Elephant (2003)
John Robinson, Alex Frost, Elias McConnell, Eric Deulen, Timothy Bottoms, Nathan Tyson, Carrie Finklea, Kristen Hicks, Bennie Dixon. Directed by Gus Van Sant.
Spoilers herein.
In Gus Van Sant's (Director of "Finding Forrester" and "Good Will Hunting") newest film, "Elephant", everything happens with a purpose and a meaning. Even though it is somewhat unanswered, you are left to fill in the unanswered questions. It is one of those films that you watched, and it stays with you for a long time.
I can still recall when I was younger and first heard about the Columbine incident later on in the day it happened, April 20, 1999. No one really knew what really did cause all of the shooting and explosions that happened in the high school, except that they were picked-on and played violent video games. In the story of the Columbine massacre, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold had a hit list, but they targeted anyone in the school, even the ones who had nothing to do with them. The two boys in Elephant are no different, and the director didn't want to exaggerate any further details of their lives.
The story is told in different segments (think 21 Grams), and in the point-of-view of many students of different stereotypes. Elias took photos around the school. Nathan and Carrie are a couple walking around in the school. Michelle is a girl who is embarrassed to wear shorts in P.E. class. Alex and Eric are two kids who are constantly picked on in school. And John is a blond-haired kid who is tardy for school, who is first to stumble upon a plan, which will change the lives of the students at school forever.
Elephant wasn't meant to show the deep backgrounds of all of the students, it simply just gives the audience of one day at the school, and then the results in the end. Gus Van Sant is not new to violent or controversial films. I don't think that Van Sant knew all of the answers for the incidents at Columbine, so I don't think he wanted to answer them if the characters and the incident itself was fact-based. After watching this film for the second time, I noticed much more to the movie. The first time I saw it, I was expecting something bad to happen at any second. In it's artistic value, Elephant is a beautifully made film, reminding me of the vivid structure of Sam Mendes's American Beauty (1999), and the dark atmosphere of Tim Roth's The War Zone (1999).
One scene in particular is controversial in this film. It's where a kid (Deulen) is at his friend's (Frost) house and since neither of them have kissed before, they decide to. Why was this controversial? Just because the critics might have thought that Van Sant was trying to say the killers from Columbine were *gasps in sarcasm* gay. It isn't trying to say that at all, it just gives meaning that the killers actually had emotional feelings, too. But then again, would it really matter if they were? They didn't really love or listen to anyone else, and for that I felt sympathy for them, no matter what awful incidents occurred later on. They are no different from normal people, even though they are picked by others in the film.
I admit, I liked a lot of the acting. Mostly because the actors and actresses are brand-new, they have almost no skills, and it's not like the normal "25-year old playing a teenager" movie. This is the real deal, teens playing teens. Most of them have probably witnessed the social activity and bullying at their school, one time or another. It was a good idea for director Van Sant to get unprofessional actors. The pace in the film was slow, but it didn't bother me at all. The Kubrickian direction (not a bad thing) made it easier to watch, and the POV scenes of the characters were ultimately impressive (with the directing and the acting).
I had mixed opinions about the director before I first saw this. He made Finding Forrester and Good Will Hunting, which I thought were good but not great films. And he made Psycho (1998), one of my all-time least favorite movies (considering the original Psycho (1960) is one of my favorites). Here, he gives a near flawless film that focuses an important matter.
Watching it the first time, it left a chilled, disturbing and powerful impact. Even if we don't have a long time to "know" the characters, Mr. Van Sant still creates a movie where I still cared for them. It shows social problems and issues that all of the characters have at one point or another in the film, and those who were lucky enough to make it or not, and I'd imagine that it was the same way as the last living day of Columbine High. In Elephant, Van Sant wants you to understand all of the characters' problems and motions. And give a sort of way that you can answer for yourself.
What really scares me about Elephant is that these things in the movie can really happen. High schoolers pushing others too far, and the bullied high schooler taking out all of their rage on the people who tormented them. Elephant is an important and honest film that a lot of teenagers should watch, and no matter how boring they might think it is, it still has a great message in the end. 5 stars out of 5.
