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122-504: Civil War is a 2024 dystopian thriller film written and directed by Alex Garland , starring Kirsten Dunst , Wagner Moura , Cailee Spaeny , Stephen McKinley Henderson , Sonoya Mizuno , and Nick Offerman . The plot follows a team of war journalists traveling from New York City to Washington, D.C. during a civil war fought across the United States between a despotic federal government and secessionist movements, to interview

244-517: A 9 mm German Luger to his chest and abdomen, Private Coffelt returned fire, killing Torresola with a single shot to his head. Collazo was also shot, but survived his injuries and served 29 years in prison before returning to Puerto Rico in late 1979. Coffelt is the only member of the Secret Service killed while protecting a US president against an assassination attempt (Special Agent Tim McCarthy stepped in front of President Ronald Reagan during

366-447: A weighted average , assigned the film a score of 75 out of 100, based on 64 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews. Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B–" on an A+ to F scale, while those polled by PostTrak gave it a 76% overall positive score, with 53% saying they would definitely recommend it. Screen Rant attributed the film's depiction of warfare and Garland's directorial choices, such as

488-465: A "perfect" world. United States Secret Service The United States Secret Service ( USSS or Secret Service ) is a federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Homeland Security tasked with conducting criminal investigations and providing protection to U.S. political leaders, their families, and visiting heads of state or government. The Secret Service was, until 2003 , part of

610-464: A campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania in advance of his presumptive Republican candidacy in the 2024 United States presidential election , shot and killed Thomas Matthew Crooks during an assassination attempt on Trump. Crooks, armed with an AR-15–style rifle , had shot at Trump from an elevated position near the venue. Trump was injured in his right ear and quickly rushed to hospital, while Crooks

732-542: A coercively persuaded population divided into five castes. Karin Boye 's 1940 novel Kallocain is set in a totalitarian world state where a drug is used to control the individual's thoughts. Anthony Burgess ' 1962 novel A Clockwork Orange is set in a future England that has a subculture of extreme youth violence, and details the protagonist's experiences with the state intent on changing his character at their whim. Margaret Atwood 's The Handmaid's Tale (1985) describes

854-527: A commission to make recommendations to remedy the problem. According to writer Joshua D Glawson, the day that Abraham Lincoln signed the approval of starting the Secret Service, Lincoln was shot. The Secret Service was later established on July 5, 1865, in Washington, D.C. Chief William P. Wood was sworn in by Secretary of the Treasury Hugh McCulloch . It was commissioned in Washington, D.C. as

976-585: A future United States governed by a totalitarian theocracy , where women have no rights, and Stephen King 's The Long Walk (1979) describes a similar totalitarian scenario, but depicting the participation of teenage boys in a deadly contest. Examples of young-adult dystopian fiction include (notably all published after 2000) The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins , the Divergent series by Veronica Roth , The Power of Five series by Anthony Horowitz , The Maze Runner series by James Dashner , and

1098-448: A government that is overprotective of nature or a society that has lost most modern technology and struggles for survival. A fine example of this is the novel Riddley Walker . Another subgenre is feminist utopias and the overlapping category of feminist science fiction . According to the author Sally Miller Gearhart , "A feminist utopian novel is one which a. contrasts the present with an envisioned idealized society (separated from

1220-577: A group of followers, the Icarians , to leave France in 1848, and travel to the United States to start a series of utopian settlements in Texas, Illinois, Iowa, California, and elsewhere. These groups lived in communal settings and lasted until 1898. Among the first decades of the 20th century in Russia, utopian science fiction literature popularity rose extremely due to the fact that the citizens wanted to fantasize about

1342-414: A modern utopian society built on equality. Other examples include Samuel Johnson 's The History of Rasselas, Prince of Abissinia (1759) and Samuel Butler 's Erewhon (1872), which uses an anagram of "nowhere" as its title. This, like much of utopian literature, can be seen as satire ; Butler inverts illness and crime, with punishment for the former and treatment for the latter. One example of

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1464-456: A movie to invent, and rub our noses in, the possibility of a bleaker future?" The film received both praise and criticism for its approach to contemporary political themes, including concerns of democratic decline and increased political polarization . Utopian and dystopian fiction More than 400 utopian works in the English language were published prior to the year 1900, with more than

1586-403: A nation's soul-sickness so vividly that it felt like an X-ray." Some critics had mixed reactions. The Washington Post ' s Amy Nicholson described the film as "coldly, deliberately incurious about the combatants and the victims," but also wrote "the film feels poetically, deeply true, even when it's suggesting that humans are more apt to tear one another apart for petty grievances than over

1708-417: A people cannot fix a problem we cannot name." Stephanie Zacharek of Time observed: " Civil War has the vibe of your standard desolate zombie movie with a modern American backdrop, but it's far less effective than your average George A. Romero project: sometimes a B movie with a sense of humor about itself says more about a nation's despair than an overserious, breast-beating one ... Do we really need

1830-443: A sincere defense of some kind of principles". Valerie Complex of Deadline Hollywood offered negative comments, writing: "The script's utilization of characters of color as conduits for brutality needed to be explored further ... Ultimately, Civil War feels like a missed opportunity. The director's vision of a fractured America, embroiled in conflict, holds the potential for introspection on our current societal divisions. However,

1952-497: A single Secret Service agent to negotiate the president's surrender and safe passage results in the death of said agent. This results in the few remaining Secret Service agents still guarding the president engaging in a firefight with the WF. Jessie steps into the line of fire while taking photos, but Lee pushes her to safety and is killed by the Secret Service while Jessie captures Lee's demise on her camera. Jessie unemotionally continues into

