Let me preface this piece with a warning – the topic and film discussed here are very sensitive and disturbing. These issues have grown exponentially over the last 20 years, and to bring awareness to the reality of psychopathy/sociopathy and school shooters is to explain it without condoning the actions of the characters in this film.
My aim is to make sense of them.
Zero Day is a mockumentary released in 2003 that follows the planning and habits of two boys piecing together an attack on their school. I originally read about this film in one of the many “Top 10 Most Disturbing Films” clickbait articles out there. Given the current debate on gun control and the nature of the film, it had me curious. The film is available for purchase on Amazon but it isn’t available to stream anywhere. I eventually found it in the depths of YouTube and decided to give it a watch.
Make no mistake, I have seen the majority of “disturbing” films that supposedly no one can finish. ‘Shock Cinema’ was a favorite niche of mine for years. I own most of the directors’ cut, remastered, or unrated versions of a lot of these films. And yet, the climax of Zero Day almost reduced me to tears. How?
Director Ben Coccio created a perfect portrayal of psychopathy in character Andre; His actions and calloused nature keep him from reaching the sociopathic side of the spectrum, as he does not have remorse for the things he does, even if they are done to people close to him. The film begins with Andre showing off what he already has accumulated for the planned “Zero Day”—different kinds of ammunition along with fake IDs, social security cards, passports, and even Peruvian cash in case they make their escape. He recklessly steals weapons from his father and cousin, builds bombs to kill indiscriminately, and murders any classmates he sees. Andre did not have a “kill list.” He wanted to kill anyone he got his hands on and he laughed about it.
Character Calvin, Andre’s accomplice, has more sociopathic tendencies. He is antisocial, angry, and follows Andre’s word even if he does not agree with it. While Andre dreams of escaping and going on the run after the shooting is finished, Calvin admits privately that he is leaving the school “in a black plastic bag.” Calvin is considered a sociopath due to his visible remorse towards the people he cares about and his reckless disregard for his own safety. Commonly, sociopathy is seen as a lesser version of psychopathy, as many sociopaths can learn to disregard their antisocial behavior and therefore avoid the consequences of their actions while psychopaths don’t care if their actions have consequences. This is seen when Andre and Calvin egg the house of a fellow classmate. Once they are finished, a car drives by and the boys begin to run. Calvin continues to run even though the boys appear to be in the clear as Andre says “why are we still running?” and laughs. This small detail shows that Calvin is concerned with his actions, while Andre is not concerned with the consequences.
The main flaw I have with in Zero Day is the inability to distinguish whether Calvin is actually a psychopath or a sociopath. Barely any time is shown with his family, and it is not enough to indicate whether or not he has emotional attachment to them. Having more screen time with his family or even a conversation in passing that indicates his feelings towards the people that raised him would be very beneficial to piecing together his thought patterns. The small amount of time that Andre is seen with his parents indicate his feelings towards them very clearly – he sees them as less intelligent and manipulates them into believing he is a normal teenager. This is not made clear in Calvin’s character. Yet, his sociopathic tendencies are seen in the way he cares about Rachel, a female friend of his that he is seen spending time with. Rachel even describes Andre as violent, mean, and “the leader” of the pair of boys. It is suggested that Rachel and Calvin do not go to the same school, as she invites him to prom and he doesn’t know anyone in the limousine when he steps inside. This is a suggestion of sociopathy, his being friend’s with Rachel, but what if they did attend the same school? Would he still be planning “Zero Day” to kill indiscriminately?
Another major flaw in Zero Day is the lack of proof that these symptoms existed before the boys met one another. Typically, psychopathy is noticeable and diagnosable before the patient turns 16. Zero Day begins with Andre’s 18th birthday, and it is not indicated how old Calvin is.
Andre is a textbook psychopath, while Calvin does not present enough evidence one way or the other. One thing that is evident in Calvin’s character is his strong emotions, which is why I would consider him a sociopath. He takes the wrongdoings in his life personally and is the only character that has one on one time with the camera where he expresses his emotions and delusions. The night before the shooting, Calvin is recorded saying “you can think that you’ve cured us and we’ll make you believe that, but you can’t cure somebody who has nothing wrong with them.”
Andre is also very factual, not expressing any emotion in the film besides anger. Andre is the person with the plan. He records himself changing the stock on his father’s gun as methodically as possible and expresses that what he is doing is illegal, but it doesn’t matter to them because of what they are using the weapons for. He also explains how to build a bomb, suggesting using a code word for the weapons and going to different stores to buy the different components as to not raise alarm. Andre uses the filming of their preparations as a How-To guide to getting away with a violent attack, while Calvin films his emotions. Calvin’s emotional tendencies suggest sociopathy, but there is not enough evidence to indicate this.
Audiences have questions at the end of films that are as realistic as Zero Day, especially in this day and age of gun violence. Audiences want answers, and while this film is very powerful, it is not clear what is wrong with Calvin. Adding small character flaws into the film would make his illness clearer and even possibly provide answers to a viewer who walks away asking “Why?” Small clues to indicate whether or not he has empathy towards other people would make this film even more powerful than it already is.
Zero Day is still one of the most unsettling films I have ever personally seen. This film can be considered dangerous towards a troubled child, as it has a DIY approach towards massacres and how to inflict the most damage. As explained earlier, this movie is not available to stream anywhere (and for good reason). Through better character development, the diagnosis of Calvin would be significantly clearer and make it easier for a viewer to distinguish what is wrong with him. For the mentally sound and objectively curious, this is not a film to be missed.
