Reviewed by Rama Gaind.
Writer/director: Kyle Rankin, Defiant Screen Entertainment.
The subject of this film touches on a contentious issue. Unrepentant in its depiction, Run Hide Fight does not hold back, hence, consumption may not be easy to handle.
The storyline follows a high school besieged by a quartet of school shooters.
Zoe Hull (Isabel May, Alexa & Katie) is a high school student coping with the recent loss of her mother Jennifer (Radha Mitchell, Man on Fire, Olympus Has Fallen) to cancer. Once a promising student, she has lost interest in school life in her last few months of education. All Zoe wants is to get through the last few weeks of her senior year and leave — off to college and a fresh start.
Then, the school is attacked by four nihilistic, gun-toting students, who plan to make their siege the worst school shooting in history. Using her wits and survival skills, coupled with consideration, the 17-year-old fights back to save herself and her fellow students.
Thomas Jane is Zoe’s veteran father, who sees the same look of defeat in his daughter he saw in soldiers during the Iraq War.
It’s an alarmingly credible plot, against a group of live streaming school shooters, made eerily realistic through admirable acting. A calculating take on a sombre topic, the film makes no effort to become soft on its theme.
A well-made thriller that strains credibility, but is compulsive viewing.
What is the name of Zoe’s mother? You could win one of three DVDs of Run Hide Fight, if your answer is correct. Entries should be sent to [email protected] by Monday, 7 June 2021. Names of the winners will be announced in Frank Cassidy’s PS-sssst…! column on 8 June 2021.
