1:54

By: Matt BC

By: Amos Lassen

"1:54"

Bullying, Intimidation and Homophobia

Amos Lassen

At 16, Tim (Antoine Olivier Pilon) is a bright student and gifted athlete. However, he is very nervous and with good reason. His suburban high school is a hotbed of bullying, social-media intimidation and homophobia, and Tim's sexuality is evolving. He is dealing with the nebulous world of teenage sexual identity while his schoolmates have left him isolated and afraid. He has one friend (Robert Naylor), who collaborates with him on science experiments that often end in violent explosions and gales of laughter. When his friend dies tragically, Tim copes with his grief and anxiety by throwing himself back into competitive running, a sport he'd abandoned. But there will be no Hollywood ending here, nor a West Hollywood one.

Yann England's dramatic thriller is about peer pressure and the catalyst for a dramatic change in attitude and a redefinition of what makes Tim who he is. We enter a resonant and believable adolescent world. We see the impotence that parents and teachers suffer when trying to 'control' teenagers. Face-to-face bullying has not been replaced by so-called cyber-bullying and there is no longer the sanctuary of the home. Social media has made sure of that. We do not see kids playing a prank but young adults perpetrating the crimes of premeditated hate, harassment and assault. They should not be shielded because of their age.

Bullying has to be seen as and treated for what it is... a crime. Pilon's performance as a young, gay teen with a target on his back is nothing short of wonderful. He goes through every emotion that a lifetime will throw at you...he stands, he falls, gets back up, gets knocked down...when totally broken, he breaks. As a first feature, Yann England shows the sheer isolation that this young man experiences causing us to be irate when the film ends.

Since the suicide of Tim's best friend Francis, he has only one goal in mind, racing and beating his rival and bully so he takes his place at the national finals. For several years, Tim had abandoned running , but with the events that took away his best friend, the need for revenge propelled him to surpass himself. We are taken into the darkest corners of the harsh reality some people experience during their high school. The narrative gradually evolves into what seems to be a race between homophobia and tolerance, but it suddenly veers into something far more sinister and harrowing. Let me issue this challenge- I dare you not to weep when the film is over.