A movie doesn't need to be all adrenaline and witty dialogue to be seriously good. I'm disappointed with these other reviews. They're just wrong. The acting is adequate, if unremarkable, but the acting is not the point. This is a well-written, thoughtful film with no throwaway scenery. Everything is meaningful without being obvious.
This movie explores two kinds of terrorism (well, three or four, actually): the kind we name and wage wars against, and the kind(s) we excuse and justify. It manages to weave the narrative together with very little dialogue or action. Just little snippets that give insight into the motivations and prejudices of people, most of whom ought to know better. It manages to show relentlessly bullied youth and radicalized Muslim youth in the same light, which is a fair comparison when you consider that both can lead to the exact same kinds of terror (acts of mass murder).
The film's message is subtly delivered. It's a quiet, introspective film, and that's its power. It insists that you examine your own assumptions and sit uncomfortably with the comparisons it offers. It delivers a satisfying ending (in my opinion) which doesn't leave anyone free to justify their biases. It is also bittersweet, because
SPOILER
it seems nobody left behind will ever know what really happened, or, heartbreakingly, that the boys were not the monsters people needed them to have become. The actual culprit is never seen onscreen beyond an ambiguously-colored hand dropping off a backpack, which is the perfect solution to the plot's efforts at peeling open assumptions and leaving them to air out.
This movie explores two kinds of terrorism (well, three or four, actually): the kind we name and wage wars against, and the kind(s) we excuse and justify. It manages to weave the narrative together with very little dialogue or action. Just little snippets that give insight into the motivations and prejudices of people, most of whom ought to know better. It manages to show relentlessly bullied youth and radicalized Muslim youth in the same light, which is a fair comparison when you consider that both can lead to the exact same kinds of terror (acts of mass murder).
The film's message is subtly delivered. It's a quiet, introspective film, and that's its power. It insists that you examine your own assumptions and sit uncomfortably with the comparisons it offers. It delivers a satisfying ending (in my opinion) which doesn't leave anyone free to justify their biases. It is also bittersweet, because
SPOILER
it seems nobody left behind will ever know what really happened, or, heartbreakingly, that the boys were not the monsters people needed them to have become. The actual culprit is never seen onscreen beyond an ambiguously-colored hand dropping off a backpack, which is the perfect solution to the plot's efforts at peeling open assumptions and leaving them to air out.