American Gun

With American Gun, director and co-writer Aric Avelino is clearly attempting to explore his country’s fascination with guns and their effect on everyday citizens. But the filmmaker’s less-than-subtle approach and workmanlike directorial choices quickly transform American Gun into an overblown and surprisingly tedious polemic. The movie transpires during a particularly tumultuous period in the lives of several characters, including a dedicated inner-city principal, the mother of a high school shooter, and an aimless young college student who’s forced to work in her grandfather’s gun shop. With performances from folks like Donald Sutherland, Forest Whitaker, and Marcia Gay Harden, American Gun remains somewhat entertaining throughout – although it’s hard to shake the feeling that this is just a poor man’s Crash. Adding to that feeling are some of the more over-the-top plot developments, including a ridiculously broad confrontation between the high-school shooter’s mother and some unreasonably upset neighbors (who might as well be carrying pitchforks and torches). American Gun is a passable first effort, but Avelino’s reliance on cliches and hackneyed elements to propel the story forward prevent it from becoming anything more than a mildly diverting curiosity.

** out of ****