional campaign of posters/phone calls/leaflets delivered by local MPs. Cummings rejects an approach byNigel Farage andArron Banks ofLeave.EU to merge campaigns, as his data shows Farage is an obstacle to winning a majority. Cummings' technology-driven approach causes friction with Vote Leave MPs and donors.John Mills, chair of Vote Leave, tries to fire Cummings to merge with Leave.EU, but finds himself instead fired.
Cummings and hisRemain counterpart,Craig Oliver, lay out their strategies and opinion of each other to their respective teams. Both identify the one-third of undecided UK voters as the key. Oliver targets "Jobs and the Economy", while Cummings feels the "Loss of Control" and thepossible accession of Turkey to the EU is a greater concern. Cummings invokes a strategy fromSun Tzu'sThe Art of War and avoids refuting "Jobs and the Economy" to instead focus on their own message – "Take Back Control" – that positions Remain as the "historical status quo" and Vote Leave as the "change" option. Cummings meets and hires Canadian Zack Massingham, co-founder ofAggregateIQ, who offers to build a database using social media tools of voters who are not on the UK electoral register but are inclined to vote to leave. Arron Banks meetsRobert Mercer, who discusses the potential of social media database tools.
Cummings, using the AggregateIQ database, brings MPDouglas Carswell toJaywick, a part of his constituency he did not know existed, where a couple articulates the destitution of their position.[8] Oliver, using the traditional focus-groups, realises that his campaign has failed to understand the concerns of many UK voters as one focus-group descends into a mass quarrel with one member breaking down crying: "I'm sick of feeling like nothing like I have nothing! Like I know nothing. Like I am nothing. I'm sick of it". Oliver's own staff becomes demoralised and angry.[8]
In the final stages of the campaign, high-profile Conservative MPsMichael Gove andBoris Johnson join the Vote Leave campaign emphasising the need to "Take Back Control", whilePenny Mordaunt raises concerns onBBC over the accession of Turkey. Gove and Johnson have some reticence over specific Vote Leave claims (e.g. £350 million forNHS, and 70 million potential Turkish emigrants) but overcome them. Oliver conducts an emergency Tory-Labour Remain conference call with the prime ministerDavid Cameron andPeter Mandelson, but each side blames the other for the Remain campaign's decline.[8] Following themurder of MPJo Cox, Cummings and Oliver share a drink and discuss events, with Cummings comparing his campaign as having started a train that cannot be stopped, and Oliver replying: "Be careful what you wish for. You won't be able to control it either".[8]
On23 June 2016, Britain narrowly votes to leave the EU. After a victory speech, Cummings quietly leaves the Vote Leave campaign office. Back in the present at the 2020 (fictional) public inquiry, Cummings outlines his disappointment at how the political system reacted post the Vote Leave victory, and walks out in disgust.
The film also includes:Richard Durden asSir Bill Cash, Conservative MP and board member of Vote Leave; Gavin Spokes asAndrew Cooper, political strategist and polling expert for Britain Stronger in Europe;Aden Gillett asRobert Mercer, US businessman and donor to Leave.EU;Mark Dexter as the voice ofDavid Cameron, theprime minister;Mark Gatiss as the voice ofPeter Mandelson,Labourpeer and board member of Britain Stronger in Europe.
In addition, the focus-group casting includes:Annabelle Dowler as the focus group facilitator; Gabriel Akuwudike as Robin, the "ardent internationalist" focus group participant; John Arthur as Roger, the "EU hostile" focus group participant;Rakie Ayola as Camilla, the "comfortable Europhile" focus group participant; Jay Simpson as Steve, the "strong skeptic" focus group participant; Heather Coombs as Sandra, the "hearts vs heads" focus group participant; andKiran Sonia Sawar as Shamara the "disengaged middle" focus group participant
James Graham, the film's screenwriter, originally wrote a first draft focusing onDavid Cameron, the UK's prime minister during the vote. However, he then changed it toDominic Cummings, the campaign director of the official designatedBrexit-supporting group,Vote Leave.[9] In aChannel 4 News interview, Graham revealed that the film was based on the booksAll Out War: The Full Story of How Brexit Sank Britain's Political Class bySunday Times political editorTim Shipman, andUnleashing Demons: The Inside Story of Brexit byDavid Cameron'sDowning Street communications directorCraig Oliver, and on interviews with the campaign strategists involved, Cummings in particular.[10] Oliver acted as a consultant on the film.[11][9] In order to better play lead character Dominic Cummings,Benedict Cumberbatch visited him at his family home.[12]
The film was commissioned in May 2018 byChannel 4 withBenedict Cumberbatch cast to playDominic Cummings.[13] Filming commenced in June with the supporting cast set, includingRory Kinnear andJohn Heffernan.[14]
Critic reviews were generally positive after the 7 January 2019 broadcast of the film in the UK by Channel 4. On review aggregation websiteRotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 80% based on 55 reviews, with an average rating of 7.3/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "With acerbic wit and a mesmerizingly eccentric performance from Benedict Cumberbatch,Brexit energetically renders recent history with unflinching poise."[15]Metacritic reports a weighted average score of 73 out of 100 based on 12 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[16]
Asa Bennet ofThe Daily Telegraph gave the film five out of five stars, calling it a "thrilling romp through the referendum" and praised Cumberbatch's performance as Cummings, comparing it to his role asSherlock Holmes in the TV seriesSherlock.[17]Will Gompertz of theBBC gave the film four out of five stars and called the film "a very watchable TV movie that has a clear structure and a well-defined plot" and called Cumberbatch's performance "compelling".[18] Carol Midgley ofThe Times gave the film four out of five stars stating, "Brexit without the boring bits is a blast".[19]The Independent's Hugh Montgomery gave the film four out of five stars and praised Cumberbatch's acting, comparing it to bothSherlock andThe Social Network.[20] Peter Crawley in theIrish Times gave the film five out of five stars and called it a "political tragicomedy with the verve of a tech thriller", and that "it drips with great British humour".[21] Suzi Feay in theFinancial Times gave the film five out of five stars calling it: "An exhilarating, almost farcical dramatisation of 2016's successful Vote Leave campaign and its Machiavellian director", and "The only hindrance to enjoyment is the fact that we are all now living in the chaotic reality dreamt up by the diamond-eyed ideologue".[22]
Lucy Mangan ofThe Guardian was very critical of the film, only awarding it two out of five stars, and calling it "superficial, irresponsible TV" and criticised the depiction of Nigel Farage and Arron Banks as "cartoonish buffoons instead of dangerous shit-stirrers".[23]
British playwright and non-fiction authorSarah Helm, praised the film inThe Guardian saying: "Nor has any piece of journalism bettered Graham's focus-group scene in portraying how the poison of Brexit has set ordinary people against each other, or exposed how easily our feeble leaders were led by opportunisticapparatchiks".[24] Alice Jones inThe New York Times said that "Brexit Is Dividing Britain. So Is a Brexit Movie".[9]Charles Moore wrote inThe Daily Telegraph that the film "told a story of forgotten people finding their voice".[25]
On 4 January 2019,Matthew Elliott, played in the film byJohn Heffernan, wrote an article about the film in theFinancial Times summarising that "Whatever happens, the 2016 campaign marked an important moment, and the film captures it well".[26] Dominic Cummings's wife, Mary Wakefield wrote inThe Spectator that Cumberbatch's portrayal of her husband even fooled their own son.[27]The Guardian quotedPeter Mandelson (briefly portrayed on a conference call), as saying "The film is extraordinary", and "It presses every button and captures Britain at the time".[11]
Screenwriter James Graham has turned the campaign into a compelling story — and nailed my mannerisms
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