The phrase “going postal” has its origins in the 1980s where it was first coined to describe instances when disgruntled and angry post-office workers went on violent rampages by killing their managers and fellow employees. Since then it has taken on a wider connotation, as stated in this doc, to incorporate all public massacres and workplace shootings, most notably schools and universities.
This documentary, based on the book of the same name by Mark Ames, looks at the impact these incidents had on the families of those killed, the survivors and even the killers who committed the crimes to see just what pushes someone over the edge in this way.
Theories for why These Shootings Happened and an Interview with Michael Carneal
The film takes several case studies over the last 20 years, such as Atlantic Plastics in Henderson, Kentucky in 2008 and Santana High School in 2001, in order to hypothesise why these shootings happened. Regular themes do occur; alienation, bullying, mental instability, suicidal thoughts, but nothing is put forward as a key motive. As author Ames argues that the reason these instances are so hard to prevent or predict is because it’s a crime that is difficult to profile.
The programme goes at great lengths to explain what drives someone to kill others in rage, including an interview with convicted killer Michael Carneal. He was only 14 in 1997 when he opened fire on students at a prayer group meeting at Heath High School in Kentucky, which killed three and left five others wounded. It’s a bizarre section to witness, nevertheless insightful, as Carneal is coherent in his spoken delivery and understands what he did wrong yet claims that voices in his head forced him to do it and he shouldn't be defined his actions.
Less Preachy than Bowling For Columbine
One thing Going Postal did refer to is the gun culture that is present in the US, the main route Michael Moore took in Bowling For Columbine. But unlike Bowling For Columbine there were no teary calls for tighter gun control, there was no personal politics or self-righteous narration getting in the way by spelling everything out, and there was no finger pointing.
In fact director Paul Tickell was adamant to stay silent throughout the entire programme and instead letting the contributors alone tell the stories in their own words. If only Moore would take a similar understated role for his next film.
The interviews were well edited and in some cases the sombre words and descriptions of murders by survivors and families were cut over beautiful tracking shots of the communities they took place in, this contrast hammering home the shock and confusion much better than any dramatisation or reconstruction could ever manage.
Documentary in its Purest Form
Going Postal is documentary in its purest form; one that doesn’t let entertainment or one-sided views get in the way of fact yet still remains compelling right to the end. In terms of structure it was more in line with a reference book as each incident was discussed in full before moving to the next, almost like individual chapters. Above all though, it highlighted a grim fragment of modern culture without resorting to soapbox wrangling or tired scapegoats. And for that alone it deserves praise.
