"THE FALLOUT" // SXSW 2021
THE FALLOUT follows the fallout of a horrific school shooting, seen through the eyes of those who made it out alive. With both gun violence and multiple school shootings in the news, often on a weekly basis, the timing of this story couldn't be more relevant. On the day in question, it starts just as any normal day, with high school student Vada (Jenna Ortega) running into another student Mia (Maddie Ziegler), a popular student who she knows but not well, while in the girls bathroom. Suddenly outside of the bathroom walls, gunshots ring out. The immediately hide inside of a stall and are soon joined by another student Quinton (Niles Fitch), who's covered with his own brothers blood. The Police are soon able to stop the shooter, which was a fellow student, but the ramifications are just beginning.
Vada comes to realize that she's not able to shake the school shooting, falling into panic attacks and unable to sleep. She ends up forming a close friendship with Mia, and they both fall to each other as a way to cope. Neither one find they can talk to anyone, not even Vada's best friend Nick (Will Ropp) who is inspired to take on some Parkland style activism. The screenplay by Megan Park (who also directed) is clever, subtle and powerful. Rather than talk about the shooting, the two girls seem to talk about anything else. Yet, through their performances, we always know exactly what they're trying to say. Both Ortega and Ziegler give excellent performances, both grounded and real. Shailene Woodley has a small but impressive role as Vada's therapist, who ends up being the pathway inside of Vada, since she closes herself off to her own parents, and John Ortiz and Julie Bowen give strong support as Vada's in-the-dark parents. THE FALLOUT is a powerful and quiet film, one that recognizes that none of the questions or answers are easy and even leads to a hopeful yet heartbreaking of a finale, which after the heartbreaking events that proceeds it, feels like the only way it could honestly end.
GRADE: A
WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY Megan Park STARRING Jenna Ortega, Maddie Ziegler, Niles Fitch, Will Ropp, Lumi Pollack, Julie Bowen, John Ortiz, Shailene Woodley SELECTED AS PART OF THE 2021 SXSW FESTIVAL. FOR MORE INFO: THE FALLOUT