"Day Zero" Review - Written by Kelsey Zukowski

Day Zero

Review By: Kelsey Zukowski
Starring: Elijah Wood, Chris Klein, Jon Bernthal, Ginnifer Goodwin
Directed By: Bryan Gunnar Coal
Written By: Robert Malkani
Released: 2007
Grade: B+

Day Zero reflects on the time in the United State’s history between World War I and Vietnam. It focuses on the 16 million men who were drafted during that time. After Vietnam, the draft was dropped and our military has been on a voluntary basis ever since. Day Zero explores the possibility of the draft being reinstated. The film takes place in the future in New York City and shows the 30 days before men are expected to report for military duty.

The film revolves around three of the men who are drafted for the war, Aaron (Wood), George (Klein), and Dixon (Berthal). They have been friends for all of their lives yet seem very different and therefore each go through their own struggles over these 30 days. Aaron is a successful author who has recently gotten his first book published. George is a lawyer who is financially well off and has a loving wife, Molly (Goodwin). Dixon on the other hand, has a less prosperous profession as a taxi cab driver. He has had a troubled past through crime. One of his more serious offenses was really just him taking the fall for George. They all support different stances on the war. Aaron is very scared and hesitant, but accepts that he has to go. George flat out refuses to go to war. He tries to event excuses why he can’t go. He even attempts to cut off his finger and takes a swing at being gay so he won’t have to go. George is depending on his dad to find him some way out of. Thus far, nothing is coming through for him though, so he declares that he just isn’t going to show up. Dixon is disgusted with his friend at this and tells him that no one wants to go, otherwise they wouldn’t need a draft. Dixon really feels that it is their duty and they should be proud to go.

As this was a very character driven piece, the acting was vital. If it wasn’t convincing or relatable then there wouldn’t be any sympathy or care for the characters. Luckily, this film had great performers to bring these fears and emotions to the screen. Elijah Wood gives one of his best performances to date. He brings a certain fragility to the screen, which gives us insight on what he is going through. With 7+ years of therapy, he is already dealing with plenty of problem and insecurities even aside from the thought of going to war. He mentions that he thinks he will not be well liked and therefore suspects that he will be one of the first to die. With that kind of mind frame how can he walk to his death? Chris Klein did a very good job as well. I thought he did very well in American Dreamz as part of the voluntary army. He played more of a goofy and care free character there and it was really interesting to see the difference. Now obviously, these two characters were completely different from each other, but it is interesting to see the extremes that he goes to in Day Zero from the lack of choice in the matter. Jon Bernthal equally matched the talents of his more well known cast members; all three of them did an incredible job with the film. His role was really needed to balance out the other two and showed the other side of the situation. He had a strong and rugged appearance, yet it was displayed that this didn’t strip away fears. He felt this was the right thing to do even if it wasn‘t in his plans. Still, Dixon was dealing with a life altering thing and had to leave his whole world behind just like every one else.

The ending is very well done as both George and Aaron have a change of character. George did everything he could think of to get out of his service. Yet when it came down to it, he realized that if everyone chose not to fight than they would all be dead. George hates that his right of choice whether or not to be in the army has been taken away, but he knows that if he wants any rights period than he has to fight those who threatening it. Aaron really goes through a crisis. He had earlier made a top ten list of the things he had to do before he went to war. This really shows us how young of a spirit he is. Aaron is not ready to face his death or to be responsible for the deaths of others. Right before he goes, he shaves his head and gets tattooed all over his body, as his defensive armor. This is where it really becomes clear that there are other things that are affecting him other than being a soldier in itself. Aaron is really the most lonely one and is therefore in the worst position. His one success he has; his book, is really nothing more than plagiarism. He wrote it himself, but he took the story and claimed that it was his own. Aaron has no family that is there for him. He calls his sister and it is clear that he has become disconnected from them and they don’t really care for him anymore. He is a virgin with no girlfriend. His friend are all that he has. If they die there, he will be completely on his own. It is hard enough to go to the battlefield when you have a life and people who need you to come back to them, but it is that much more depressing when you have no one and no reason to fight for your life.

Day Zero deals with what many other films have surrounding prior wars. The atmosphere seems particularly close to Vietnam with the strong opposition to the war and the draft. Obviously, this has been covered time and time again. Day Zero doesn’t really offer anything completely new to this, but it does show that it is a timeless issue. It could have shown more new elements since this does take place in the future. There is a mention of a terrorist bombing killing many people in California. 9/11 is still a hot issue and reason enough to go to war, so this future can’t be far off. This can really be a frightening thought since this could be a reality. The main thing that Day Zero does that other films concerning the draft in the U.S. and war is it tells us that this isn’t just a thing of the past, it could be a policy that returns. We don’t really think about it, because right now we have a full military without the need for a draft. However, the more people who die and the smaller amount of people who chose this life, the higher the chances are that this comfort won’t always be there for the citizens to rely on.