I know that we were supposed to bring something funny and witty to amuse each other broadly, but I thought better. I want to write about a movie extraordinary. For those, who want the non-reviewed experience (like I had), please trust my word and watch this movie without reading. Because it’s worth it.

Elephant gets its name from a BBC movie and has nothing to do with animal. Instead it has to do with a group of high school students in Oregon. Gus Van Sant shows an ordinary high school day and then some in his own unique way. Except it’s not an ordinary day.

We see it through the eyes of main characters. First comes John, who’s having a really tough day: he’s not only being late for school but also has a drunk dad in a car and has to keep an eye on him. Eventually he tries to breathe easy in a silence of what looks like a common room and is comforted by Acadia, who’s just taking a moment to hug him before going to Gay Straight Alliance (GSA).

GSA plays a certain subliminal part because the members discuss how you can tell if someone’s gay. Later in the movie you might be forced to rethink your own answers and compare them with those of the students. And no, it really doesn’t have to do with rainbow necklaces and pink hair.

Third kid is Elias, who’s walking around school grounds, shooting pictures of people for his portfolio. He’s an outgoing bloke, who seems to have a lot of friends. One of them is John, who later asks him about Eli’s plans. The thing is, everyone in the movie has plans for later, tonight, tomorrow, weekend… And they share them and it seems so ordinary and scary at the same time, because not many will live on to accomplish them. And those who will, least like to have them anymore, because the ones they wanted to share them with are gone.

Then Moonlight #2 starts and we meet Nathan, a good looking boy. Then meet Michelle, “a looser” who is not. Meet Nicole and her “popular” girl friends, except they are not, neither friends nor popular. Through these very different teenagers we see school – a glance in the library, in the classroom, GSA, cafeteria, the halls, etc.

And then you see Alex, a kid who was bullied in the classroom by Nathan and alike and outside of it. He performs Beethoven, plays computer games (Gerry-like, a previous Van Sant’s movie), orders guns and shoots people. But there is so much more to Alex that you’ll be guessing yourself.

So there, you indeed spend an ordinary day in high school, which turns out to be not. And it really remind the Colombine story. On April 20, 1999 I was a junior in high school. My dad picked me up after school as always and asked me how was my day. I said it was great and he said that students in Colorado could not say the same. I was thinking how regular was my day and how regular it might have started for students back there. The atmosphere of this thought is perfectly represented in the movie.

All teenage actors are the first-time performers. Even almost all of their names were kept. It really shows that some of them are amateur, but it only makes the movie real (though “actors” are annoying in places – like Nicole and the girls). Gus Van Sant did a great piece of art that should become part of high school curricular. Maybe more than a few high schools will be saved by it.

Diane Keaton did a lot for this movie to be made, if it’s a good-enough reason for quality.

Reason why I’m writing this review for GLBT Pride Month Write-Off is that the picture has a definite gay subtopic, that is not upfront but well-expected from a Van Sant’s movie. But frankly, I can ramble and lead you to many themes raised in GLBT works. Many of them fight against hatred and hate crimes. So, you might view this in that light. But to tell you the truth, it’s one hell of a good movie, a fine piece of ART. And since I really wanted to participate at least in this year’s W/O, then I figured why not. The way the camera works, how music goes incredibly well with something so familiar and something so far from most of us, the way it all combines should be at least seen.

I thank you for reading this. Congratulations to Shannon on her 11th anniversary (hey, nine more years and I’ll get there), but that’s quite an achievement, especially in GLBT community. Visit her profile for extra information on write-off and the participant. If you watched the movie, discussion is always welcomed in the comments.


Recommended:
Yes