Hello Everyone!
Please read the first two reviews of April Showers below! Thanks!
Team IndieFlix
Ventura County Reporter
http://www.vcreporter.com/cms/story/detail/live_to_tell/6881/
iF Magazine
http://www.ifmagazine.com/review.asp?article=3190
By Chris Jay
Originally Published in the VC Reporter 4/23/09
April Showers
Directed by Andrew Robinson. Starring: Kelly Blatz, Daryl Sabara, Illeana Douglas, Ellen Woglom and Tom Arnold. Rated R.
“Now we are a bumper sticker slogan.” — Wheatus
This week marks the 10th anniversary of the Columbine massacre, an event so horrific that its impact is still being felt today. From a media standpoint, it was the granddaddy of tragedy, bridging the Oklahoma City bombing and 9/11. Often exploitative in its coverage, the media — along with the general public — became obsessed with the idea that not one, but two teenagers could have access to high-tech weapons and then plot and perform the cold-blooded murders of their own classmates. The length of the murder spree enabled the ensuing chaos to be broadcast live on network television, and images of bloodied teenagers attempting to escape through classroom windows dominated the news for weeks.
The worst shooting at a high school ever, the Columbine massacre opened dialogue about everything from gun control as it relates to school safety, to police response, bullying, adolescent outcasts and even music and video games — issues that still get people riled up. What is often lost in the discussions, and shouldn’t be forgotten, is that there are hundreds of survivors and witnesses, forced to live the rest of their lives with the residual trauma of the experience and what they witnessed.
It’s why Andrew Robinson, a Columbine survivor, wrote and directed April Showers, a film based on that unforgettable day. While Michael Moore used the tragedy to showcase the insanity of gun culture in the U.S. in Bowling for Columbine, and Gus Van Sant somewhat artfully told the story partially from the killer’s perspective in Elephant, Robinson has made it clear that the film is based on the actual events, and he’s chosen to focus on the survivors and the immediate aftermath of the incident.
The opening and most impacting sequence of the whole film is the attack on the school. Barely showing the killer (Robinson chose to depict only one gunman), the film conveys the sheer terror felt by students and faculty along with the mass confusion that occurred. With students making life-or-death decisions to hide or run, or escaping through woods into neighborhoods, it’s fast-paced, tense and wonderfully shot. During the attack, there’s an absolutely moving performance by Tom Arnold as a wounded teacher. Hard to believe but Arnold is incredible, and it’s a shame there’s not more of him in the film.
From there, April Showers studies each day of the week following the attack, leading up to the funeral, and the different survivors’ experiences. While the film’s pace slows considerably, and some relationships seem unnecessary and confusing in flashbacks, what resonates the most are the subtle images that are inserted throughout that clearly only come from someone who lived it. From a cross left on the car of a student who was killed — which is still parked at the school — to the packed living room of teenagers sleeping over at a parent’s house, not wanting to be alone, to the assault of a student carrying the killer’s cross to a makeshift memorial, it’s these haunting images that set this film apart.
Another nice touch is the poignant ballad, “Now,” by the band Wheatus, written specifically for the film. With an intense and brilliant piano-based score throughout the film, the insertion of an actual song while we see the characters prepare for and attend the funeral hammers home the overwhelming sadness of the story.
Overall, April Showers succeeds in putting the story of survivors of the Columbine tragedy at the forefront and Robinson’s connection to the event is the key to showing how the innocence of teenagers was forever shattered on that day. Though slightly flawed at times, it’s still an incredibly moving independent film that will find a place in classrooms across America for years to come as the definitive movie on one of the saddest days in American history.
April Showers opens in select theaters on April 24 and is available for purchase that day on iTunes. The DVD will be released on May 5. A portion of all ticket sales, downloads and DVD sales will go to charity.
While teen angst has been explored in varying degrees over the years (from the comedic side witnessed in John Hughes and Judd Apatow productions) to the darker aspect of high school cinema (RIVER’S EDGE, KIDS), it always proves fertile ground when someone steps outside the box to create a brand new take on a well-worn formula.
And that’s what writer-director Andrew Robinson has done with APRIL SHOWERS. A Columbine survivor, Robinson has distilled his experiences with that horrifying school shooting from ten years ago and created a gut-wrenching movie about tragedy, humanity and what it takes physically and mentally to survive such a horrifying ordeal.
The story is told from the perspective of Sean (Kelly Blatz), an ambitious high schooler who is also emotionally shut off from any serious relationships, although he has a crush on pretty drama student April (Ellen Woglom).
When a fellow student begins shooting up the school, we follow Sean and his fellow peers as they try to save each other and themselves – with April’s tragic death being a focal point for all.
There’s fine performances by everyone, particularly Blatz, who has a very tough role of conveying his emotions while also trying to give off an air of detachment, which the role requires. There’s some nice chemistry in the flashback scenes between him and April – where we learn the nature of their relationship and you almost wish there was more of that front-loaded in the beginning of the picture.
Daryl Sabara also gives a fantastic performance as Jason – a survivor of the aftermath whose fuzzy surveillance photo image dragging a deceased young girl out of the school makes him an unlikely hero – which is something he doesn’t feel he deserves and doesn’t want.
Robinson tells the story in a very harrowing style. There isn’t much set-up with the characters before you’re thrown into the mayhem. There’s a lot of catch-up and the movie could have done with a little more character development early on, so the emotional resonance played even greater in the latter half. Still, there’s something unique in this choice – it creates an air of authenticity to the frenetic nature of things and also comments in a very realistic way of how many students are disconnected from one another and barely know each other. And even the one’s you know are complete strangers and can turn on a dime.
APRIL SHOWERS is not a perfect film, but it gets under your skin. It doesn’t offer up a bunch of preachy answers either. What it does well though is open up a conversation about high school life in new century and how it’s important to connect with those around you and the one’s you love before it’s too late.
The film is rated R, but it’s an important film for teenagers and parents to see. It’s not overtly graphic, there’s no sex and the violence would garner a typical action or horror movie a PG. It’s a shame, but then this bit of news has certainly given the film additional publicity that it needs to get it out to the indie world as it opens in limited release in 20 cities this Friday and you can also download the film from iTunes.
