School shootings continue to happen. It’s tragic, heartbreaking, and often feels a little desperate to watch things unfold and the cycle of violence repeat itself. Far from being a film that capitalizes on the shock value of such a devastating event, The graduates
is a low-key story that focuses on the aftermath – healing, grief, and trying to move on are at the heart of this character-driven narrative.
Writer-director Hannah Peterson calmly and tenderly explores the central complicated feelings, such as grief and the sense of loss, and being lost, punctuating each scene. If ever there was a film to watch about grief and learning to adjust to a new normal, it’s Peterson’s moving masterpiece.
The film takes place a year after a school shooting and, thankfully, does not show the events on screen. Genevieve (Mina Sundwall) is still mourning the loss of her boyfriend Tyler (Daniel Kim), a victim of that fateful day, and her friends, including Ben (Alex R. Hibbert, Moonlight), who went to another school and is also still grieving, leaving messages on Tyler’s voicemail, are also trying to move on in their own way. As graduation approaches, Genevieve, Ben and Tyler’s father (John Cho), the school’s basketball coach, face a future they are not ready to heal.
Graduates stay focused on grief
The graduates it is not based on any specific conflict between its main characters. Sure enough, their relationships are complicated by the shooting, and Genevieve and Ben are especially affected by what happened, their interactions tainted by that fateful day. But it’s not a film that relies heavily on any interpersonal drama to keep the story going. Instead, the film is a moving portrait of its characters’ everyday lives in the wake of a terrible tragedy. The way the shooting affected them, their hesitation to move forward, and the potency of their feelings will evoke a visceral response.
Does their collective pain make things easier or isolate them further? Peterson ponders the answers to these questions, intricately crafting a story that allows the characters… the time and space to settle into their emotions…
Often, it is the shooting itself that dominates the discussion, but The graduates dares to look beyond the initial devastation and see the impact it had on the students and teachers who experienced it or were personally affected by it. How are these students doing? How does filmmaking influence your life experiences as you move forward? Does their collective pain make things easier or isolate them further?
Peterson ponders the answers to these questions, intricately crafting a story that allows the characters—and, by extension, us—the time and space to come to terms with their emotions without encouraging them to forget what happened so easily.
The film is grounded, avoiding sensationalism and empty indulgences. With a story as heavy as this, there is a risk of exaggerating, but The graduates it walks alone, a gradual accumulation that never swings one way or the other. The film is poetic in its collective sadness, embracing the struggle without ever exploring its characters or the tragedy at its center. That’s a feat in itself considering how easy it could have been to do so. It’s a testament to Peterson’s filmmaking that the story is so evocative and gentle, rhythmic as the waves lapping the shore.
The cast of graduates is excellent
They deliver moving performances
It also helps that the high school students and their teachers are portrayed more realistically and not exaggerated for the sake of the story. Mina Sundwall is fascinating as Genevieve. The actress carries her character’s sadness and pain in her body language, her face wavering from one emotion to another as she tries to look toward a future that doesn’t seem as exciting as it may have once been.
Alex R. Hibbert is incredible as Ben, and the actor conveys all of his guilt, heartbreak, and aimlessness with great attention. John Cho also stands out and covers his performance with a melancholy that does not diminish, but transforms throughout the film.
The graduates is a powerful glimpse into the lives of school shooting survivors. As the news cycle progresses and almost nothing is done to prevent the violence, it is the teachers, students and their parents who have to live with what happened. Peterson and his team of filmmakers do an excellent job of getting into their lives afterward while also considering everything it means to do so.
The graduates premiered at the 2023 Tribeca Festival and is now playing in theaters. The film is 87 minutes long and is not rated.
The Graduates is a dramatic film that takes place one year after the events of a tragic school shooting that Genevive (Mina Sundwall) survived, but her boyfriend did not. While other high school students would be celebrating and preparing for the next phase of their lives, she, along with those who have experienced the consequences, are still stuck in a period they can’t seem to escape.
- The Graduates is a moving portrait of grief
- The film does not sensationalize its dramas
- He remains firm and the actors’ performances are excellent