Elephant | Rotten Tomatoes (2025)

Audience Reviews

Mason M I think that I respect this film more than I enjoy it. One of the most striking things about this film for me is, at least before the part with the shooting, this is one of the most accurate depictions of high school life that I've ever seen on film. The long tracking shots of the students walking down the hallway was more daringly realistic than most films ever get close to. This is a very well made film, but it's main flaw is that I still can't answer the question that I've been asking myself about this film, what's the point of it? Rated 3.5/5 Stars • Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 10/15/24 Full Review Britt C It wasn’t the worst movie I’ve ever seen, but the acting was terrible, the plot was extremely slow and dull until you get to the shooting scene and then that fills anticlimactic. I mean at one point they spend 5 minutes following this one kid around from behind for no reason. There’s no depth or character development, poorly written and directed overall disappointing. Rated 0.5/5 Stars • Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 06/08/24 Full Review Michael L Dumbest movie I think I've ever seen. The characters are unbelievable, the dialogue is beyond corny, and quite frankly the motive of the shooters is wholly unbelievable and very poorly written and acted. If the filmmakers actually studied school shootings, both victims and perpetrators, they would have had access to material that would have allowed them to make an honest film about these terrible atrocities.I cannot fully express how awful this movie is. It earns half a star solely because it isn't an overly long film, so the mental torture doesn't last long enough to fully melt one's brain... But it comes close. Rated 0.5/5 Stars • Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 02/18/24 Full Review Jeff M It took me a couple viewings of this movie to fully appreciate its power and experience the impact I think the filmmakers were trying to achieve. It follows a variety of adolescents at a suburban high school who drift through a seemingly uneventful day until two students arrive with violent intentions. Throughout the short 81 minute running time, we witness events from different viewpoints. This is going to be an extraordinarily frustrating experience for some, as it was for me the first time I watched it, because there are no answers. A good portion of the movie is filled with normalcy - students talking, making jokes, gossiping about others. It almost feels pretentious. But when the violence occurs, the complacency we've felt from the normalcy of the proceedings makes the impact devastating. I finally came to the realization that the film doesn't give us answers because there aren't really answers to be given. There is no one answer to Columbine or the other school shootings to which we've almost become de-sensitized because of their unfortunate increase in number. This is a movie to watch, ponder, discuss and possibly even watch again. It's one of the more haunting experiences I've ever had watching a movie, but I think this is one of those occasions when film becomes more than entertainment. Van Sant is possibly the riskiest and most experimental of directors working - I recently praised his film TO DIE FOR - and this is one of his crowning achievements. Rated 4.5/5 Stars • Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/06/24 Full Review Diana y The cinematography of this movie was amazing. The way it was filmed really allowed you to see the severeness and affects of the shooting. It is filmed as if you are in the individual peoples life this allows you to feel the sudden gut wrenching feeling each of the individuals when the shooting begins. In actuality it allows you to sympathise with anyone who has experienced a shooting as the movie lulls you into a sense of everyday calmness before snatching it away from beneath you. It has a very raw feeling to it and is probably more realistic to what an actual shooting feels like. The acting isn't the best however I think it adds to the fact a school shooting can happen at anytime to anyone. Rated 3.5/5 Stars • Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/02/24 Full Review Jeff R This movie was so Good that when Dimitrios Pagourtzis watched it he decided to go to Santa Fe High School and murder 10 people with a 12-gauge shotgun. Rated 5/5 Stars • Rated 5 out of 5 stars 10/31/23 Full Review Read all reviews

Elephant

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