2074-483: A small number of works depicting what might be called eco-utopia, or eco-utopian trends, have also been influential. These include Ernest Callenbach 's Ecotopia , an important 20th century example of this genre. Kim Stanley Robinson has written several books dealing with environmental themes, including the Mars trilogy . Most notably, however, his Three Californias Trilogy contrasted an eco-dystopia with an eco-utopia and

2196-430: A sort of middling-future. Robinson has also edited an anthology of short ecotopian fiction, called Future Primitive: The New Ecotopias . Another impactful piece of Robinson's is New York 2140 which focuses on the aftermath of society after a major flooding event, and can be seen through both a utopian and dystopian lens. There are a few dystopias that have an "anti-ecological" theme. These are often characterized by

2318-522: A third of the audience, with the former narrowly higher). In its second weekend the film made $ 11.1 million (a 56% drop), remaining in first place, before falling to fourth place in its third weekend with $ 7 million. Commentators noted that, despite the film's inherently U.S.-centric subject matter, Civil War performed well in several markets outside the United States. This includes the United Kingdom, where it grossed $ 7.9 million as of May 19, and

2440-527: A thousand others appearing during the 20th century. This increase is partially associated with the rise in popularity of science fiction and young adult fiction more generally, but also larger scale social change that brought awareness of larger societal or global issues , such as technology, climate change, and growing human population. Some of these trends have created distinct subgenres such as ecotopian fiction, climate fiction , young adult dystopian novels, and feminist dystopian novels. The word utopia

2562-523: A utopia; the others have significant dystopian aspects. In ecotopian fiction , the author posits either a utopian or dystopian world revolving around environmental conservation or destruction. Danny Bloom coined the term "cli-fi" in 2006, with a Twitter boost from Margaret Atwood in 2011, to cover climate change-related fiction , but the theme has existed for decades. Novels dealing with overpopulation , such as Harry Harrison 's Make Room! Make Room! (made into movie Soylent Green ), were popular in

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2684-784: A wide range of "computer-based criminal activity," including: In September 2014, the United States Secret Service came under criticism following two high-profile incidents involving intruders at the White House. One such intruder entered the East Room of the White House through an unlocked door. On April 15, 2020, the ICE Homeland Security Investigations unit launched "Operation Stolen Promise" that targets COVID-19 related fraud . The operation conscripted resources from various branches of law enforcement and

2806-501: Is about as likely as [a] Sweetgreen / Kentucky Fried Chicken combo restaurant." Eisa Nefertari Ulen, writing for The Hollywood Reporter , also found that the film, despite being "otherwise solid," was partially missing its point, stating: " Casablanca endures because it spoke to a moment as 'crazy and mixed-up' as this one, and nudged the country away from its isolationist inaction . Civil War does not resonate like that classic, because it does not explicitly address this moment. We as

2928-515: Is also a member of the FBI 's Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) which investigates and combats terrorism on a national and international scale. Also, the Secret Service investigates missing and exploited children and is a partner of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC). The Secret Service's initial responsibility was to investigate the counterfeiting of U.S. currency, which

3050-443: Is also tasked with investigating reports of the existence of specimens of the extremely rare 1933 double eagle gold coin, as only a single example of the fourteen known survivors from this mintage year is authorized to be owned or sold. The Secret Service combines the two responsibilities into a dual objective. The two core missions of protection and investigation synergize with each other, providing benefits to special agents during

3172-457: Is imminent, it is widely expected that Washington, D.C. will soon be reached by the "Western Forces" (WF) led by Texas and California . After surviving a suicide bombing in New York City , jaded veteran war photographer Lee Smith and journalist colleague Joel meet with their mentor Sammy to share their plan to interview the isolated president. While trying to dissuade them from heading to

3294-518: Is not chosen until maturity, and gender has no bearing on social roles. In contrast, Doris Lessing 's The Marriages Between Zones Three, Four and Five (1980) suggests that men's and women's values are inherent to the sexes and cannot be changed, making a compromise between them essential. In My Own Utopia (1961) by Elisabeth Mann Borgese , gender exists but is dependent upon age rather than sex — genderless children mature into women, some of whom eventually become men. Marge Piercy 's novel Woman on

3416-510: Is not solely the responsibility of the Secret Service, with many other agencies, such as the United States Capitol Police , Supreme Court Police and Diplomatic Security Service , providing personal protective services to domestic and foreign officials. However, while these agencies are nominally responsible for services to other officers of the United States and senior dignitaries, the Secret Service provides protective services at

3538-540: Is tasked with ensuring the safety of the president of the United States , the vice president of the United States , the president-elect of the United States , the vice president-elect of the United States , and their immediate families; former presidents , their spouses and their children under the age of 16; those in the presidential line of succession , major presidential and vice-presidential candidates and their spouses; and visiting foreign heads of state and heads of government. By custom, it also provides protection to

3660-528: Is to remove men, either showing isolated all-female societies as in Charlotte Perkins Gilman 's Herland , or societies where men have died out or been replaced, as in Joanna Russ 's A Few Things I Know About Whileaway , where "the poisonous binary gender" has died off. In speculative fiction, female-only worlds have been imagined to come about by the action of disease that wipes out men, along with

3782-610: The Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld . Video games often include dystopias as well; notable examples include the Fallout series, BioShock , and the later games of the Half-Life series. The history of dystopian literature can be traced back to the reaction to the French Revolution of 1789 and the prospect that mob rule would produce dictatorship . Until the late 20th century, it

