Hunting Camp

I had the honor of watching the premiere of Hunting Camp with about two hundred other people. The first that came to my mind after watching the movie was its crisp clean picture quality. The cinematography was top notch.

The story deals with the relationships of three men and a woman. After watching the movie one can only wonder how self centered our lives have become.

Compared to the director's last movie, Shakespeare's Dilemma, this movie was much better made. The acting, direction, and scene locations were very well thought of. One can only see the development stages of a soon-to-be-famous director from this movie.

A note of suggestion though. Story telling makes more sense when causes of events are explained well. A lot of events were assumed understood by the audience which at times made the story harder to comprehend. Also flash backs are better portrayed with a different color scheme, if not b&w.

I am eagerly waiting for Mr. Lyon's next production. The way he is improving, I must say that soon he will be a national figure.

The infusion of Erie Pennsylvania culture, solid performances and intelligent cinematography created a uniquely professional production from this up-and-coming director. It's obvious, after watching this film, that an incredible amount of thought went into every aspect of this masterfully executed drama. The filming locations and performances were simply an evolutionary step in the right direction. If Hunting Camp is any indication of what Mr. Lyons is capable of, I look forward to his future offerings.

FILM SPECIFIC NOTES: The storyline was somewhat complex for such a short film, but I wouldn't have changed a thing. It's refreshing NOT to be spoon feed a plot by the constant inclusion of redundant dialog and unnecessary flashbacks. While I'm sure others would disagree, I was able to "connect the dots" rather easily while still having the enjoyment of piecing together the story. The usage of "dual meanings" within the dialog was a master stroke by Mr. Lyons.

The performances of George Petrus (Jake) and Trevor Huster (Steve) added stability to an already solid plot. They were both extremely believable and bone chillingly realistic with how they executed the underlying story.

Karen Jeffreys (Susan) has the look of a Hollywood starlet with a camera presence to match. The dual nature of her character was executed flawlessly. Needless to say, it was an interesting take on "a wolf in sheep's clothing."

Rodney Simba Masarirambi (Trevor) added a critical level of realism to the film that otherwise would have left an obvious void.

CRITICISMS: From the perspective of an armchair director, I wish the character of Steve would have been a bit more likable or the friendship between Steve and Jake to have been stronger. I had a feeling that they weren't necessarily "friends" but rather distant acquaintances through Susan. If that avenue had been explored, the river scene could have been that much more dynamic. I also feel that if Jake had taken a "Bananafish" exit, it would have put an exclamation point on his mental health... but obviously would have damaged the ending.

Is everyone blind but me. this movie was far from being the piece of gold that everyone seems to claim it as.Maybe I should just unlearn everything that I know about good film making so I could possibly enjoy this film like everyone else.The cinematography was far from stellar. Crisp?.......I have seen crispier things come out of a....well you know where I am going. I have sat in on cinematography classes where "Hunting Camp" was showed as a teaching tool for "How not to make a movie day," and when you have a class full of student who just recently got into lighting pointing out lighting errors there is something wrong.Now I am not saying all of this just to be a critical jerk, but because I know that I am not the only one who thinks this and I had to say something, and I did so because if someone came across this page they would get thrown off track by all the positive comments and thinking it was a good movie.

This film is by far John's best work yet. The overall product is very professionally put together.

The story was well written, and delivered well in the 38 minute time frame. The presentation of the current timeline, mixed with various flashbacks that gradually build the backstory, was very effective. And the twist at the end, though somewhat predictable, was well executed.

The editing was clean and professional, although some of the transitions didn't feel natural, were rushed, or otherwise detracted from the rest of the good work in this picture. Although, in the overall viewing, these transition problems were minor annoyances at worst.

The acting was pretty good, although it is apparent that the cast isn't made up of professional actors. But, they did an admirable job with the tasks they were given.

Overall, though, I felt that this is John's best effort yet, and only shows his emerging talent. I look forward to seeing his next project.