Kendall Tinston
On December 14, 2012, the town of Newtown, Connecticut would forever be changed. On this day, a senseless shooting at the Sandy Hook Elementary School transpired, and twenty students and six adults needlessly lost their lives. Among those children was seven-year-old Daniel Barden, son to Mark and Jackie. Since that horrific day, the lives of every single person who lost someone have been irrevocably changed. Mark and Jackie Barden have been advocating for gun policy reform endlessly since that day, and their new documentary A Father’s Promise is another way to spread their message for change.
The documentary follows the story of Mark Barden—a musician and father—and the path his life has taken since losing his son Daniel. Specifically, the struggle between grief and attempting to reconnect with his long-term love for music while also doing whatever he can to help diminish the number of American lives lost to gun violence and mass shootings.
Daniel Barden is repeatedly described as a sweet and sensitive young boy who was kind to every living being that came across his path. He was a wonderful, and very special, son and brother. The indescribable loss that became all-consuming when his life was taken from him is expressed in every scene of this documentary. With hearing firsthand accounts from his family as to what a special soul he was, this picture is a true love letter from a family to their lost son and brother. Every frame is so full of tangible love, and this captivates audiences from the very beginning.
Throughout the film, music is not just an important part of Mark’s life and advocacy, but also a lead character. Beside talents such as Sheryl Crow, Little Big Town’s Karen Fairchild, and Bernie Williams just to name a few, Mark crafts emotion filled and masterful music that takes center stage during the entire runtime. The music that is heard not only seamlessly connects to the retellings taking place alongside it, but also deepens the difficult emotions that live within the documentary as a whole. It is impossible to hear the numerous pleas for change as a heart wrenching tune plays beneath it and not want to do everything in your power to advocate for a revolution yourself.
The overall flow of A Father’s Promise is not lost on those who will watch it. There is never a moment that feels unconnected or less engaging. From start to finish, the picture has a concise mission and storyline. To sum up nearly 11 years of such grief and advocacy in 98 minutes is no easy feat, and yet somehow it is achieved with this film. On top of that, interviews with some of the stars lobbying for change such as Sheryl Crow are interspersed throughout. To see a figurehead that is well known in American culture take a stance on something that is both trivial and paramount is so important. If by some chance the Barden’s heart wrenching story doesn’t inspire others to care or share this film, perhaps these interviews by Crow can facilitate. Crow also produced the documentary, cementing how strongly she feels about the crisis at hand.
An important thing to note is that despite the subject matter at hand, a sense of hope is felt as audiences watch this film. Depictions of positive actions taken in the wake of the tragedy, such as building playgrounds for other children in dedication of the children whose lives were lost are a small but important step. Allowing the memories of them to live on will only allow for their stories to be further widespread. The documentary seamlessly traverses not only who Daniel was, but the timeline of the Barden’s lives and advocacy since that day in 2012. Many encouraging steps are outlined, as well as many unthinkable adversities, but the film ends with a hopeful call to action.
The truth of the matter is that there is a very serious, very unsettling epidemic that has taken over this country. The ability to obtain a weapon such as a machine gun with ease is something that should scare and disgust every citizen. The only purpose that a firearm such as that holds is to kill mass numbers at an alarming rate, and America’s statistics around shootings support this grim fact. Thousands upon thousands of children, adults, and loved ones have been taken from the world in such a nonsensical way and it is up to us to lobby for policy to save not only our lives, but the lives of others. Gun violence is preventable, and people should take precedent over machines. Human nature is to inherently care for one another, and we simply need to get back to those roots. A Father’s Promise should be mandatory viewing and will leave every viewer making promises of their own to fight for their lives against gun violence.
If you would like to learn more about what you can do to help end gun violence, please visit Sandy Hook Promise, among other great resources.
The film is currently screening at the Look Cinemas in Manhattan, NY, with other cities to follow. Please keep an eye out for the film, and please take care of one another.
SCORE: ★★★★
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