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3904-545: The Department of the Treasury , due to their initial mandate of combating counterfeiting of U.S. currency . The agency has protected U.S. presidents and presidential candidates since 1901. The Secret Service is mandated by Congress with two distinct and critical national security missions: protecting the nation's leaders and safeguarding the financial and critical infrastructure of the United States . The Secret Service

4026-624: The Japanese American internment during World War II . In 1950, President Harry S. Truman was residing in Blair House while the White House, across the street, was undergoing renovations. On November 1, 1950, two Puerto Rican nationalists, Oscar Collazo and Griselio Torresola , approached Blair House with the intent to assassinate President Truman . Collazo and Torresola opened fire on Private Leslie Coffelt and other White House Police officers. Though mortally wounded by three shots from

4148-587: The Oval Office , watching soldiers drag the president from under his desk and prepare to summarily execute him. Joel momentarily stops them to get a quote from the president, who replies, "Don't let them kill me." Satisfied, Joel stops delaying the soldiers while Jessie photographs WF soldiers posing with the president's corpse. Additional cast members include Tim James as the looter tortured by Pete and Eddie, and Jared Shaw, Justin Garza, Brian Philpot, and Tywaun Tornes as

4270-734: The Webster School , for the Secret Service. The New York City Field office was located at 7 World Trade Center . Immediately after the World Trade Center was attacked as part of the September 11 attacks , Special Agents and other New York Field office employees were among the first to respond with first aid. Sixty-seven Special Agents in New York City, at and near the New York Field Office, helped to set up triage areas and evacuate

4392-414: The assassination of President William McKinley in 1901, Congress informally requested that the Secret Service provide presidential protection. A year later, the Secret Service assumed full-time responsibility for presidential protection. In 1902, William Craig became the first Secret Service agent to die while on duty, in a road accident while riding in the presidential carriage. The Secret Service

4514-479: The assassination attempt of March 30, 1981, and took a bullet to the chest but made a full recovery ). In 1968, as a result of Robert F. Kennedy 's assassination, Congress authorized protection of major presidential and vice presidential candidates and nominees. In 1965 and 1968, Congress also authorized lifetime protection of the spouses of deceased presidents unless they remarry and of the children of former presidents until age 16. In 1970, Phyllis Shantz became

4636-436: The president of the United States . The Secret Service investigates thousands of incidents each year of individuals threatening the president of the United States . The Secret Service is authorized by 18 U.S.C. § 3056(a) to protect: In addition to the above, the Secret Service can also protect other individuals by executive order of the president. Under Presidential Policy Directive 22, " National Special Security Events ",

4758-452: The secretary of the treasury and secretary of homeland security , as well as other people as directed by the president (usually the White House chief of staff and national security advisor , among others). Former Secret Service director Kimberly Cheatle told the congressional oversight committee that as of July 22, 2024 the secret service has a total of 36 protectees. By federal statute,

4880-785: The "Secret Service Division" of the Department of the Treasury with the mission of suppressing counterfeiting. At the time, the only other federal law enforcement agencies were the United States Customs Service , the United States Park Police , the U.S. Post Office Department 's Office of Instructions and Mail Depredations (now known as the United States Postal Inspection Service ), and the United States Marshals Service . After

5002-403: The "Unwanteds" series by Lisa McMann, a paradox occurs where the outcasts from a complete dystopia are treated to absolute utopia. They believe that those who were privileged in said dystopia were the unlucky ones. In another literary model, the imagined society journeys between elements of utopia and dystopia over the course of the novel or film. At the beginning of The Giver by Lois Lowry ,

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5124-441: The "beauty and intensity of the dystopian drama" while noting its "potential for controversy and disappointment" due to the effectiveness of its messages. On the site, 81% of 392 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.6/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "Tough and unsettling by design, Civil War is a gripping close-up look at the violent uncertainty of life in a nation in crisis." Metacritic , which uses

5246-470: The 1970s, reflecting the widespread concern with the effects of overpopulation on the environment. The novel Nature's End by Whitley Strieber and James Kunetka (1986) posits a future in which overpopulation, pollution, climate change, and resulting superstorms, have led to a popular mass-suicide political movement. Some other examples of ecological dystopias are depictions of Earth in the films Wall-E and Avatar . While eco-dystopias are more common,

5368-530: The 19th century, providing a critique of the British class structure at the time. Post World War II , even more dystopian fiction was produced. These works of fiction were interwoven with political commentary: the end of World War II brought about fears of an impending Third World War and a consequent apocalypse. Modern dystopian fiction draws not only on topics such as totalitarian governments and anarchism, but also pollution, global warming, climate change, health,

5490-732: The AI-generated image of Chicago wrongfully represented the Marina City apartment complex, with its buildings being separated by a non-existent island on the Chicago River . In real life, the buildings are located directly next to each other. A source connected to the film confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter that they were "AI images inspired by the movie. The entire movie is a big 'what if' and so we wanted to continue that thought on social — powerful imagery of iconic landmarks with that dystopian realism." Civil War grossed $ 68.6 million in

5612-463: The COVID-19 pandemic, the Secret Service had seized more than $ 1.2 billion in relief funds appropriated by fraudsters. On June 1, 2020, during a peaceful protest outside Lafayette Square , the U.S. Secret Service acted contrary to an operational plan and began advancing seven minutes before U.S. Park Police gave any dispersal warnings. This early deployment increased tensions between law enforcement and

5734-524: The Capitol, stopping him from completing his duty to oversee the final count of electoral college votes. At the center of the controversy surrounding the Secret Service and January 6 investigations is Anthony M. Ornato , who had been the head of Trump's security detail, but took the unprecedented step of leaving the Secret Service to become deputy White House chief of staff and becoming a "key part of Trump’s effort to get reelected." The Secret Service assisted in

