(2003, 92 min) Somewhat lost amid the hype surrounding Gus Van Sant's Elephant (which was released about a month later), Zero Day is an equally accomplished look at school shootings and troubled youth that takes a completely different formal tack.
The first hour or so is simulated home video footage of two high school students who are planning a school massacre. Andre and Cal, the "Army of Two," have calculatedly set a countdown to the "Zero Day." Yet even while stockpiling weapons and planning the most efficient routes through the school halls, director Ben Coccio never lets you forget that these are just kids... whether they're getting their braces removed or using toys and dolls for target practice. Even tortured minds need a reprieve from time to time, and Andre and Cal get their release from spectacularly dark humor. They're smart enough to destroy their video games, movies and books so that their pop culture won't be blamed for the massacre, but not reasoned enough to figure out a better way to deal with their angst. Their considerable charisma makes them even scarier.
On Zero Day itself, Coccio makes a startling transition in perspective, utilizing security cameras to provide a different verité perspective to the proceedings. If the choice was made to present an omniscient, unbiased eye on the shootings, it only serves to demonstrate that there's no possible way to empathize with Andre and Cal's decision to carry out the massacre. As much as you can identify with their emotions, their actions are unconscionable.
© TLA Entertainment Group
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