''The Second Civil War'' is a satirical

black comedy Black comedy, also known as dark comedy, morbid humor, or gallows humor, is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is generally considered taboo, particularly subjects that are normally considered serious or painful to discus ...

film made for the

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

cable television network and first shown on March 15, 1997. Directed by

Joe Dante Joseph James Dante Jr. (; born November 28, 1946) is an American film director, producer, editor and actor. His films—notably ''Gremlins'' (1984) alongside its sequel, '' Gremlins 2: The New Batch'' (1990)—often mix 1950s-style B movies wit ...

, the film is a

satire Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming ...

about

anti-immigrant sentiment Opposition to immigration, also known as anti-immigration, has become a significant political ideology in many countries. In the modern sense, immigration refers to the entry of people from one state or territory into another state or territory ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. The film stars

James Earl Jones James Earl Jones (born January 17, 1931) is an American actor. He has been described as "one of America's most distinguished and versatile" actors for his performances in film, television, and theater, and "one of the greatest actors in America ...

, Elizabeth Peña, and Denis Leary as reporters for a

CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by the M ...

-like

cable network Networking cables are networking hardware used to connect one network device to other network devices or to connect two or more computers to share devices such as printers or scanners. Different types of network cables, such as coaxial cable, opt ...

, "News Net" (referred to in on-screen graphics as "NN"); Phil Hartman as the

U.S. President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...

;

James Coburn James Harrison Coburn III (August 31, 1928 – November 18, 2002) was an American film and television actor who was featured in more than 70 films, largely action roles, and made 100 television appearances during a 45-year career.AllmoviBi ...

as his chief political advisor; and William Schallert as the

Secretary of Defense A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...

. Brian Keith portrayed a

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...

in one of his final movie roles.

Plot

The film is set in a future

in which

immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...

has rapidly increased, resulting in a fractured polyglot society. The mayor of

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

speaks only in Spanish,

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...

is populated mostly by

Chinese-Americans Chinese Americans are Americans of Han Chinese ancestry. Chinese Americans constitute a subgroup of East Asian Americans which also constitute a subgroup of Asian Americans. Many Chinese Americans along with their ancestors trace lineage from m ...

, and

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

has a congressman from

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. Politics have been openly reduced to a matter of catering to various ethnic groups for their votes, and media-fueled polarization has led to widespread anxiety, with viewership of cable news, including channel NewsNet, at all time highs. When an atomic weapon is used on

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

, an international organization makes plans to bring refugee orphans to

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyom ...

. NewsNet embeds a reporter on the plane and airs footage of the crying children in order to boost ratings. As Idaho has already received over a million refugees, Idaho Governor Jim Farley (

Beau Bridges Lloyd Vernet "Beau" Bridges III (born December 9, 1941) is an American actor and director. He is a three-time Emmy, two-time Golden Globe and one-time Grammy Award winner, as well as a two-time Screen Actors Guild Award nominee. Bridges was a ...

) orders the state's National Guard to close its borders, citing public safety. Despite claiming to be a nativist, Farley routinely indulges in Mexican food, Mexican soap operas, and an affair with a

Mexican-American Mexican Americans ( es, mexicano-estadounidenses, , or ) are Americans of full or partial Mexican heritage. In 2019, Mexican Americans comprised 11.3% of the US population and 61.5% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexica ...

NewsNet reporter ( Elizabeth Peña). As she live-translates an impassioned speech from Los Angeles' mayor vowing a reconquest of the lands of the old

Spanish Empire The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its prede ...

within the United States, she grows increasingly angry at Farley's decision, before the speech is interrupted by an

assassination Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have ...

attempt from black Angelinos seeking to reclaim the city from the Hispanics. Farley is dismayed at his mistress' anger, and, despite the best efforts of his press secretary Jimmy Cannon (

Kevin Dunn Kevin Dunn (born August 24, 1956) is an American actor who has appeared in supporting roles in a number of films and television series since the 1980s. Dunn's roles include White House Communications Director Alan Reed in the political comedy '' ...

), remains largely oblivious to the growing implications of the crisis. Meanwhile, the

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...

( Phil Hartman) turns out to be an entirely ineffectual leader, ruthlessly exploiting immigration to fill districts and states with those most likely to vote for his own party. Reputed to be indecisive, the President delegates his decision-making entirely to his advisors, most notably his unofficial chief advisor, lobbyist Jack B. Buchan (

), who concerns himself entirely with the President's public image and media perception of the administration. Buchan regularly influences the President's decisions by manipulating his desire to emulate previous U.S. presidents, even going so far as to pepper pre-written presidential statements with fictitious "quotes" from President

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...

. Buchan directs the President to "be decisive", and the President orders Farley to open the Idaho border to the refugees within 72 hours, before shortening the deadline to 67 hours in order to prevent the news from causing an unpopular interruption to Susan Lucci's farewell appearance on the

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...

All My Children ''All My Children'' (often shortened to ''AMC'') is an American television soap opera that aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from January 5, 1970, to September 23, 2011, and on The Online Network (TOLN) from April 29 to September 2, 20 ...