5856-462: The Department of Homeland Security Inspector General, prevented career officials from investigating the role U.S. Secret Service played in the Trump administration’s controversial use of force to remove protesters that day. In August 2020, a Secret Service officer shot a man once in the chest at the corner of 17th Street and Pennsylvania during one of then-President Trump’s press conferences. The president

5978-515: The Edge of Time keeps human biology, but removes pregnancy and childbirth from the gender equation by resorting to assisted reproductive technology while allowing both women and men the nurturing experience of breastfeeding . Utopic single-gender worlds or single-sex societies have long been one of the primary ways to explore implications of gender and gender-differences. One solution to gender oppression or social issues in feminist utopian fiction

6100-441: The Edge of Time . In Starhawk 's The Fifth Sacred Thing there is no time-travelling observer. However, her ideal society is invaded by a neighbouring power embodying evil repression. In Aldous Huxley 's Island , in many ways a counterpoint to his better-known Brave New World , the fusion of the best parts of Buddhist philosophy and Western technology is threatened by the "invasion" of oil companies. As another example, in

6222-530: The FBI over certain violations of federal computer crime laws. They have created 24 Electronic Crimes Task Forces (ECTFs) across the United States. These task forces are partnerships between the service, federal/state and local law enforcement, the private sector and academia aimed at combating technology-based crimes. In 1998, President Bill Clinton signed Presidential Decision Directive 62 , which established National Special Security Events (NSSE). That directive made

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6344-572: The Netherlands, where it reached ticket sales of $ 750,000. The film additionally opened in first place at the box office in Brazil, Spain, Belgium, Finland and Portugal. Following the SXSW premiere, review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes noted that critics called the film "a gorgeously shot cautionary tale full of big ideas and a fantastic performance by Kirsten Dunst, but it may surprise some viewers". Critics praised

6466-421: The Secret Service initiated Operation Sundevil , which they originally intended as a sting against malicious hackers , allegedly responsible for disrupting telephone services across the entire United States. The operation, which was later described by Bruce Sterling in his book The Hacker Crackdown , affected a great number of people unrelated to hacking, and led to no convictions. The Secret Service, however,

6588-411: The Secret Service is the lead agency for the design and implementation of operational security plans for events designated an NSSE by the secretary of homeland security . There have been changes to the protection of former presidents over time. Under the original Former Presidents Act , former presidents and their spouses were entitled to lifetime protection, subject to limited exceptions. In 1994, this

6710-542: The Secret Service responsible for security at designated events. In 1999, the United States Secret Service Memorial Building was dedicated in DC, granting the agency its first headquarters. Prior to this, the agency's different departments were based in office space around the DC area. The General Services Administration acquired the United States Secret Service Memorial Building's adjoining property,

6832-590: The Secret Service to establish a nationwide network of ECTFs in addition to the one already active in New York. As such, this mandate expanded on the agency's first ECTF—the New York Electronic Crimes Task Force, formed in 1995—which brought together federal, state and local law enforcement, prosecutors, private-industry companies, and academia. These bodies collectively provide necessary support and resources to field investigations that meet any one of

6954-544: The Secret Service warned Capitol Police of threats of violence that Capitol Police officers could face violence at the hands of supporters of President Donald Trump . On January 6, Secret Service agents provided security in and around the United States Capitol , as well as evacuating Vice President Mike Pence during the riot. Testimony in Congress indicates Pence was concerned his security detail would remove him from

7076-494: The U.S. Secret Service expanded its fight on cybercrime by creating the first European Electronic Crime Task Force , based on the successful U.S. domestic model, through a memorandum of understanding with Italian police and postal officials. Over a year later, on August 9, 2010, the agency expanded its European involvement by creating its second overseas ECTF in the United Kingdom . Both task forces are said to concentrate on

7198-483: The US, protective advances to conduct site and venue assessments for protectees, and protective intelligence to investigate all manners of threats made against protectees. The Secret Service is the lead agency in charge of the planning, coordination, and implementation of security operations for events designated as National Special Security Events (NSSE) . As part of the service's mission of preventing an incident before it occurs,

7320-502: The United States and Canada and $ 55.3 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $ 124 million. In the United States and Canada, the film was projected to gross $ 18–24 million from 3,838 theaters (the widest-ever R-rated release by an independent studio) in its opening weekend. The film made $ 10.8 million on its first day, including $ 2.9 million from Thursday night previews (a record for an A24 release). It went on to debut to $ 25.7 million, surpassing Hereditary as

7442-445: The United States economy and financial systems. The agency's key focus is on large, high-dollar economic impact cases involving organized criminal groups. Financial criminals include embezzling bank employees, armed robbers at automatic teller machines, heroin traffickers, and criminal organizations that commit bank fraud on a global scale. The USSS plays a leading role in facilitating relationships between other law enforcement entities,

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7564-719: The Washington streets were filmed in Stone Mountain, Georgia , while the White House sequences were filmed at the Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta. In a March 2024 interview with The Guardian , Garland stated that after Civil War , he intends to step back from directing and focus only on writing. Film editor Jake Roberts and sound editor Glenn Freemantle re-team with Alex Garland, as does VFX supervisor David Simpson with Framestore . Ben Salisbury and Geoff Barrow composed

7686-562: The Western Forces soldiers who join the sergeant in storming the White House. Jesse Plemons , Dunst's real-life husband, makes an uncredited appearance as a racist ultranationalist militant who holds the journalists at gunpoint. In January 2022, Deadline reported that Alex Garland had signed on to write and direct the film for A24 with DNA Films co-producing. Kirsten Dunst , Wagner Moura , Stephen McKinley Henderson and Cailee Spaeny were confirmed to star. In April, Karl Glusman

