I just gave full-body massages to everyone at Drafthouse Films and boy are my thumbs tired and greasy. But it was all worth it so I could bring you this exclusive clip from I Declare War (trailer here). The Jason Lapeyre/Robert Wilson-directed film about a game of Capture the Flag reimagined as modern warfare under Calvin and Hobbes rules is already out on VOD, iTunes, and digital download, and hits select theaters August 30th. Assuming you don’t want to watch it on VOD, that gives you approximately one week to leave your couch fort. Find a location here.
Armed with nothing more than twigs, their imaginations and a simple set of rules, a group of 12-year-olds engaged in a lively game of Capture the Flag in the neighborhood woods start dangerously blurring the lines between make-believe and reality. Rocks = Grenades. Trees = Control towers. Sticks = Submachine guns. The youthful innocence of the game gradually takes on a different tone as the quest for victory pushes the boundaries of friendship. The would-be warriors get a searing glimpse of humanity’s dark side as their combat scenario takes them beyond the rules of the game and into an adventure where fantasy combat clashes with the real world.
Normally I like to say that all child actors should be replaced with adults in kid clothes, partly as an artistic decision, and mostly for the future crime reduction it would provide. But in this case, it’s hard to deny that little kids with big guns has a singular aesthetic impact. I see what they were going for, and the directors should get a medal for all the kids they had to work with because kids are terrible.
Not yours though, I’m sure yours are great.