Day Zero is a 2007 American film directed by Bryan Gunnar Cole and written by Robert Malkani. Set in the near future when global terrorism has forced the military to reinstate the draft, three young men, who have just received their induction notices and have 30 days to report for duty, must battle their political views before making a decision that will change their lives forever.

This is American director Cole s debut film. It premiered at the 2007 Tribeca Film Festival and opened in limited release in the United States on January 18, 2008. The film stars Elijah Wood, Chris Klein and Jon Bernthal. It also features Ginnifer Goodwin, Sofia Vassilieva, Elisabeth Moss and Ally Sheedy.

Plot

In the future America, the military draft has been reinstated to fight the war on terror. The country s conflicting attitudes toward war are examined through the eyes of Aaron (Wood), George (Klein), and Dixon (Bernthal). The three friends have been given induction notices and have 30 days to report for duty.

Feeling unprepared but convinced that he must serve, novelist Aaron embarks on a quest to prepare for the life of a soldier — enlisting the help of a collapsing Bowflex machine and a disengaged therapist (Sheedy).

Corporate attorney George wishes to stay with his wife (Goodwin), a recent cancer survivor, rather than fight in a war that he believes is wrong. He spends much of his 30 days researching ways he can dodge the draft, but avoiding service does not prove easy.

Cab driver Dixon is the most fearless and free of doubt, but he falls in love with a sociology student (Moss), and suddenly issues that always seemed black-and-white to him are not so simple.

As reporting day, or day zero, draws nearer, the three friends fight, fallout, come together and comfort each other as each in his own way discovers what it means to serve with honor.

Cast

• Elijah Wood as Aaron Feller
• Chris Klein as George Rifkin
• Jon Bernthal as James Dixon
• Ginnifer Goodwin as Molly Rifkin
• Ally Sheedy as Dr. Reynolds
• Adam LeFevre as Client
• Elisabeth Moss as Patricia
• Sofia Vassilieva as Mara
• Zoe Lister-Jones as Jessica Hendricks

Critical reception

Day Zero received negative to mixed reviews from critics. As of June 2020, the film holds a 24% approval rating on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, based on 21 reviews with an average rating of 4.24/10. Metacritic reported the film had an average score of 41 out of 100, based on 5 reviews.

Year	2007
ReleaseDate	2007-04-29
RuntimeMins	92
RuntimeStr	1h 32min
Plot	The military draft is back, three best friends are drafted and given 30 days to report for duty. In that time, they’re forced to confront everything they believe about courage, duty, love, friendship and honor.
Directors	Bryan Gunnar Cole
Writers	Robert Malkani
Stars	Elijah Wood, Chris Klein, Jon Bernthal
Produced by	Robert Malkani,Anthony Moody,Daniel Sollinger
Music by	Erin O’Hara
Cinematography by	Matthew Clark
Film Editing by	Bryan Gunnar Cole
Casting By	Judy Henderson
Production Design by	Laurie Krupp
Art Direction by	A.R. Brook Lynn
Set Decoration by	Melissa Miller Costanzo
Costume Design by	Andrea Huelse
Makeup Department	Lisa DelleChiaie,Michelle Kearns,Lauzanne Nel,David Presto,Leo Won,Loretta Alston
Production Management	Csaba Bereczky,Kimberly K. Ferraro
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director	Bruce Hall,Lyon Reese,Joe Wehmeyer,Neil Daly
Art Department	Ayse’ Amdjadi,Matt Bronshvag,Daniel,Kley Gilbuena,Paul Matamoros,Mark McElligot,Anita Paccione,Illya Radysh,Elizabeth Ralston,Andrea Seidel,Mark Sonderskov,Adriano Valle,Paul Wielonsky,Victor San Andrés
Sound Department	Carmen Borgia,Mike Guarino,Matt Gundy,Jack Hutson,Ken Jackson,Kevin Wilson,John Sember
Visual Effects by	Mike Nuget
Stunts	Damian Achilles,Gabriel Hansen,Derrick Simmons,Manny Siverio
Camera and Electrical Department	Sam Applebaum,Mark Beattie,Jess Fogel,Shawn Greene,Linda Kallerus,Sebastian Mlynarski,Jeff Niggemeyer,Anwar Payne,Walter Strafford,Sean Taylor,Vance Tucker,Ryan Webb,Joy Weber,Zoë White,Zenfeek,Mark Beattie,Olivier Bernier,Marialuisa Ernst,Ian Fischer,James McCusker,Matthew Mendelson,Stewart Resmer,Meg Schrock,Simon Shen,John Shim,Josh Taylor,Travis Tips,Zenfeek
Casting Department	Kimberly Graham,Katie Matulonis,Janelle Anne Robinson
Costume and Wardrobe Department	Osomede Ayinde,Mark Richard Caswell,Cameron Cooper,Gracie Cox,Christine Edwards,Martina Melendez,Olivia Mori,Sarah Shears,Chrissy Stewart
Editorial Department	Saleem Aziz,Roger Doran,Ned Thorne
Location Management	Paul Irwin,Ramon Morillo,Jeffrey R. Stimmel
Music Department	Catherine Bent,Jim Black,Peter DeBoer,Emery Dobyns,Tom Gavin,Matt Gundy,Graham Hawthorne,Erin O’Hara,Tony Shanahan,Megan Weeder,Jimi Zhivago,Jason Diamond,Josh Diamond
Script and Continuity Department	Katri Billard
Transportation Department	Matthew Reedy
Additional Crew	Kate Borne,Stefano Cargnel,Elisa Castaneda,Mark Andrew Clark,Harriet Steel Durkes,Elijah Estes,Drew Evans,Jonathan Gray,Preston Greenwood,Sondra James,Vanessa Kai,Louis Katz,Evan Krauss,Kirk A. Lewis,Selenis Leyva,Hector Linova,Arthur Louis,Marcus Maurice,Nicholas McManus,Sean Nelson,Carninal O’Hara,Mary Patterson,Dan Seery,R. Zachary Shildwachter,Joleen Small,Ned Thorne,Miriam Tielmann,Bill Timoney,Ed Trucco,Nathan Weinstein,Jason Wingo,Melinda Ziyadat,Jesse Beller,Katie Matulonis
Thanks	Mikhail Baryshnikov,Jason Diamond,Josh Diamond,Justin Feldman,Jonathan Gray,Evan Krauss,David Kwok,Jeannie Moody,Erin O’Hara,Kathleen Thorne,Tom Touchet,Joanne Roberts Wiles
Genres	Drama
Companies	Indalo Productions
Countries	USA
Languages	English
ContentRating	R
ImDbRating	5.9
ImDbRatingVotes	2863
MetacriticRating	41
Keywords	death threat,exercise,looking at oneself in a mirror,taxi,duty