John Robinson, Alex Frost, Elias McConnell, Eric Deulen, Timothy Bottoms, Nathan Tyson, Carrie Finklea, Kristen Hicks, Bennie Dixon. Directed by Gus Van Sant.
Spoilers herein.
In Gus Van Sant's (Director of "Finding Forrester" and "Good Will Hunting") newest film, "Elephant", everything happens with a purpose and a meaning. Even though it is somewhat unanswered, you are left to fill in the unanswered questions. It is one of those films that you watched, and it stays with you for a long time.
I can still recall when I was younger and first heard about the Columbine incident later on in the day it happened, April 20, 1999. No one really knew what really did cause all of the shooting and explosions that happened in the high school, except that they were picked-on and played violent video games. In the story of the Columbine massacre, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold had a hit list, but they targeted anyone in the school, even the ones who had nothing to do with them. The two boys in Elephant are no different, and the director didn't want to exaggerate any further details of their lives.
The story is told in different segments (think 21 Grams), and in the point-of-view of many students of different stereotypes. Elias took photos around the school. Nathan and Carrie are a couple walking around in the school. Michelle is a girl who is embarrassed to wear shorts in P.E. class. Alex and Eric are two kids who are constantly picked on in school. And John is a blond-haired kid who is tardy for school, who is first to stumble upon a plan, which will change the lives of the students at school forever.
Elephant wasn't meant to show the deep backgrounds of all of the students, it simply just gives the audience of one day at the school, and then the results in the end. Gus Van Sant is not new to violent or controversial films. I don't think that Van Sant knew all of the answers for the incidents at Columbine, so I don't think he wanted to answer them if the characters and the incident itself was fact-based. After watching this film for the second time, I noticed much more to the movie. The first time I saw it, I was expecting something bad to happen at any second. In it's artistic value, Elephant is a beautifully made film, reminding me of the vivid structure of Sam Mendes's American Beauty (1999), and the dark atmosphere of Tim Roth's The War Zone (1999).
One scene in particular is controversial in this film. It's where a kid (Deulen) is at his friend's (Frost) house and since neither of them have kissed before, they decide to. Why was this controversial? Just because the critics might have thought that Van Sant was trying to say the killers from Columbine were *gasps in sarcasm* gay. It isn't trying to say that at all, it just gives meaning that the killers actually had emotional feelings, too. But then again, would it really matter if they were? They didn't really love or listen to anyone else, and for that I felt sympathy for them, no matter what awful incidents occurred later on. They are no different from normal people, even though they are picked by others in the film.
I admit, I liked a lot of the acting. Mostly because the actors and actresses are brand-new, they have almost no skills, and it's not like the normal "25-year old playing a teenager" movie. This is the real deal, teens playing teens. Most of them have probably witnessed the social activity and bullying at their school, one time or another. It was a good idea for director Van Sant to get unprofessional actors. The pace in the film was slow, but it didn't bother me at all. The Kubrickian direction (not a bad thing) made it easier to watch, and the POV scenes of the characters were ultimately impressive (with the directing and the acting).
I had mixed opinions about the director before I first saw this. He made Finding Forrester and Good Will Hunting, which I thought were good but not great films. And he made Psycho (1998), one of my all-time least favorite movies (considering the original Psycho (1960) is one of my favorites). Here, he gives a near flawless film that focuses an important matter.
Watching it the first time, it left a chilled, disturbing and powerful impact. Even if we don't have a long time to "know" the characters, Mr. Van Sant still creates a movie where I still cared for them. It shows social problems and issues that all of the characters have at one point or another in the film, and those who were lucky enough to make it or not, and I'd imagine that it was the same way as the last living day of Columbine High. In Elephant, Van Sant wants you to understand all of the characters' problems and motions. And give a sort of way that you can answer for yourself.
What really scares me about Elephant is that these things in the movie can really happen. High schoolers pushing others too far, and the bullied high schooler taking out all of their rage on the people who tormented them. Elephant is an important and honest film that a lot of teenagers should watch, and no matter how boring they might think it is, it still has a great message in the end. 5 stars out of 5.