Super Dark Times

Saw this at the Rotterdam film festival 2017 (website: iffr.com). The synopsis on the festival website contained ample pointers to avoid this movie, for example "life revolves around vying for popularity, hanging out, falling in love and looking for kicks". Luckily there was only little attention for partying, courting, clothes, and more such, unlike other movies covering youngsters of high-school age. The real drama took some time to develop, but once becoming apparent it stayed in the forefront, and so should it be.

A bit problematic (for me) is that the finale went a bit too fast and too bloody for my taste, something that did not follow logically from what happened before. It seemed a bit over the top. On the other hand, a different ending was not easy to think of, as involving the police and the legal system would have ruined the story completely. Moreover, it would require bringing in the parents of our main protagonists, which usually does not bode well for the clarity of the drama. Anyway, unexpected turns of events came at a steady pace and without weak moments, one step after another. The role of the female college students was less cultivated, as if they were only background tapestry, or maybe serving as catalyst material to speed up developments but otherwise not really crucial for the outcome.

Unclear is the opening scene where a deer is found dead in the class room with a broken window. It took some time before the police entered, who started exchanging glances with each other, but I'm at a loss what it all meant.

From the final Q&A I learned a nice statement: "planting little seeds here and there is the essence of script writing". And also: Rhythm and pacing are important (it was a side answer to a question about the sound track, but even more applying to the screenplay).

Also from the Q&A: A serious attempt was made to give Josh more dimensions in his character. Same for the others, though they did not need it that much. All were nice young men without really bad habits, but only nice is not enough to keep our interest.

All in all, I was glad to have booked tickets for this movie, despite my fears that it was to become another coming-of-age story with too much time devoted on courting and partying. This time there were no problems along that line. It sustained a real focus on the central story and its pacing of subsequent developments. The audience awarded this movie a mediocre 73rd place (out of 172) with an average score of 3.905 *out of 5).

It's always impressive to see a young actor really shine, and the two best friends this movie centers around certainly deliver in their performances. Unfortunately, the ending leaves me wanting...more? Not necessarily, I don't have a problem with open ended stories, but the ending scene being about a character I didn't really connect with or care for was an odd choice. Maybe on a re-watch I'll catch some nuance that steers me in the direction of revelation with the ending scene...but is it really worth watching again? It certainly does capture the precell phone nineties teen vibes well, and there's a the surreal feeling of a town where we never see anyone else except the teens. It certainly speaks for the tunnel vision you have at the age.

I wish the set dressers would decorate my house for Christmas.

Worth watching overall.

If you like an indie flavor & are a fan of films like River's Edge or Stand By Me then you should have some fun with this one.

The storytelling is rich and engaging with suspenseful paranoia & is accompanied by some shocking imagery. The characters are entertaining & well conceived so it matters to the viewer when events unfold around them.

I can't fault this film for anything but I settle on a 7 rating because like most true crime narratives it is forced to borrow from its influences, which seem to be called upon throughout.

A brilliant directorial debut by Kevin Philips. From the opening shot itself, the super dark mood is created in this film set in the mid-90s. A lot is communicated using visuals and incidents that aren't directly related to the main plot which solidifies the atmosphere of the film. Owen Campbell lives and breathes as Zach, even his inhaling and exhaling was so perfect for the character at each particular moment. But the third act was not a well-written part of the film where the characters act upon motivations that feel rushed without proper transition and ends up like a lot of other films.

Then Super Dark Times might have been it. Overall I enjoyed this film and I do recommend it. The performances of the young actors are well done;I especially enjoyed the performance of Amy Hargreaves (the attractive mother) who plays the mom as someone who is unaware of the exact situation her son has gotten himself into, but she is NOT your stereotypical naive and clueless parent that is so often portrayed in such films.

That said, the film is not without its faults. The opening scene which the director NEVER returns to makes absolutely NO SENSE in the context of this movie. Additionally, having been a high school geek myself (although that was back in the late 70s and early 80s), I find it odd that the cute girl (played by Elizabeth Cappuccino) would even have the slightest romantic interest in the nice guy geek Zach played by Owen Campbell; sorry but those of us who fall into the "late bloomer" category know that growing up, the most we could hope for from the cute girls was to end up in the friend zone and foolishly hope that one day she would wake up and realize that the nice guy is the guy for her (BALONEY!) That subplot reeked of a writer's fantasy to me.

One particular standout was Sawyer Barth as the eighth grade boy from another school who accidentally gets caught up in the violence. I must say, this young fellow gave a very underrated by convincing performance in a supporting role.

Finally, a few points about how the ending unfolds as it does left me somewhat confused. I could not understand why one particular character behaved a certain way, nor did I understand why someone else did NOT do something that should have been fairly obvious. That's all I want to say since I don't want to spoil it for anyone. I give it a recommendation if you like dark coming of age stories.