Elephant
A film by Gus Van Sant (My Own Private Idaho, Good Will Hunting and Finding Forester). Winner of the Palme D’or and Best Director at the Cannes Film Festival 2003.
Well what can I say about this film? I was left somewhat speechless when the credits started rolling.
Elephant, set almost entirely in the eerie hallways of an American high school, casually examines the characters of some of the students in turn, on one ordinary school day. Until two of them calmly walk in dressed in army gear, carrying assault weapons, sending this ordinary day into turmoil.
The movie uses real high school students who improvise their dialogue, which certainly adds an almost innocent quality to the characters. Although I did find at times the almost porn-quality acting a little off-putting, especially at the beginning of the film. However the character, John, who I refer to as ‘blondie’, played his role brilliantly. A clever use of time also adds to the feel, overlapping the movements of each character, which are actually occurring simultaneously.
The movie was eerily slow although perhaps necessarily so, leaving us waiting with eerie anticipation. The majority of the film is spent building up the characters and explores many different personality types leaving the viewer no choice but to identify with at least some of them. (People may even be shocked, as I was, to find themselves identifying with the killers.) We are given just enough insight into each of their lives to feel we knew them in some way, leaving us with some sense of loss when they are gunned down. So if this was the movie’s only goal then I feel it does this brilliantly.
But for anyone ever wondering what would possess someone to perform such an unspeakable act, don’t expect all, or any, of your questions to be answered here. I left the cinema with as many, if not more questions than I went in with. Like where was the hysteria? Are kids really this desensitised in America? I know if I were thrown into that situation I wouldn’t have handled it nearly so well.
Ultimately though, a brilliant, thought provoking film and guaranteed you will walk away feeling something (even if just confusion). And for all those hard-core violence fans, if you can sit through the mountains of character build-up you will be rewarded at the end. Definitely one to see with a friend — you’ll want to talk about it after over coffee.Debbie
