Zero Day (2003)

Excellent Columbine-inspired film, comprised of video footage shot by two young guys as they plan a rampage at their school. Much like the similarly-themed Elephant, this film goes out of its way to naysay the usual scapegoats brought up whenever an incident like this takes place. Elephant was unable to fill the void left by the absence of motivation, but this film sidesteps that problem by allowing us into the killers' private world. As we spend time with these two obviously troubled but often quite likeable youths, we find ourselves uncomfortably close to sympathy for the devil. Credit is due to director Ben Coccio and his talented cast of amateurs for crafting and playing out a believable scenario that refuses to talk down to the audience. The film would have been chillingly perfect if it had ended where the found-footage ended; as it stands, the climactic security-cam footage is something of a letdown, a too-broad stroke in a film that otherwise teems with little intricacies. Still, this is potent filmmaking. Coccio is a guy to watch.

Grade: A-