Weapons

Great movie! Through my interpretation, I believe  the story is about human exploitation against children in society + child abuse. Where Gladys represents as an authoritative and oppressive figure, symbolizing how abusive guardians often tell their children that they will receive consequences when contacting the authorities for help which explains Alex’s quiet demeanor which is a common sign of child abuse. We even see themes of alcoholism through Justine’s constant scenes of drinking and buying alcohol from the liquor store that can represent alcoholic parents. Through Paul and Donna, there is a lack of loyalty and can even symbolize  distrust between parent relationships, which can even be seen through families in real life that can cause behavioral changes in children such as  anxiety, betrayal, and a sense of abandonment. And of course James who represents drug addiction, another explored theme that represents parents who abuse drugs in their daily lives. Even the gun we see in Archer’s dream, I think it plays as a metaphor for the entire story of school shootings, particularly in elementary schools. The grief and anger from parents who seek justice in the movie parallels with how parents feel when their children pass away in tragic school shootings. With the police showing no real contributions of finding the missing children could even symbolize how our current government lacks regulation to gun laws that could even prevent these devastating school shootings. Overall, fantastic movie!