7808-652: The agency relies on advance work and threat assessments developed by its Intelligence Division to identify potential risks to protectees. The Secret Service is tasked with safeguarding the payment and financial systems of the United States from a wide range of financial and cyber-based crimes. Financial investigations include counterfeit U.S. currency, bank and financial institution fraud, mail fraud, wire fraud, illicit financing operations, and major conspiracies. Cyber investigations include cybercrime , network intrusions, identity theft , access device fraud, credit card fraud, and intellectual property crimes. The Secret Service

7930-532: The agency's new director. Cheatle was in the Secret Service for 27 years and became the first woman to serve as assistant director of protective operations, a department tasked with protecting the president and dignitaries. On November 12, 2023, a Secret Service agent guarding Naomi Biden fired shots at three people seen breaking into an unoccupied government vehicle in Georgetown . On July 13, 2024, Secret Service agents protecting former President Donald Trump at

8052-496: The armed forces and Secret Service . Joel drunkenly lashes out at what he views as Sammy's pointless death, while Lee tries to console Jessie by saying that Sammy would've liked to die on the job. Lee finds herself unable to document Sammy's death, deleting a photo she took of his body. The trio embed themselves with the WF as they assault D.C., where Jessie repeatedly endangers herself during fighting to capture photographs, while Lee struggles with post traumatic stress disorder from

8174-448: The biggest opening weekend in A24's history as well as the studio's first film to top the box office. The opening weekend audience skewed male at 63%, while 57% of attendees were between ages 18–34. IMAX contributed over 16% of the opening weekend gross, with the main reasons given for seeing the film being its subject matter, the action, and a general interest in indie films (each grouping made up

8296-410: The capital, Sammy joins them to reach the frontline at Charlottesville, Virginia . The next morning, Lee finds Joel has allowed a young aspiring photojournalist whom Lee encountered at the bombing, Jessie Cullen, to join them. After departing the city, the group stops at a gas station protected by armed men. Jessie explores a nearby car wash, where she finds the men torturing two alleged looters. One of

8418-419: The car directly behind the presidential limousine when the attack began. While the shooting continued, Hill leaped from the running board of the car he was riding on and jumped onto the back of the president's moving car and guided Mrs. Kennedy from the trunk back into the rear seat of the car. He then shielded the president and the first lady with his body until the car arrived at the hospital. Rufus Youngblood

8540-439: The carnage. When the WF breaches the White House's fortified perimeter, a convoy with the presidential limousine flees but WF units eliminate the convoy, and its occupants (including the first lady ) are killed. Understanding it to be a diversion, the trio heads inside with WF soldiers instead. Advancing through the largely-abandoned building filled with dead staffers (presumed to have committed suicide ), an abortive attempt by

8662-531: The cast, having appeared in all of Garland's previous films. Jesse Plemons , Dunst's husband, was cast in the uncredited role at Dunst's suggestion after the originally cast actor became unavailable a few days before shooting began. Garland called Plemons' availability "a stunning bit of good luck." Principal photography began in Atlanta on March 15, 2022, under the code name Road Trip . By May, production had moved to London . The production budget for Civil War

8784-414: The collapse of foreign countries", such as The Year of Living Dangerously (1982) and Welcome to Sarajevo (1997), ultimately praising the film as "furiously convincing and disturbing". Lovia Gyarkye of The Hollywood Reporter also gave the film a positive review, writing: "With the precision and length of its violent battle sequences, it's clear Civil War operates as a clarion call. Garland wrote

8906-421: The course of their careers. Skills developed during the course of investigations which are also used in an agent's protective duties include but are not limited to: Protection of the nation's highest elected leaders and other government officials is one of the primary missions of the Secret Service. After the 1901 assassination of President William McKinley , Congress also directed the Secret Service to protect

9028-645: The day of the summit, Burnham discovered a man holding a concealed palm pistol standing at the El Paso Chamber of Commerce building along the procession route. The man was captured and disarmed only a few feet from Díaz and Taft. The first unofficial female special agent was Florence Bolan. She joined the service in 1917. In 1924, Bolan was promoted to operative (the title preceding special agent) where she performed duties, such as searching female prisoners and engaging in occasional fieldwork. The Secret Service assisted in arresting Japanese American leaders and in

9150-497: The development of a technological or mystical method that allows female parthenogenetic reproduction . The resulting society is often shown to be utopian by feminist writers. Many influential feminist utopias of this sort were written in the 1970s; the most often studied examples include Joanna Russ's The Female Man and Suzy McKee Charnas 's The Holdfast Chronicles . Such worlds have been portrayed most often by lesbian or feminist authors; their use of female-only worlds allows

9272-541: The economy and technology. Modern dystopian themes are common in the young adult (YA) genre of literature. Many works combine elements of both utopias and dystopias. Typically, an observer from our world will journey to another place or time and see one society the author considers ideal and another representing the worst possible outcome. Usually, the point is that our choices may lead to a better or worse potential future world. Ursula K. Le Guin 's Always Coming Home fulfills this model, as does Marge Piercy 's Woman on

9394-406: The event she were killed in a combat zone, to which Lee responds in the affirmative. While driving, the four encounter two foreign reporters they know, Tony and Bohai. Tony and Jessie switch vehicles before Bohai drives off ahead with Jessie in his car. The others catch up to find the pair held at gunpoint by unknown uniformed militia who are burying civilians in a mass grave . Sammy stays behind as

