Direction: Megan Park
Country: USA
Canadian actress Megan Park makes an assured debut as both writer and director with The Fallout, a handsome fictional drama film about teen fear and trauma caused by a tragic high school shooting. During the incident, the 16-year-old protagonist, Vada Cavell (Jenna Ortega), locks herself up in a bathroom stall with two other terror-stricken students, Mia ('Dance Moms' star Maddie Ziegler) and Quinton (Niles Fitch). Her life and behavior change instantly from that moment on; she gets closer to these colleagues while silently growing apart from her family. Therapy sessions and the pressure to return to school are not helping, neither do the arguments with her activist best friend, Nick (Will Ropp). How to deal with this whirlwind of emotions in an already complex phase of life?
The story is rooted in real world concerns and describes the youth universe with insight. Park maintains a firm control of the narrative and no detail is too minor to escape her attention. The only quibble I found was a cliched scene between father and daughter, a moment of trust and liberation seen too many times before. Also not my cup of tea is the soundtrack, which, nonetheless, feels adequate to better portray the current youth culture. Acting-wise, this was the most demanding role given to Ortega, and she nailed it convincingly. The 19-year-old actor also stars in the latest installment of the Scream film series.
The Fallout is a bracing work, which treats the teens in question piercingly and hurtfully. The sensitivity demonstrated to the specifics of each character’s experience is remarkable.
