7 Movies Like The Fallout You Must See

A Megan Park directorial venture, ‘The Fallout’ tells the story of the survivors of a school shooting. Before the incident, Vada Cavell (Jenna Ortega) was a happy teenager with a supportive family. But the experience leaves her shell-shocked, and her family can’t find a way to get to her. Vada forms a unique bond with Mia, in whose company she spent those moments of pure terror. As the film progresses, their relationship becomes something more profound. If you have watched ‘The Fallout’ and loved it, here is a list of recommendations. You can watch most of these movies similar to ‘The Fallout’ on Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime.

7. Run Hide Fight (2020)

Unlike the rest of the entries in the list, ‘Run Hide Fight’ is an action thriller film. It revolves around Zoe Hull (Isabel May), a teenager dealing with the immense grief of losing her mother. She lets her anger guide most of her actions. Her father taught her how to handle herself. While at school, she witnesses four individuals barging in and killing teachers and students indiscriminately. Now, it’s up to Zoe to save the lives of the other students. Like ‘The Fallout,’ the narrative in ‘Run Hide Fight’ predominantly focuses on the victims of a crime and not on the suspect.

6. Zero Day (2003)

Inspired by the harrowing real-life incident of the 1999 Columbine High School massacre, ‘Zero Day’ follows Andre Kriegman and Calvin Gabriel, two young students who decide to shoot up their Iroquois High School. Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, the murderers who committed the Columbine massacre, serve as loose inspirations for Andre and Calvin. Both ‘The Fallout’ and ‘Zero Day’ flesh out their main characters and use them to tell the story they want. While ‘The Fallout’ focuses on the victims and survivors, the other film sheds light on the perpetrator.

5. if…. (1968)

Long before the Columbine massacre, film and tv show creators started playing with the idea of violence at educational institutions. One important example of this is ‘if…..’ Directed by Lindsay Anderson, it tells the story of Mick Travis (Malcolm McDowell), Wallace (Richard Warwick), and Knightly (David Wood), who are students at a prestigious British public school for boys.

Because of their inherently rebellious attitude, the three boys face constant harassment at the hands of a group of upper sixth-former students known as the “Whips.” This continues until one day, the three protagonists snap. Like ‘The Fallout,’ ‘if….’ explores the shortcomings of modern society by using an educational institution as a metaphor.

4. Polytechnique (2009)

A dramatization of the 1989 École Polytechnique massacre, ‘Polytechnique’ depicts the incident by using two students as audience surrogates. A gunman carrying a rifle enters the Polytechnique Montreal and begins selectively targeting women, claiming that his victims are all feminists. This was one of the first films of the French-Canadian filmmaker Denis Villeneuve. Like in ‘The Fallout,’ much of the narrative focus of ‘Polytechnique’ has been devoted to the victims and survivors of the attack and their incredible courage.

3. The Dirties (2013)

‘The Dirties’ revolves around Matt and Owen, long-time friends who aspire to make a movie depicting them taking revenge on their bullies. However, when they show the rough cut of the project to their film teacher, the latter discovers that it shows the two boys killing their tormentors. ‘The Dirties’ belongs to the found-footage style of filmmaking and is one of the few movies that do it well. Both ‘The Fallout’ and ‘The Dirties’ demonstrate the vivid horror and profound helplessness that the students feel during the school shootings. Both projects also enunciate the importance of family to deal with a tragedy or avert it altogether.

2. We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011)

The cinematic adaptation of Lionel Shriver’s 2003 namesake book, ‘We Need to Talk About Kevin’ tells the story of Kevin Khatchadourian (Ezra Miller), whose mother, Eva (Tilda Swinton), recognizes him for who he truly is quite early, but no one seems to believe her. This includes her husband and Kevin’s father, Franklin. So, almost predictably, Kevin grows up and becomes a murderer. Like ‘The Fallout,’ ‘We Need to Talk about Kevin’ chooses to focus on empowering characters who are not the killer, effectively creating a complex setting.

1. Bowling for Columbine (2002)

‘Bowling for Columbine’ is one of the most influential documentaries of all time. Written, produced, directed, and narrated by Michael Moore, the documentary explores why the massacre happened, how violence is viewed in America, and the gun culture of the country. ‘Bowling for Columbine’ is a definitive project about school shootings. ‘The Fallout’ can also potentially achieve this because of its earnest depiction of trauma among the survivors.