Elephant
Dir: Gus Van Sant
2003
**
I'm somewhat torn with Gus Van Sant's 2003 film Elephant. Gus Van Sant is not a director I've ever thought much of to be honest and I find most of his films to be extremely overrated and generally quite insular. Elephant is an example of this to some degree. I have no problem with the overall idea or the fact that this is a dramatisation (of sorts) of the events at Columbine High School on 20th April 1999. I thought it was wise that he didn't try to explain why the Boys went on a killing spree and the disjointed lack of narrative worked to deconstruct any kind of formula which might have been inappropriate. The way the film drifts around the school gives the viewer an idea of what it would have been like on an average school day but Van Sant distracts from the story by trying to be too clever in linking each scene and actually messes up a lot of the continuity anyway, making it a bit of a puzzling mess. It is directed beautifully but again, this is a bit of a distraction and certainly doesn't fit the tone during the film's finale. It was of course important not to glorify the events, and he doesn't, but somehow by removing convincing perspectives and adding pointless sub-plots he trivializes things. The 'Elephant' in the room isn't really addressed, maybe this is wise but the lack of any kind of focus and indeed the negative and nonchalant depictions of many of the victims is questionable. Visually stunning but emotionally shallow, it's not a documentary sure but the objectivity isn't appropriate in my opinion.