On one fateful night, Allie (Trieste Kelly Dunn) discovers that Brooklyn is not as safe as she would like to believe. Dragged away from a party by her selfish boyfriend, Allie is in turn left to walk home alone. She is in her own neighborhood, giving Allie a false sense of security; the next thing Allie knows, she is sitting bloodied and bruised on her sofa, giving a statement to the local police.
Earlier that evening at the party, Allie met the Karate Kids, a goofily-outfitted, three-piece band from Austin. Allie hit it off really well with two of the band members, Zoe (Ashley Spillers) and Clark (Francisco Barriero), and they gave her an open invitation to join them on their trip back to Austin. At the time, Allie does not really consider their proposal with much seriousness, but after the violent conclusion of her night, Allie is ready to leave Brooklyn as quickly as possible. Austin signifies a city full of friendly, happy people; more importantly, it seems to be a safe(r) place to live. Allie believes that if she moves to Austin, she will feel safe.
Upon arriving in Austin, Allie realizes that even this laid-back locale cannot tame her raging paranoia. Allie needs something more than just caring friends and perpetual sunshine in order to feel safe. So, while in Texas, Allie does as Texans do, she buys a gun. The pistol is empowering and comforting. Allie is finally in control, but her perception of control is totally misguided. Two thousand miles away from her aggressors, Allie begins to find other targets to intimidate with the deadly weapon clutched in her hands; but even her fellow Texans think that Allie is totally misusing her gun.
Geoff Marslett’s Loves Her Gun studies the fine line between rational and irrational fear, as well as what it means to feel safe. Modern United States culture seems designed to perpetuate fear, whether it be by the government, news networks or entertainment media. Fear and violence cripples us, it makes us crazy, it makes us turn on each other.
Allie believes that it is better to be feared than to fear, but the philosophy of adopting the role of the aggressor is obviously not a feasible survival strategy for our society at large. Not everyone can be an aggressor; there will always be victims and many of them will be innocent. So, Loves Her Gun contemplates the role that guns should play in our society. In the wrong hands, the power of a gun can give someone too much control. The Constitutional right to bear arms is not intended to take away the safety and freedom of others; it is certainly not intended to make gun-owners the judge, jury and executioner.
