Review by John Delia
With the release of the documentary After Parkland, voices have a movie for America. The massacre of the 17 students that took place at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on February 14, 2018 was awful and despicable to say the least. But, instead of standing by and letting time pass in order to forget, the students, parents and people of Parkland, Florida have spoken in this able production in hopes of being part of the solution of making schools safe.
Just a smidgen of activism on the parts of the writers, producers and film production house, it’s more of an outcry and a need for more attention to what is happening in America. There seems to be no fix other than being conscious that it may happen again, a warning to be aware of your surroundings, identifying possible perpetrators before they take action, and more providing of school property deterrents in the form of armed security. The message in the Documentary is loud and clear “keep schools safe†so our children can go to classes without fear.
Told in many voices, especially the students that survived the attack at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, parents of those that were killed and the many backers for change. The film opens with some film and sound bites of a Santa Fe, TX school, a Thousand Oaks, CA grieving and Annapolis, MD shooting scene, Pittsburgh, PA memorial, and more since the Parkland, FL shooting in 2018. It then proceeds from there with what has been taking place since that awful day in Parkland, Florida. Included in the film are huge rallies i.e. “March for Our Livesâ€, a visit of persons directly affected with shootings in their states with President Donald Trump, press interviews with some of those who survived the ordeal, parents who lost a child in the shooting, and even a politician running for Broward County School Board. Touching are scenes of the healing process with students getting ready for prom with one of the victim’s name tattooed on their shoulders, a special basketball game dedicated to the school’s victims, graduation robes with sashes showing MSD STRONG and with tear filled moments as loved ones accepted diplomas for those who were to graduate on that day.
There is so much more to tell about the film After Parkland, but the best way is for audiences to see the documentary opening nationwide two days before the second anniversary of the shooting on February 12th as a nationwide Day of Action. The film will also be available starting February 19th on HULU.
On Wednesday, February 12, 2020, “After Parkland†will screen in over 100 cities across the U.S. as part of a nationwide Day of Conversation to commemorate the second anniversary of the tragic shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. The film team and distributor Kino Lorber are creating a coalition of hosts to organize these screenings and create meaningful conversation and tangible change in 2020.   Find theaters and reserve tickets by February 3 at http://bit.ly/afterparkland .
FINAL ANALYSIS: A very good and meaningful production. (3.5 out of 5 Stars)
Additional Film Information:
Cast: David Hogg, Dillon McCooty, Manuel Oliver, Andrew Pollack, Samuel Zeif
Directors: Jake Lefferman and Emily Taguchi
Genre: Documentary
MPAA Rating: Not Rated, contains actual footage of shootings
Running Time: 1hr. 32min.
Opening Date: February 12, 2019 in theaters for one week only, February 19 the film will stream exclusively on Hulu
Distributed by: Kino Lorber
Released in: initially in Theaters