9516-718: The exploration of female independence and freedom from patriarchy . The societies may not necessarily be lesbian, or sexual at all — Herland (1915) by Charlotte Perkins Gilman is a famous early example of a sexless society. Charlene Ball writes in Women's Studies Encyclopedia that use of speculative fiction to explore gender roles has been more common in the United States than in Europe and elsewhere. Utopias imagined by male authors have generally included equality between sexes rather than separation. Étienne Cabet 's work Travels in Icaria caused

9638-533: The face of budget pressure, hiring challenges and some high-profile lapses in its protective service role in 2014, the Brookings Institution and some members of Congress are asking whether the agency's focus should shift more to the protective mission, leaving more of its original mission to other agencies. Following the Civil War, counterfeiting of U.S. currency was a problem. Abraham Lincoln established

9760-494: The film in 2020 as he watched cogs on America's self-mythologizing exceptionalist machine turn, propelling the nation into a nightmare. With this latest film, he sounds the alarm, wondering less about how a country walks blindly into its own destruction and more about what happens when it does." Manohla Dargis of The New York Times echoed the sentiment, writing: "Rarely have I seen a movie that made me so acutely uncomfortable or watched an actor's face that, like Dunst's, expressed

9882-511: The film's execution, hampered by thin characterization, a lackluster narrative and an overreliance on spectacle over substance, left me disengaged." Johnny Oleksinski of the New York Post observed: " Civil War ' s shtick is that it's not specifically political. For instance, as the US devolves into enemy groups of secessionist states, Texas and California have banded together to form the Western Forces. That such an alliance could ever occur

10004-754: The first female officer sworn into the United States Secret Service Uniformed Division , then called the Executive Protective Service. In 1971, the first five official female Special Agents were sworn in - Laurie Anderson, Sue Baker, Kathryn Clark, Holly Hufschmidt, and Phyllis Shantz. In 1984, the US Congress passed the Comprehensive Crime Control Act , which extended the Secret Service's jurisdiction over credit card fraud and computer fraud. In 1990,

10126-508: The first time an American president visited Mexico. The historic summit resulted in serious assassination threats and other security concerns for the nascent Secret Service, so the Texas Rangers , 4,000 U.S. and Mexican troops, BOI agents, U.S. Marshals, and an additional 250-man private security detail led by Frederick Russell Burnham , the celebrated scout, were all called in by Chief John Wilkie to provide added security. On October 16,

10248-670: The following criteria: significant economic or community impact; participation of organized criminal groups involving multiple districts or transnational organizations; or use of schemes involving new technology. The network prioritizes investigations that meet the following criteria: Investigations conducted by ECTFs include crimes such as computer generated counterfeit currency; bank fraud; virus and worm proliferation; access device fraud; telecommunications fraud; Internet threats; computer system intrusions and cyberattacks; phishing/spoofing; assistance with Internet-related child pornography and exploitation; and identity theft. On July 6, 2009,

10370-566: The future instead of just the fact that it was a new, up and coming genre of literature. During the Cold War , however, utopian science fiction became exceptionally prominent among Soviet leaders. Many citizens of the Soviet Russia became dependent on this type of literature because it represented an escape from the real world which was not ideal at the time. Utopian science fiction allowed them to fantasize about how satisfactory it would be to live in

10492-408: The genre of dystopian fiction, both in [the] vividness of their engagement with real-world social and political issues and in the scope of their critique of the societies on which they focus." Another important figure in dystopian literature is H.G. Wells , whose work The Time Machine (1895) is also widely seen as a prototype of dystopian literature. Wells' work draws on the social structure of

10614-554: The government, including the U.S. Secret Service. About $ 2 trillion in the relief package known as the CARES Act were earmarked by law in March 2020, bringing unemployment benefits and loans to millions of Americans. However, as Secret Service spokesmen subsequently pointed out, the Act also opened up opportunities for criminals to fraudulently apply for aid. By the end of 2021, nearly two years into

10736-451: The guards follows Jessie, but Lee defuses the situation by taking a photo of the man posing with his victims. Later, Jessie berates herself for being too scared to take photos. Following an overnight stop near ongoing fighting, the group documents combat the next day as secessionist militiamen successfully assault a loyalist-held building. Lee recognizes Jessie's potential as a war photographer and begins to mentor her, while Jessie photographs

10858-460: The highest-level – i.e. for heads of state and heads of government. The Secret Service's other primary mission is investigative; to protect the payment and financial systems of the United States from a wide range of financial and electronic-based crimes including counterfeit U.S. currency, bank and financial institution fraud, illicit financing operations, cybercrime, identity theft, intellectual property crimes, and any other violations that may affect

10980-500: The inhabitants of Erewhon see as natural and right, i.e., utopian (as mocked in Voltaire 's Candide ). Dystopias usually extrapolate elements of contemporary society, and thus can be read as political warnings. Eschatological literature may portray dystopias. The 1921 novel We by Yevgeny Zamyatin portrays a post-apocalyptic future in which society is entirely based on logic and modeled after mechanical systems. George Orwell

11102-474: The narrator of Utopia' s second book, Raphael Hythloday. The Greek root of the name "Hythloday" suggests an 'expert in nonsense'. An earlier example of a Utopian work from classical antiquity is Plato 's The Republic , in which he outlines what he sees as the ideal society and its political system . Later, Tommaso Campanella was influenced by Plato's work and wrote The City of the Sun (1623), which describes

11224-421: The original score for the film. Silver Apples ' "Lovefingers", Suicide 's "Rocket USA", De La Soul 's " Say No Go ", Skid Row 's "Sweet Little Sister", Sturgill Simpson 's "Breakers Roar", and Suicide's " Dream Baby Dream " were used in the film. Civil War had its world premiere at South by Southwest on March 14, 2024, with favorable reactions from the audience and positive reviews from critics. The film

