Several ordinary high school students go through their daily routine as two others prepare for something more malevolent.Several ordinary high school students go through their daily routine as two others prepare for something more malevolent.Several ordinary high school students go through their daily routine as two others prepare for something more malevolent.
- Awards
- 8 wins & 13 nominations
Carrie Finn
- Carrie
- (as Carrie Finklea)
Ellis Williams
- GSA Teacher
- (as Ellis E. Williams)
Chantelle Chriestenson Nelson
- Noelle
- (as Chantelle Chriestenson)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThere are only about 88 shots in this film. More than half of them are in the last twenty minutes.
- GoofsAs Michelle is show pushing a trolley of books in the library over to a shelf just after the photographer walks in, you can see the yellow and white tape markings on the floor that indicate where she is supposed to stop the trolley and were she is to stand to stack the shelf.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Siskel & Ebert: The Best Films of 2003 (2004)
- SoundtracksPiano Sonata No. 14 in C sharp minor, Op. 27 No. 2 'Moonlight' I. Adagio sostenuto
(1800-01)
Composed by Ludwig van Beethoven
Courtesy of FirstCom Music, Inc.
Featured review
My opinions regarding 'Elephant' are somehow mixed. Okay, so I knew beforehand that the film was going to be about a shootout in a school. So that may have influenced my opinion but on the other hand if I did not know this, would I have sat through the entire movie? I ask this because the first hour drags. The cinematography is good and at times the viewer feels like a stalker or a fellow student observer. 'Elephant' takes place during the day of the shoot and the director gives us a glimpse of the lives of some of the teenagers but none of them were particularly interesting and Van Sant has adhered to using clichés such as portraying the 'nerd', the 'loser', the 'popular one', the 'bulemic girls' etc. Some questions I want to ask: Is it really that easy to get hold of such a high profile weapon, that too, delivered at your own doorstep? Van Sant doesn't directly give the motivation behind the student who decides to massacre the students although he does hint bullying and teasing as a possible motive. The shooters had to be repressed homosexuals? Why was it necessary to show them as homosexuals? I think many have liked it for the shock in the final thirty minutes but what I would have rather liked to see was a story about what causes young teenagers to take drastic action or what was going through the minds of students when this happened (which is what I thought 'Elephant' was going to be about). I like 'Gus Van Sant' as a director but in my humble opinion 'Elephant' is far from his best work. However, after seeing the film, it did get me thinking of the real life incidents that happened and the innocent lives that were lost. So, it would be wrong of me to say that 'Elephant' was a complete waste. It's not horrendous. It just could have easily been far better.
- Chrysanthepop
- Feb 7, 2009
- Permalink
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Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Languages
- Also known as
- Fil
- Filming locations
- Whitaker Middle School, 5700 NE 39th Ave, Portland, Oregon, USA(since demolished)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $3,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $1,266,955
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $93,356
- Oct 26, 2003
- Gross worldwide
- $10,012,022
- Runtime1 hour 21 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.33 : 1
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