Review of Elephant (2015) by Aaron N — 24 Sep 2008

"I came to realize since I had no need to make a lot of money, I should make films I find interesting, regardless of their outcome and audience.".

This is a quote from director Gus Van Sant, who, after achieving success from directing Good Will Hunting, has mostly (especially after the horrible Psycho remake experiment) decided to remain in the indie scene, making different, experimental films. This is a film that leaves a bad taste in your mouth but is admirable for a few reasons.

Girl in Cafeteria: What are you writing?

Alex: Uh, this? It's my plan.

Girl in Cafeteria: For what?

Alex: Oh, you'll see.

The film is a fictitious retelling of the Columbine High School Murders, in which two male students walked into school on an ordinary day, armed with an assortment of weapons, and proceeded to kill a number of students. No conclusive motive was found, besides the fact that the students were considered "social outcasts.".

John McFarland: Hey, what are you guys doing?

Alex: Get the fuck out and don't come back! Some heavy shit's going down!

In this film, we are shown the perspective through the eyes of a number of characters before the event occurs and during. These scenes are all done with long tracking shots, where mainly nothing happens besides watching students walk around the school with little dialog. The dialog that does transpire is mainly improvised and consists of random high school chatter.

I am not really gonna explain what I believe the point that I got out of this is, but the film certainly does not try to explain any of the characters actions, in favor of letting audiences feel out to what they believe happened.

Now with that being said, knowing that the film will not offer any sort of opinion and knowing what actually happened in real life, what is the point of this movie in the first place? It is of course very slow placed, since nothing really goes on until the violence starts, and knowing that this violence is going to happen does and doesn't help the film in terms of feeling the building dread that will occur.

Still, this film is well made in terms of what its doing. It goes against most conventions besides the convention of being different because its an art house film. And it is effectively creepy at certain points.

John McFarland: Excuse me sir, don't go in there!