“The Graduates” Earns Its Authenticity
Written by: Matt Patti | October 31st, 2024
The Graduates (Hannah Peterson, 2023) 3 out of 5 stars
In the United States, we live in an unfortunate reality where students going to school can’t feel entirely safe due to the ever-present threat of a mass shooting. It’s a grim thing to think about, many don’t like to talk about it, and folks can’t agree on how to stop these tragedies. One thing that everyone can agree on is that they need to be stopped, as the horrors that these events unleash on not only students, but also administrators, faculty, and the families of those involved are unthinkable.
Still, the topic is touchy these days, and many sadly ignore and forget the victims that these senseless acts of violence take from us. Director Hannah Peterson (making her feature debut), meanwhile, decides to take on this topic, even if only a small part of it. Her film, The Graduates, explores the grief of loss in the aftermath of a school shooting. Peterson doesn’t seem to lean one way or another in terms of the politics, nor does she call for any action specifically in the movie. However, she presents a slice-of-life film that sits with our characters through their struggles.
In the film, Genevieve (Mina Sundwall, Jesus Revolution) is in her senior year at Lewis High School. One year ago, her boyfriend was one of six victims shot and killed at the school. Genevieve and her friends attempt to go about their everyday lives as a former classmate, Ben (Alex R. Hibbert, Moonlight), returns to the town after transferring from another district. As the students prepare for life post-graduation, they reflect on those that they have lost and struggle to look ahead to the future.
The first thing one notices off the bat is the authenticity of the story and its characters. Peterson does a great job of making the audience feel as if they are present in this moment and in this time with the students of Lewis High. The viewer easily empathizes with the kids’ situations and feels their emotions and pain.
The excellent performances of the cast help generate empathy within the viewers. Sundwall and Hibbert are the standouts here, making each character seem authentic, with the audience happily rooting for them. The adult cast comes to play as well, minus one not-so-believable teacher who suffers from strange line delivery.
The interactions between each character are a fascinating watch. Even if there isn’t much said in terms of dialogue, their facial expressions—and the things left unsaid—speak volumes. There is a natural awkwardness to every encounter, as the high-schoolers attempt to have normal conversations with each other and opt to not talk about the shooting, as they frankly don’t know how to. They each tend to deal with the events that occurred in their own unique ways.
Another intriguing facet of The Graduates is the steps the school has taken post-incident to protect the children. While not featured quite as much as it could be, we get to see some small snippets of what life looks like for kids going back to school after a tragic event. This raises the question that is interesting to mull but not explicitly answered in the film: do these actions make the students feel safer?
Unfortunately, there are a number of opportunities that are not taken in The Graduates. While Peterson captures the grief aspect of a post-shooting community, she does not touch on the fear component. Going into this film, I expected the filmmakers to explore how the shooting affects one’s mental health, their time out in public, and their fear. Sadly, Peterson does not cover this at all. I think it would be worthwhile to see any PTSD the students are dealing with or dive deep into how they may not feel safe anymore, wherever they go.
Another missed opportunity is that Peterson does not attempt to present an overarching theme or strong message. This may be intentional, but I think a call to action, done tastefully without being too on-the-nose, would be powerful here. Instead, Peterson settles for simply capturing a moment in time and the characters’ grief without making much of a statement. This works overall, but taking that extra step could really lift this film much higher.
Overall, The Graduates functions well as a high-school drama centered around grief and loss. The performances, along with the dialogue and writing, paint a somber but realistic picture of this place and time in these students’ lives. While the film somewhat disappointingly does not explore some very compelling topics that go along with these types of tragedies, it does offer compelling characters that are dealing with horrific loss in their own ways, for better or for worse.