By Karen Benardello
Cast: Elijah Wood, John Bernthal, Chris Klein, Ginnifer Goodwin, Elisabeth Moss and Ally Sheedy.
Original Release Date: In Theaters January 18, 2008
Official Website: CLICK HERE
Scores: Technical: 80, Story: 90, Acting: 95, Overall Score: 88
Even though it’s only an hour and a half long and lost its fight to be a powerhouse at the American box office, Day Zero will leave a lasting and emotional effect on anyone who watches the DVD. Directed by Bryan Gunnar Cole and starring Elijah Wood, Chris Klein and Jon Bernthal, Day Zero rightfully relinquished its Hollywood blockbuster status and skipped on special effects to instead focus on the horrifying effects a reinstated military draft would have on present American society.
While many violent combat movies haven’t fared well with the American public in recent years, audiences may be happy to welcome Day Zero and its new spin on the war genre. First Look Studios and Indalo Productions, the companies that released the movie, made a smart move when they hired both big-name and unrecognizable actors to show how working class Americans would react to a reinstated draft. With these things in mind, it’s easy to question why the studios would premiere the movie at numerous film festivals, including Tribeca, last year, only to put it into a very limited release of two theaters nationwide for a couple of weeks in January, and then release it onto DVD a month later.
Day Zero is set in the near future, during which the state of global terrorism has forced the US military to reinstate the draft. Writer Aaron Feller (Wood), taxi driver James Dixon (Bernthal) and corporate attorney George Rifkin (Klein), three friends from high school who are all currently living in New York City, have just received their induction notices and have 30 days to report for duty.
While Aaron battles feeling of being unprepared to fight but fulfilling his obligation to serve, James doesn’t have any doubt about going to war. George is the only one determined to get out of the draft, because he feels war is wrong. As their reporting day, or “day zero,” draws closer, the three fight each other while figuring out what the war and draft means to them.
The movie has a surprisingly well-written script with well developed characters; not only does it show how Aaron, George and James interact with each other and how their views on war clash, it also shows how the draft affects their professional and personal lives. Aaron has trouble writing his next book, and feels pressured to finish it before he leaves. He also turns to prostitutes for sexual gratification because he’s not in a relationship. George just made partner at his firm, and doesn’t want to risk losing that. He also wants to stay with his wife, who just won her battle with cancer. James just started a relationship with Patricia (played by Elizabeth Moss), but doesn’t know how to break the news to her that he’s been drafted.
Wood, Klein and Bernthal all gave believable and convincing performances, which shows that they really understood the emotions and thinking of their characters. The three were all able to connect to each other as well, and they made it seem as though their characters have, indeed, been friends most of their lives, despite their different lifestyles and beliefs. Their bond was so strong that they supported each other during the month before they reported for duty, even though they disagreed about war.
Even though Day Zero was rated R for language, sexual content, some violence and drug use, which will limit the amount of people who are able, and would want, to buy the DVD, writer Robert Malkani made the right decision not to cut anything out of the script to attract more viewers. Everything that’s included in the script shows how the average American feels about war and the draft. While the DVD doesn’t offer any extra frills through its special features, and just includes Dolby Digital Surround sound, previews and Spanish subtitles, the script more than makes up for that fact; Day Zero will leave a lasting effect on anyone who watches it, and will make people question what they think about war.
