I should first admit that, up until the major plot development about 34mins into proceedings, I was thinking about stopping the film & watching something else.
The scripting is a little manipulative of the audience's attention & the main character does seem less than capable as she struggles both to maintain her family & work life and to suitably engage with her 'support network', a year after losing her husband.
Her depressed son obviously lacks "a strong authority figure", so mum takes a 'personal day' off work & jogs off into the deep woods nearby. *Metaphor Alert* :-)
However, with very little acting support (although some good voice actors deserve credit) Naomi Watts carries the film with a very strong performance.
Given the story's focus, I should point out that this film was rated age 11+ on the streaming service I watched it on. There are, unfortunately, quite a few other school shooting films out there, mostly rated 18. Another I recently watched, revolved around the protagonists' actions & motivation from the POV of a student bystander - with, almost inevitably, quite a graphically high body count.
Which would you prefer your kids watch? Or discuss in class with their teacher & fellow students? How would the NRA seek to defend the high prevalence of gun ownership & the relatively easy access to them if your kids' grandma had watched this film & felt strongly that AR-15s should no longer be available to private citizens?
Essentially, for Watts' character to arc from uncertainty whether her son is going to school today, to then dealing with how far he may or may not be involved in a 'live shooter' incident, to her own personal involvement in the story's denouement, is actually quite a lot of work to layer together, whilst maintain pace/tension successfully. (And to signpost a few salient factors for a general audience to digest)
To answer some of the reviews of the "Watts running through the woods talking on her cellphone" variety, how would you describe the plot of The Blair Witch Project? Because when I saw that particular film my first criticism was "Don't park there, you idiots, you'll never find your car again!"
If you don't want to watch someone with literal 'skin in the game' react in real time, despite feelings of abject powerlessness, to an unfolding school shooting scenario with little information available, is that because you would rather watch a film about the violent shooting itself?
The scripting is a little manipulative of the audience's attention & the main character does seem less than capable as she struggles both to maintain her family & work life and to suitably engage with her 'support network', a year after losing her husband.
Her depressed son obviously lacks "a strong authority figure", so mum takes a 'personal day' off work & jogs off into the deep woods nearby. *Metaphor Alert* :-)
However, with very little acting support (although some good voice actors deserve credit) Naomi Watts carries the film with a very strong performance.
Given the story's focus, I should point out that this film was rated age 11+ on the streaming service I watched it on. There are, unfortunately, quite a few other school shooting films out there, mostly rated 18. Another I recently watched, revolved around the protagonists' actions & motivation from the POV of a student bystander - with, almost inevitably, quite a graphically high body count.
Which would you prefer your kids watch? Or discuss in class with their teacher & fellow students? How would the NRA seek to defend the high prevalence of gun ownership & the relatively easy access to them if your kids' grandma had watched this film & felt strongly that AR-15s should no longer be available to private citizens?
Essentially, for Watts' character to arc from uncertainty whether her son is going to school today, to then dealing with how far he may or may not be involved in a 'live shooter' incident, to her own personal involvement in the story's denouement, is actually quite a lot of work to layer together, whilst maintain pace/tension successfully. (And to signpost a few salient factors for a general audience to digest)
To answer some of the reviews of the "Watts running through the woods talking on her cellphone" variety, how would you describe the plot of The Blair Witch Project? Because when I saw that particular film my first criticism was "Don't park there, you idiots, you'll never find your car again!"
If you don't want to watch someone with literal 'skin in the game' react in real time, despite feelings of abject powerlessness, to an unfolding school shooting scenario with little information available, is that because you would rather watch a film about the violent shooting itself?