Zero Day (2003)

User Rating:

7.6/10   

Director:

Ben Coccio

Writers:

Ben Coccio (writer)
Christopher Coccio (writer)

Release Date:

23 January 2004 (Finland)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

In high school, you're told you can do anything you put your mind to.

Plot:

Two troubled adolescents chronicle the events that ultimately lead up to a terrifying assault on their school.

Plot Keywords:

Revenge | Friend | Rifle | Columbine | Shooting

Awards:

7 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Serataren Adragna	...	Prom Goer
Melissa Banks	...	Victim
Josh Bednarsky	...	Josh
Rachel Benichak	...	Rachel Lurie
Chelsea Cipolla	...	Victim
Christopher Coccio	...	Chris Kriegman
Carmine DiBenedetto	...	Victim
Victoria Everman	...	1st Library Victim
Joe Falco	...	First Poet
David Futernick	...	Student
Alyssa Goodin	...	Student
Ryan Janowski	...	Student
Derrick Karg	...	Victim
Andre Keuck	...	Andre Kriegman
Gerhard Keuck	...	Andre's Father
Johanne Keuck	...	Andre's Mother
Tyler Knowlin	...	Teen Poet
Bobby Moreau	...	Librarian
Amy Nemeth	...	Student
Samantha J. Phillips	...	911 Operator (as Samantha Philips)
Sarah Pilla	...	Victim
Cal Robertson	...	Calvin Gabriel (as Calvin Robertson)
Madelyn Robertson	...	Cal's Sister
Pam Robertson	...	Cal's Mother
Steve Robertson	...	Cal's Father
Michael Omar Walters	...	Victim

Runtime:

USA:92 min | Argentina:92 min (Buenos Aires Festival Internacional de Cine Independiente)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

New Zealand:R18 (cut) | UK:18 (cut) | UK:18 | USA:Unrated | Finland:K-15 | Argentina:16

Filming Locations:

State University of New York at Albany, Albany, New York, USA

Company:

Professor Bright Films

Trivia:

The movie began shooting in 1999 after the Columbine Massacre, and finished shooting in mid 2001. It was initially slated for release later that year in the fall. The release was canceled after September 11 terrorist attacks, out of concern over public reaction. Director Ben Coccio spent the next six months heavily re-editing the film. It was finally released in 2003, nearly two full years after filming was completed.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the opening credits one of the main characters, Andre Kriegman, is erroneously called Andre Kreigman. In the rest of the movie his name has a correct, German, spelling of the name.

Quotes:

Andre Kriegman, Calvin Gabriel: Let the countdown begin!

Movie Connections:

References Bambi (1942)

Soundtrack:

Eliminator Jr.

A riveting film!

I rented Zero Day from the local video store last week. I had never heard of the film and I had my reservations about it. Just from looking at the box I knew the film was an Indie film and therefore the quality was going to be less than a mainstream film.

I can tell you that after I finished watching Zero Day I immediately started it from the beginning again. The film was clearly following the basic outline of what happened at Columbine High School of April of 1999, but what struck me was how believable the two lead actors were. My first time through watching this film I wasn't entirely sure if what I was watching were actual tapes left behind by the shooters at Columbine. In the back of my mind I knew what I was watching could not be real but at the same time the acting was so convincing you had to keep giving your head a shake.

Is the film disturbing? Absolutely! Are you going to see things that will make you question the merit of the film? Probably. I think what most people will find disturbing is they will actually have feelings for the two lead characters, Calvin and Andre (Played by Cal Robertson and Andre Keuck). Why is that problematic for some people? Calvin and Andre are planning a massacre at their high school. I know for myself, I felt an immense sadness for Andre and Calvin. I had empathy for them because their lives had come to such a horrific point. They had fallen so deeply through cracks that they had begun a journey down a road which could have been stopped, if only people around them had taken notice to their plight.

Zero Day is a phenomenal film. It gives you an up close and personal look to events that most of us will only ever see the conclusion to on the news. It leaves you thinking about the lives involved. And it leaves you perplexed how people get to this point. A week after seeing this film, I still think about it.

Those of you who have not seen Zero Day please keep in mind the following: The film is an independent with little to no budget and the film is shot on camcorders. The material in the film is disturbing. This is not mainstream Hollywood and there is no happy ending.

But if you can put all that aside, Zero Day is a film that will stick with you and just maybe help you to open your eyes a little.