“A harrowing but meticulously observed look at teenage lives in the era prior to the Columbine High School massacre,” reads the official synopsis for Super Dark Times, director Kevin Phillips’ feature debut – his 2015 short film, Too Cool For School, premiered at the Cannes Film Festival to enthusiastic reviews.
Set in 1995 suburbia, Super Dark Times stars Owen Campbell (The Americans, Boardwalk Empire) and Charlie Tahan (Wayward Pines, Love Is Strange) as the two best friends. It also features Amy Hargreaves (13 Reasons Why), Max Talisman (Orange Is The New Black), Elizabeth Cappuccino (Jessica Jones), and Sawyer Barth (Public Morals).
The trailer hints at a traumatic event in the woods that involves four high school students and a samurai sword, but the advance press hints the film is more about shifting dynamics of high school.
“It’s about that period when kids get thrown in that cruel soup of teenage life,” Campbell told Entertainment Weekly after film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. “If you strip away all the trauma of the film’s plot, it’s just simply about a guy seeing his best friend, who’s been close and safe with him their whole lives, suddenly stepping into a new different world.”
That being said, a samurai sword is one way to cut through the cliques.
Super Dark Times is out in US theatres on the 29th September; when we get a UK date, we’ll let you know. Until then, here’s the trailer…
