“Judging by the looks of this place, I’m sure all of y’all are guilty of plenty.”
Bomb City is based on the true story of the death of Brian Deneke (Dave Davis), a 19-year-old punk rock enthusiast at the hands of 17-year-old football player Dustin Camp, renamed Cody Cates (Luke Shelton) in the film. Deneke and Cates both reside in Amarillo, Texas but inhabit two different worlds socially that are at odds with each other both metaphorically and literally. The resulting fallout of the tragedy manages to encapsulate many of the problems with the American Justice System, and the country’s culture as a whole.
“Bomb City” is the nickname for Amarillo due to its status as a nuclear weapons site, but for the film it also serves as a reference to the simmering animosity and tension between the two worlds inhabited by the city’s teenagers. Appearances and their upkeep are paramount in American society. Having the “correct” appearance in the eyes of society at large affords a level of privilege and assumption of correctness and innocence that those outside of the accepted construct rarely receive. This is the case between the punks and the jocks of Amarillo and it is put on full display in their disparate experiences with Amarillo law enforcement. Both groups engaging in underage drinking, partying, and destruction of property but the “good boy” football stars are merely confronted with a halfhearted order to disperse, handshakes, and thank yous while the punks have the door to their hangout kicked in, are assaulted and pepper sprayed, sexually harassed, and sent to jail, all by the same officer. This kind of dual justice track in America is oft-spoken about when it comes to things such as race and class, but alternative lifestyles being subjected to it even within the dominant classes less so. Being a clean cut “All-American kid” and adhering to the appearances deemed acceptable in our culture means receiving the benefit of the doubt in all situations as a result. How you look and present yourself provides you a lot of leeway due to the inordinate amount of stock placed on keeping up appearances in America.
The treatment of the jocks throughout the film, culminating in Cody getting a voluntary manslaughter conviction and probation instead of murder and a jail sentence, mirrors current news stories such as the aforementioned 2008 financial crisis and the lax treatment of Brock Turner; white males with “futures” and “reputations” treated with kid gloves at the expense of any of their victims. How many bad people, and outright criminals, are assumed at first glance to be nice people or figures of importance worthy of respect just for wearing suits and ties? Is this standard about appearances not why a common “thug” can get a life sentence for their third strike following a liquor store robbery and those behind the subprime loan mortgage crisis walk among us today having never been prosecuted? In addition to reflection on the inequalities of our justice system, the film also caused me to consider the country’s current response to bullying. A lot has been made of what many feel is an overreaction to bullying and conflict within American schools in the form of harsh zero tolerance policies. Zero tolerance is something I have always been highly critical of and, to some extent, I do still believe that the physical confrontations that have historically been part of growing up are still over-policed with school-aged kids and teens. But the treatment of the punks in the film and the lack of any help with their constant mistreatment made me think of how swiftly these issues are handled today and consider, for a moment, maybe they’re needed sometimes. If the torment doled out in Amarillo had been taken a little more seriously, perhaps Brian might still be here.
Bomb City is well shot and well acted, with the a strong performance from its lead Dave Davis. Davis ably portrays a young man struggling to find his place in the world while trying to navigate in a culture that assigns him worth based upon his willingness, or lack thereof, to suppress his individuality. The affect on Brian of being one of the lone shimmers of multicolored eccentricity within a locale where conformity is not only paramount but demanded is explored well in the film, with the viewer able to feel his frustrations and longing to exist in a space where he can just breathe and be himself. Luke Shelton’s acting as Cody brings a balance to the film’s portrayal of Brian’s murderer. Instead of showing him as a one dimensional monster, which would have been very easy and tempting to do, Bomb City displays the pressure felt by Cody to fit into the same stifling cultural framework that harms Brian and the rest of the punks and how that pressure contributed to the decision that he made that faithful night. America’s dysfunctional social mores not only harm those that fall outside of them, but those that adhere to them as well. Director Jameson Brooks’ choice to bookend the film with an early 2000s speech from musician Marilyn Manson as a disembodied narration covering the issue of modern teenage angst and violence as a response to American cultural rot was also a bold, standout choice for the film. Manson’s musing that white teenagers’ pain and resulting behavior is a natural reaction to American hypocrisy and corruption from adults accentuates what is displayed on screen. Brooks’ camera work is also a standout, with some very well done close up shots and a general use of the film’s cinematography to establish Amarillo’s small town culture and feeling.
Bomb City (available now on various streaming sites) is a well done examination of an aspect of American culture that is as old as the republic itself. The film forces us to confront the parts of our culture that are accepted without question and whose stench is covered up and overlooked. The sooner we confront it, the sooner we may resolve some of our nation’s biggest ills.
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