A masked killer is hunting high school bullies. Their deaths are staged as suicides. Javier, a gay Mexican teen, begins having psychic visions of the murders. Should he save the lives of the people who tried to ruin his? Departing Seniors borrows elements from horror classics. Director Clare Cooney and writer Jose Nateras have cited Scream, Heathers, Minority Report and The Dead Zone as inspirations. Did they whip these ingredients into something new? Not really. But the film keeps things breezy with cartoonish characters and a simple plot. It’s a tasty snack for fans of queer horror.

Ignacio Diaz-Silverio gives a charismatic performance as Javier. With his sharp tongue he parries the bullies’ insults. At times he veers into bullying territory himself, showing the ways high school can turn us into monsters. Ireon Roach earns the biggest laughs as his cynical best friend Bianca. As minorities they’re aware of the targets on their backs. She’s the first to suggest that Javier simply leave the bullies to their fates. This moral dilemma is the most interesting part of the story. Sadly, the swift moving screenplay doesn’t leave time to explore it. The killer is in a hurry and Javier must react fast.

Maisie Merlock’s mean girl, Cameron Scott Roberts’ jerk jock and Sasha Kuznetsov’s angry closet case are familiar archetypes. They lack the quirks to rise above cliche. They’re allowed just enough depth to keep us from wholeheartedly cheering on the killer.

The film is not ambitious. A small cast makes it easy to guess the killers’ identity. The PG-13 kills won’t upset squeamish viewers. I wish Javier had more agency and the satire had more bite. As is, this film sits comfortably alongside queer slashers like Hellbent and Midnight Kiss. Films that are content to add queer heroes to the genre without challenging or deconstructing it.

Departing Seniors is available to rent online. You can find more of my reviews on The Avocado, Letterboxd and Serializd. My podcast, Rainbow Colored Glasses, can be found here.