''. As the deadline approaches, the Governor and the President call in, respectively, the Idaho National Guard and the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

. Tensions rise when the commanders of both units turn out to be bitter rivals from the

Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...

. Media descends on the border, drawing national attention to the conflict, and NewsNet orders its reporters to continue focusing on the faces of the refugees for ratings. Governors from other states send in their own National Guard units to aid one side or the other, resulting in even worsening nationwide polarization, which comes to a head when Mexican-American pro-immigrant rioters bomb the

Alamo The Battle of the Alamo (February 23 – March 6, 1836) was a pivotal event in the Texas Revolution. Following a 13-day siege, Mexican troops under President General Antonio López de Santa Anna reclaimed the Alamo Mission near San Ant ...

. After losing the support of Representatives from Alabama for not providing them money for

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

temples despite India's atomic bombing of Pakistan, the President attempts to rely on Chinese-Americans, a core constituency, only to find out that they are siding with Farley due to the White House previously announcing a deal with the Chinese-American community's rivals, the

Nation of Islam The Nation of Islam (NOI) is a religious and political organization founded in the United States by Wallace Fard Muhammad in 1930. A black nationalist organization, the NOI focuses its attention on the African diaspora, especially on African ...

, and its leader, Congressman Nkomo, to gain Black-controlled electoral votes. The President attempts to shore up his numbers by making appeals to Korean-Americans instead, but finds that there simply are not enough Korean-American votes. As the President prepares to grant visas to two million Koreans to increase the Korean-American vote share, he is informed by the

Joint Chiefs The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) is the body of the most senior uniformed leaders within the United States Department of Defense, that advises the president of the United States, the secretary of defense, the Homeland Security Council and the ...

that anti-immigrant terrorists have retaliated the Alamo bombing by destroying the

Statue of Liberty The Statue of Liberty (''Liberty Enlightening the World''; French: ''La Liberté éclairant le monde'') is a List of colossal sculpture in situ, colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor in New York City, in the U ...

, claiming that "we do not want your huddled masses anymore". Upon seeing their own reporting of the destroyed monument, already exhausted NewsNet employees begin to argue about their roles in stoking conflict and eventually start to physically fight. Eventually, Governor Farley's girlfriend convinces him to back down from the conflict and resign, but it is too late to avoid conflict.

US Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

soldiers see news coverage of the destroyed Statue of Liberty and

mutiny Mutiny is a revolt among a group of people (typically of a military, of a crew or of a crew of pirates) to oppose, change, or overthrow an organization to which they were previously loyal. The term is commonly used for a rebellion among member ...

, causing them to be court-martialed on the spot. As they await the

firing squad Execution by firing squad, in the past sometimes called fusillading (from the French ''fusil'', rifle), is a method of capital punishment, particularly common in the military and in times of war. Some reasons for its use are that firearms are us ...

, one of the soldiers implores his executioners to "go ahead and kill America", claiming that there's "nothing left" of the American nation, and that the country is now merely run by "politicians and executives who hire people in places we don't live". This speech and the execution are caught on live television by NewsNet, causing more mutinies. The President orders the Joint Chiefs to suppress these mutinies, but all armored divisions nearby are unable to respond, as the manufacture of replacement parts had been outsourced to

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

, which had previously embargoed these parts due to an argument between the President and the Taiwanese Prime Minister. As the situation continues to deteriorate, the decision is made by one side (left unclear) to attack, resulting in a major battle between the US Army and Idaho National Guard. The President makes the decision to invade Idaho, beginning the

Second American Civil War The "Second American Civil War" is an umbrella term used by academics in order to reclassify historical eras of significant political violence in the history of the United States as a "civil war" or, more commonly, to discuss the potential outbre ...

. At the movie's close, news reports indicate that hostilities have ceased, but that the immigration system remains unchanged.

Cast

as Gov. Jim Farley * Joanna Cassidy as Helena Newman * Phil Hartman as The President *

as Jim Kalla *

as Jack Buchan *

Dan Hedaya Daniel G. Hedaya (born July 24, 1940) is an American actor. He established himself as a supporting actor, often playing sleazy villains or wisecracking supporting characters. He has had supporting roles in films such as '' True Confessions'' (198 ...

as Mel Burgess * Elizabeth Peña as Christina * Denis Leary as Vinnie Franko *

Ron Perlman Ronald Perlman (born April 13, 1950) is an American actor. His credits include the roles of Amoukar in ''Quest for Fire'' (1981), Salvatore in ''The Name of the Rose'' (1986), Vincent in the television series ''Beauty and the Beast'' (1987–199 ...

as Alan Manieski * William Schallert as Secretary of Defense * Kevin McCarthy as Chief of Staff * Catherine Lloyd Burns as Amelia Sims *

as Jimmy Cannon *

Shelley Malil Shelley Mathew Malil (; born December 23, 1964) is an Indian-American actor. Malil emigrated to the United States in 1974. He appeared in a number of television shows and films, including ''The 40-Year-Old Virgin'' (2005). In 2010, Malil was co ...