11346-554: The other three approach to attempt to negotiate their release, but the leader of the militia executes both Bohai and Tony for not being "American". Sammy saves the others after he rams the group's truck into members of the militia but is mortally wounded when he is shot while fleeing afterward. Traumatized, the remaining three arrive at the Charlottesville WF base and find most of the remaining loyalists have surrendered, leaving Washington, D.C., defended only by fanatical remnants of

11468-465: The present by time or space), b. offers a comprehensive critique of present values/conditions, c. sees men or male institutions as a major cause of present social ills, d. presents women as not only at least the equals of men but also as the sole arbiters of their reproductive functions ." Utopias have explored the ramification of gender being either a societal construct or a hard-wired imperative. In Mary Gentle 's Golden Witchbreed , gender

11590-570: The president and vice president may not refuse this protection. The Secret Service also provides physical security for the White House Complex ; the neighboring Treasury Department building; the vice president's residence ; the principal private residences of the president, vice president and former presidents; and all foreign diplomatic missions in Washington, D.C. The protective mission includes protective operations to coordinate manpower and logistics with state and local law enforcement in

11712-416: The president before rebels take the capital city. Principal photography began in Atlanta , Georgia , in 2022, with production moving to London later in the year. Civil War premiered at South by Southwest on March 14, 2024, and was theatrically released in the United States by A24 and in the United Kingdom by Entertainment Film Distributors on April 12, 2024. With a budget of $ 50 million, Civil War

11834-621: The private sector, and academia. The service maintains the Electronic Crimes Task Forces, which focus on identifying and locating international cyber criminals connected to cyber intrusions, bank fraud, data breaches, and other computer-related crimes. Additionally, the Secret Service runs the National Computer Forensics Institute (NCFI), which provides law enforcement officers, prosecutors, and judges with cyber training and information to combat cybercrime. In

11956-430: The protesters. They faced resistance and used pepper spray in response to eggs and bottles being thrown. Attorney General William Barr spoke with the U.S. Park Police operational commander seven minutes before the Secret Service began advancing, and again later, before President Trump visited a nearby Parish House to pose for a photo while holding a Bible. The U.S. Secret Service later apologized but Joseph Cuffari ,

12078-399: The real world. Dystopian literature serves to "provide fresh perspectives on problematic social and political practices that might otherwise be taken for granted or considered natural and inevitable". Some dystopias claim to be utopias . Samuel Butler 's Erewhon can be seen as a dystopia because of the way sick people are punished as criminals while thieves are "cured" in hospitals, which

12200-590: The secessionists executing prisoners. The group spends the night at a refugee camp before passing through a small town where, under watchful guard, residents attempt to live in blissful ignorance of the war. Later, they are caught in a sniper battle amid the remains of a Christmas fair. Nearby snipers mock Joel's questioning what side they are fighting for or against, instead summarizing the situation as killing those trying to kill them. Jessie's nerve and photography skills improve as she becomes increasingly desensitized to violence. Jessie asks if Lee would photograph her in

12322-433: The seizure of hacker forum RaidForums in 2022. In April 2022, four Secret Service agents, one of whom was assigned to First Lady Jill Biden, were placed on leave after accepting lavish gifts, rent free apartments, and other bribes from two men ultimately convicted of impersonating federal officers. On August 24, 2022, President Joe Biden named Kimberly Cheatle , the senior director of global security at PepsiCo , as

12444-532: The towers. One Secret Service employee, Master Special Officer Craig Miller, died during the rescue efforts. On August 20, 2002, Director Brian L. Stafford awarded the Director's Valor Award to employees who assisted in the rescue attempts. Effective March 1, 2003, the Secret Service transferred from the Treasury to the newly established Department of Homeland Security. The USA Patriot Act , signed into law by President George W. Bush on October 26, 2001, mandated

12566-460: The use of hand-held camera footage, as the reasons why its reception was positive. In a positive review, Peter Debruge of Variety wrote: "Garland's the last person to suggest a group hug. As statements go, his powerful vision leaves us shaken, effectively repeating the question that quelled the L.A. riots : Can we all get along?" Matt Zoller Seitz , writing for RogerEbert.com , compared Civil War to films about "Western journalists covering

12688-616: The utopian genre's meaning and purpose is described in Fredric Jameson 's Archeologies of the Future (2005) , which addresses many utopian varieties defined by their program or impulse. A dystopia is a society characterized by a focus on that which is contrary to the author's ethos , such as mass poverty, public mistrust and suspicion, a police state or oppression. Most authors of dystopian fiction explore at least one reason why things are that way, often as an analogy for similar issues in

12810-458: The world is described as a utopia. However, as the book progresses, the world's dystopian aspects are revealed. Jonathan Swift 's Gulliver's Travels is also sometimes linked with both utopian and dystopian literatures, because it shares the general preoccupation with ideas of good and bad societies. Of the countries Lemuel Gulliver visits, Brobdingnag and Country of the Houyhnhnms approach

12932-574: Was Robert DeProspero , the Special Agent In Charge (SAIC) of Reagan's Presidential Protective Division (PPD) from January 1982 to April 1985. DeProspero was deputy to Jerry Parr , the SAIC of PPD during the Reagan assassination attempt on March 30, 1981. The Kennedy assassination spotlighted the bravery of two Secret Service agents. First, an agent protecting Mrs. Kennedy, Clint Hill , was riding in

