From: luca
Message:
Andy wrote:
> School of Rock was very funny, and tonight i will be watching Elephant.
> Has anyone seen it?
Yep. Apparently people fall into one of two camps on this - either you
think it's a genius piece of understated filmmaking, or utter shite. I'm
in the former camp. Ergo, I think you'll love it.
The performances are a little hit and miss because many of the child
actors had no experience at all (and many use their real names in their
characterisations), but imo this gives the film an unusually accurate
rendering of the sense of uncertainty, lack of confidence and occasional
fear of the unknown typical of adolescence, particularly in a large
school environment.
Another admirable element is the film's structure - it takes the idea of
showing the same scene from myriad angles (both in physical and
narrative terms) to its zenith - watch out for the "corridor" scene,
which is replayed throughout, and is the best use of this technique I've
ever seen.
Apart from the obvious subject matter, the film is a quiet yet
profoundly critical portrayal of US culture, and is therefore as
subservise a piece of filmmaking as a large release is ever likely to
get. This goes way beyond the issue of guns, and into more ordinary -
and therefore darker - realms such as family structure, internet usage,
the social hierarchy of schools, and hegemonic ideas of female beauty.
A classic.
