'Mass' takeaway: Absence of bigger factors almost mars the directorial debut

With a stellar cast and an engaging plot, Fran Kranz makes his directorial debut with Mass. The film takes place six years after a school shooting that turned the lives of the parents of the victims as well as the shooter upside down. It delves into the individual and subjective grief and agony experienced by parents in the aftermath of the tragedy.

The ambitious project from Kranz's end is a huge success and checks all the boxes for a well-made film.

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'Mass' summary

Mass starts off with a scene that features two supporting characters, a social worker and a church employee, as they set up a meeting spot for the two couples, the parents of the victim and the killer, in the basement of a church. It gives a glimpse of what is to follow over the course of the next two hours.

As the four sit down and start with some awkward small talk to break the ice, we sense the mounting tension from the expressions of Gail, the victim's mother, who looks ready to burst at any moment.

The purpose of the meeting was to exchange accounts and find some closure that was much needed for both parents. After two long hours of conflict, confrontations and eventually a conversation about their sons, the two couples walk away with some sense of closure.

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Kranz misses some important contexts

Director Fran Kranz has done a very good job dealing with a sensitive issue in a thoughtful and somber manner. However, as the conversations unfold, one cannot help but notice the absence of political and cultural connotations of the shooting. The individual psyche is mostly focused on in the conversation as both parties discuss the disturbing emotional state that the killer had been in for some time.

While it has been explored how the young killer got his hands on the guns, no reference has been made to the problematic laws that make it legal to carry firearms. Though the killer's father conveys that the shooting was an incident of multifaceted horror which could not be boiled down to a single incident or problem, the other hinted factors are not explored beyond subtlety. This makes clear how the director is almost cautionary in his approach while making Mass.

Nevertheless, Mass stands out to be an amazing film that is worth every second of the watch.