13054-405: Was "the most significant operational failure at the Secret Service in decades". Since the 1960s, presidents John F. Kennedy (killed), Gerald Ford (twice attacked, but uninjured) and Ronald Reagan (seriously wounded) have been attacked while appearing in public. Agents on scene, though not injured, during attacks on presidents include William Greer and Roy Kellerman . One of the agents

13176-439: Was $ 50 million, making it A24's most expensive film at the time. It was shot partially on the prosumer DJI Ronin 4D camera. The film's Washington D.C.-based finale required months of planning, with Alex Garland and cinematographer Rob Hardy holding a series of roundtable discussions with production designer Caty Maxey, VFX supervisor David Simpson, military supervisor Ray Mendoza and stunt coordinator Jeff Dashnaw. The scenes in

13298-408: Was A24's most expensive film at the time. The film has grossed over $ 122 million worldwide, becoming A24's second highest-grossing film, and received generally positive reviews from critics. In the near-future, a civil war has engulfed the United States. An authoritarian federal government, led by a third-term president, is embattled by secessionist movements. Despite the president claiming victory

13420-458: Was also invited to 'Open Cinema' at the 29th Busan International Film Festival and will be screened at the outdoor theater in October 2024. On April 17, 2024, A24 promoted the film on Instagram by posting five images created by artificial intelligence (AI), each showing a different American city in postapocalyptic disarray. The images were criticized for inaccurately depicting certain cityscapes:

13542-433: Was amended to reduce the protection period to 10 years after a former president left office, starting with presidents assuming the role after January 1, 1997. On January 10, 2013, President Barack Obama signed legislation reversing this limit and reinstating lifetime protection to all former presidents. This change impacted Presidents Obama and G.W. Bush, as well as all future presidents. Protection of government officials

13664-404: Was announced as part of the cast. In a May interview with The Daily Telegraph , Garland described the film as a companion piece to his 2022 film Men , and said it is "set at an indeterminate point in the future— just far enough ahead for me to add a conceit—and serves as a sci-fi allegory for our currently polarized predicament". In the same interview, Sonoya Mizuno was revealed as part of

13786-457: Was evacuated but returned later and told the White House press corps that the man had a gun. However, according to court documents, the man was actually holding a comb, told the officers he was armed and took a shooting stance before being shot. The man is schizophrenic and was charged with simple assault of a law enforcement officer. A day before the January 6 United States Capitol attack in 2021,

13908-500: Was first used in direct context by Thomas More in his 1516 work Utopia . The word utopia resembles both the Greek words outopos ("no place"), and eutopos ("good place"). More's book, written in Latin , sets out a vision of an ideal society . As the title suggests, the work presents an ambiguous and ironic projection of the ideal state. The whimsical nature of the text can be confirmed by

14030-487: Was influenced by We when he wrote Nineteen Eighty-Four (published in 1949), a novel about Oceania , a state at perpetual war, its population controlled through propaganda . Big Brother and the daily Two Minutes Hate set the tone for an all-pervasive self-censorship. Aldous Huxley 's 1932 novel Brave New World started as a parody of utopian fiction, and projected into the year 2540 industrial and social changes he perceived in 1931, leading to industrial success by

14152-507: Was killed by a Secret Service counter-sniper. One other attendee, 50-year-old Corey Comperatore, was also killed by Crooks and several others in attendance were injured. On July 23, 2024, Kimberly Cheatle resigned from her position as the director of the Secret Service just one day after she testified before the United States House Committee on Oversight and Accountability about the assassination attempt and acknowledged it

14274-658: Was previously scheduled to be released on April 26, 2024. It was screened at the BFI IMAX in London on April 11, 2024, and received a wide release on April 12, 2024, in the United States by A24 and in the United Kingdom by Entertainment Film , with engagements in IMAX and Dolby Cinema . The film was released in mainland China on June 7, 2024. It was released through video on demand on May 24, 2024, and Blu-ray , DVD , and Ultra HD Blu-ray on July 9, 2024 by Lionsgate Home Entertainment . It

14396-616: Was rampant following the American Civil War . The agency then evolved into the United States ' first domestic intelligence and counterintelligence agency. Many of the agency's missions were later taken over by subsequent agencies such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), and IRS Criminal Investigation Division (IRS-CI). The Secret Service

14518-456: Was riding in the vice-presidential car. When the shots were fired, he vaulted over the front seat and threw his body over Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson . That evening, Johnson called Secret Service Chief James J. Rowley and cited Youngblood's bravery. Youngblood would later recall some of this in his memoir, Twenty Years in the Secret Service . The period following the Kennedy assassination

14640-505: Was sued and required to pay damages. On March 1, 1990, the Secret Service served a search warrant on Steve Jackson Games , a small company in Austin, Texas , seizing three computers and over 300 floppy disks. In the subsequent lawsuit, the judge reprimanded the Secret Service, calling their warrant preparation "sloppy." In 1994 and 1995, it ran an undercover sting called Operation Cybersnare . The Secret Service has concurrent jurisdiction with

14762-473: Was the first U.S. domestic intelligence and counterintelligence agency. Domestic intelligence collection and counterintelligence responsibilities were later vested in the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). In 1909, President William H. Taft agreed to meet with Mexican president Porfirio Díaz in El Paso, Texas , and Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua , the first meeting between a U.S. and a Mexican president and also

14884-494: Was usually anti-collectivist. Dystopian fiction emerged as a response to the utopian. Its early history is traced in Gregory Claeys' Dystopia: A Natural History (Oxford University Press, 2017). The beginning of technological dystopian fiction can be traced back to E. M. Forster 's (1879–1970) " The Machine Stops ." M Keith Booker states that "The Machine Stops," We and Brave New World are "the great defining texts of

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