as Congressman Singh *

Larry "Flash" Jenkins Larry "Flash" Jenkins (May 10, 1955 – April 25, 2019) was an American actor, film director, producer, and screenwriter. Early life, family and education Jenkins was born on Long Island, New York. He graduated from Fenger High School in C ...

as Kenya Nkomo *

Dick Miller Richard Miller (December 25, 1928 – January 30, 2019) was an American character actor who appeared in more than 180 films, including many produced by Roger Corman. He later appeared in the films of directors who began their careers with Corm ...

as Eddie O'Neill * Brian Keith as Maj. Gen. Charles Buford * Richard Gross as Militia Leader * Roger Corman as Sandy Collins *

Hank Stratton Hank is a male given name. It may have been inspired by the Dutch name Henk,The Origins of 10 Nicknam ...

as Blaine Gorman *

Alexandra Wilson Alexandra Muriel Wilson is an American actress. She is best known for playing the original Josie Watts on the soap opera '' Another World'' (1988–1991). She also starred in the television series '' Homefront'' (1991-1992) and the major motio ...

as Caroline Dawes *

Johnny Luckett Johnny is an English language personal name. It is usually an affectionate diminutive of the masculine given name John, but from the 16th century it has sometimes been a given name in its own right for males and, less commonly, females. Variant ...

as Captain *

Jerry Hardin Jerry Hardin (born November 20, 1929) is an American actor. Hardin has appeared in film and television roles, including the character nicknamed Deep Throat in ''The X-Files''. Hardin was born in Texas and studied acting at London's Royal Academ ...

as Col. McNally * Dave Georgi as Major * Dana Lee as Chinese Colonel * Stogie Kenyatta Firing Squad Officer *

Sean Lawlor Sean Lawlor (25 January 1954 – 10 October 2009) was an Irish character actor and playwright. He was best known for his portrayal of Malcolm Wallace in '' Braveheart''. He also appeared in ''Titanic'', ''In the Name of the Father'' and '' On ...

as Brendan * Leah Gale as White House Reporter *

as Himself (archive footage) *

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

as Himself - At Statue of Liberty Re-dedication (archive footage) *

Nancy Reagan Nancy Davis Reagan (; born Anne Frances Robbins; July 6, 1921 – March 6, 2016) was an American film actress and First Lady of the United States from 1981 to 1989. She was the second wife of president Ronald Reagan. Reagan was born in N ...

as Herself - At Statue of Liberty Re-dedication (archive footage) *

John Wesley John Wesley (; 2 March 1791) was an English people, English cleric, Christian theology, theologian, and Evangelism, evangelist who was a leader of a Christian revival, revival movement within the Church of England known as Methodism. The soci ...

as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs *

Ben Masters Benjamin Masters (May 6, 1947 – January 11, 2023) was an American actor who is best known for his portrayal of Julian Crane in daytime drama ''Passions'' from July 8, 1999, to the show's final episode on August 7, 2008. Early life Masters was ...

as Matthew Langford * Rance Howard as Arnold Tooney Jr * Robert Picardo as Godfrey * Jim Lau as Chinese Congressman * Nathaniel Goodman as Christina's Cameraman * Jodi Verdu as NewsNet Technician #1 * Jamison Yang as NewsNet Technician #2 * Paul Guyot as NewsNet Technician #3 *

Terry Knight Terry Knight (born Richard Terrance Knapp; April 9, 1943 – November 1, 2004) was an American rock and roll music producer, promoter, singer, songwriter and radio personality, who enjoyed some success in radio, modest success as a singer, but ...

as Boise Reporter *

Anthony Lee Sir Anthony Lee (c. 1510 – 24 November 1549) was an English courtier and Member of Parliament, and the father of Elizabeth I's champion, Sir Henry Lee. He was at the court of Henry VIII in his youth, and served as a Justice of the Peace and Kn ...

as Steven Kingsley *

Eve Brenner Eve Brenner (born Evelyn Halpern; September 24, 1925) is an American actress. She appeared in various films and television shows such as ''Baskets'', ''The Sarah Silverman Program'', '' Dragnet'', ''Touched by an Angel'', ''The X-Files'', ''The ...

as Elderly Militia Woman *

Scott Atkinson Scott Atkinson (July 23, 1966 – February 26, 2021) was an American actor and screenwriter from Pennsylvania best known for his many television roles, including recurring roles on ''Desperate Housewives, The Jamie Foxx Show, Commander in Chief (TV ...

as Young Militia Man * Christine Jane Newman as Militia Child * Sonny Skyhawk (Charles Brito) as Indian * Darryl Van Leer as Mohammed Amin

Release

The film was shown in theaters in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

, the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

in 1997 and 1998, before being released to home video. In

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, the film was released directly to video in April / May 1998. The

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...

was released in 2005.

won the 1997

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Special.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Second Civil War, The 1997 films 1990s Spanish-language films 1997 comedy-drama films American comedy-drama films Films about immigration to the United States Films about television people American political satire films HBO Films films Films directed by Joe Dante Films scored by Hummie Mann Films with screenplays by Martyn Burke Second American Civil War speculative fiction 1990s English-language films 1990s American films