I recognize that looking for meaning or worrying about impact is giving the movie more credit than it seeks or deserves.  I also recognize that being socially responsible isn’t really Hollywood’s job.  That said, I don’t think that a time when the election of our first black president has driven right-wing, anti-government hysteria to a point that is leading to violent acts is the best time to make and release a movie about shadowy government figures terrorizing a small town of simple white farmers.  The movie includes tropes of the lunatic fringe such as black helicopters and a poisoned water supply.  There’s even a shot of a pregnant woman being gassed.

A brief scan of reviews of the movie makes it seem that I’m alone in my concern, but I couldn’t shake a strong feeling of unease through the entire movie.  I’ve never been more tempted to walk out on a movie, but I stayed in hopes that there would be some twist, an alternate explanation that it wasn’t the U.S. government torching innocent farmers.  Alas, the movie just gets worse as it goes on.

-AR