Zero Day / Elephant

[Bolo]

Have any of you people seen either of these movies?

Elephant

-IMDB page

Zero Day

-IMDB page

These films essentially address the same topic, and that is high school shootings. I thought they were both top notch indies, with intriguingly similar plotlines, and I enjoyed the unique approaches to the concept that each movie took.

Most of Elephant takes place five minutes before the shooting takes place, with introductions of the characters one by one, interacting with each other in a manner strikingly aligned with reality. Towards the last half hour, the film shifts focus to the two shooters, who are seen in the final planning stages of the attack, and then it shows them carrying it out, killing off many of the characters introduced in the first hour of the film. It ends rather inconclusively.

Zero Day takes an altogether different tone. It shows, rather than the final moments before the attack, an entire year's planning stages of the attack, from acquiring weapons, to making bombs, to target practice, and repeated justifications of the attack that the two shooters are planning. The whole film is shot in hand held camera, as if from the point of view of the camera-savvy plotters, but the last fifteen minutes of the film take place in front of the security camera at the school and the library, where the attackers take many lives, before taking their own. But again, a rather inconclusive ending.

Both of these are worth seeing, and are obvious examinations of shootings such as Columbine, and Red Lake. In fact, Red Lake was, for a short period of time, blamed on Elephant, because Jeff Weise had seen the movie seventeen days before the massacre occurred.

Anybody else seen these?

[DannyIsOnFire]

At 3/22/08 04:19 PM, Bolo wrote: Anybody else seen these?

I've seen Zero Day. Very good film in my eyes.
Wouldn't mind seeing Elephant as well. Even moreso now that you've described them as being quite different, despite describing the same event.

[yodd]

I found Elephant boring.

[D3NTATUS]

At 3/22/08 04:30 PM, yodd wrote: I found Elephant boring.

D:

Elephant is one of my favourite moves!

[Bolo]

At 3/22/08 04:27 PM, DannyIsOnFire wrote: I've seen Zero Day. Very good film in my eyes.
Wouldn't mind seeing Elephant as well. Even moreso now that you've described them as being quite different, despite describing the same event.

I thought the autobiographical aspect of the handheld camera was expertly executed in that one. In the same way that I liked Cloverfield, except this was far more realistic than Cloverfield. I also found it interesting how the shooters were justifying their attack as being in the name of "love for the fellow human being" and altruism. Intriguing.

[D3NTATUS]

also fun fact, but did you know that Jeff Weise had an account on NG?

[TurtleJuice]

At 3/22/08 04:31 PM, D3NTATUS wrote:

Elephant is one of my favourite moves!

You aren't a KMFDM fan , are you?

if yes , cause for concern

[Bolo]

At 3/22/08 04:32 PM, D3NTATUS wrote: also fun fact, but did you know that Jeff Weise had an account on NG?

http://regret.newgrounds.com

[D3NTATUS]

At 3/22/08 04:33 PM, TurtleJuice wrote: You aren't a KMFDM fan , are you?

KMFDM is pretty good. But that's not a very nice joke to make.

Aww jeez, now I'm getting angry. Thank god i don't have school tomorrow...

[TurtleJuice]

At 3/22/08 04:34 PM, D3NTATUS wrote:

Aww jeez, now I'm getting angry. Thank god i don't have school tomorrow...

Better go play some DOOM then , calm yourself down

[yodd]

At 3/22/08 04:31 PM, D3NTATUS wrote:

At 3/22/08 04:30 PM, yodd wrote: I found Elephant boring.

D:

Elephant is one of my favourite moves!

Sorry carl, but I guess we have to differ on a few things.

[D3NTATUS]

At 3/22/08 04:35 PM, TurtleJuice wrote: Better go play some DOOM then , calm yourself down

Seriously.

At 3/22/08 04:35 PM, yodd wrote:

At 3/22/08 04:31 PM, D3NTATUS wrote:

At 3/22/08 04:30 PM, yodd wrote: I found Elephant boring.

D:

Elephant is one of my favourite moves!

Sorry carl, but I guess we have to differ on a few things.

Are we still soulmates?

[yodd]

At 3/22/08 04:37 PM, D3NTATUS wrote: Are we still soulmates?

Of course, though we differ on some things our sames are right to the bone.

I love you.

[Senri]

Well, seeing all this praise some of them are getting I feel I must see it.
I'm off to go get it.

[Bolo]

Pretty decent films, honest.