Wildwasser-Sommer - Im Augenblick der Gefahr

I LOVED this movie when I was a kid and it's so funny how my perspective has changed as I have gotten older. I was all about Sean Astin as the hero and that Kevin Bacon was the bad guy and now that I am older...I see Kevin Bacon's perspective and I am seeing all that he was doing to help Sean Astin and how Sean was just a crybaby. Crazy what time and wisdom does when you get older. If this is your first time watching it in the era you probably won't like it at all. The music doesn't fit the movie, but it fits the 80's era of teenage movies. I do enjoy the story and most of the characters actually make sense through the entire movie. Is the movie good...no, but is it great nostalgia...YES!!!

This was a movie I had watched many times at my uncle's house during Easter or Thanksgiving family gatherings over the years...decades ago. So when I had seen that it was on demand for free on my TV today, I thought-"Why not?" As much as I like the movie, certain things just really bothered me about certain aspects of it. Even back then to this day. Kevin Bacon swears on his methods, yet is pretty reckless as a supposed mentor of the kids he takes on this trip. He teaches "Survival",yet punishes a great survival tactic (because he felt upstaged). Yes I understand the arguments of "teaching his way" and "listen to authority"...even his "don't destroy the wilderness" philosophy. For him to endanger the lives of these kids whose parents have trusted him just from a single slide-show of what they'll be going through is just irresponsible of them, and I don't know one single parent who would agree to such a thing.....but then we wouldn't have this movie now, would we? After many years of not seeing this,and seeing it one more time I have to say I still like it though. Definitely a good 80's flick to catch if you get a chance.

I used to love White Water Summer, but these days, when I pop the old copy into the VCR, I just can't seem to get through the whole thing without getting annoyed.

White Water Summer is about Alan's summer camp experience in the mountains with four other boys and Vic (Kevin Bacon), their psychotic New Age camp counselor who's wacky methods are supposed to teach the boys about real living. The story is told in flashback format, narrated by a much older Astin (who plays Alan, young and old) revisiting the those couple of days or weeks in the mountains. I suspect they took a break in filming, probably as Astin and others worked on other projects, knowing that pre-peubescent Astin would grow quickly and fill the shoes of the movie's older, wiser teen.

Alan is recruited by some nut named Vic, a guy who actually hikes to his family's home in the city. Alan, the little whiner that he is, doesn't really want to spend the summer with a bunch of boys, but reluctantly agrees, pretending to share his father's enthusiasm in the whole idea. On the trip with Alan is Mitch (Jonathan Ward), probably Alan's only friend along the way, and two smart ass jerks, Chris (Matt Adler) and George (K.C. Martel). They each have their various learning experiences hiking in and around the mountains. But, things get out of hand along the way when Vic pulls some nasty business on his recruits, and Alan starts to suspect Vic is way out of line. Unfortunately, he's got to grow up and start taking care of things himself, because he's the only one willing to stand up to Vic.

This movie has a lot of good things going for it. The photography is really beautiful, filmed mostly in New Zealand locations. The music is pretty good too, with ample sounds from the Cult, Bruce Hornsby, and the Cutting Crew (whad'ya know, they did have more songs thatn I Just Died in Your Arms Tonight).

The big draw maybe the cast, with the obvious audience appeals of Astin, Bacon, and possibly Matt Adler. Unfortunately, it is one of the few things you'll be able to see both Jonathan Ward or K.C. Martel in. Ward was on the later seasons of Charels and Charge, appeared in Mac & Me (an E.T. ripoff), but never really did much. Martel, who was George in E.T., goes on to appear in a few things, mostly later episodes of Growing Pains in which he plays Mike Seaver's friend, Eddie. It's worth a try. It can always suffice as a lazy day kind of movie.

This movie had potential, but unfortunately director's apathy, a mediocre script, and rushjob editing doomed this weak afterschool drama about boys coming of age in a campers' nightmare. Was it suppose to be funny? Who do we root for...Kevin Bacon as a drifting, needy, sex-deprived Vic, or a bunch of awkward Cub Scout rejects who all took the wrong turn at Albuquerque.

Kevin Bacon has produced finer results (Friday the 13th, Footloose, JFK), but every time I see "Hollowman" I'm always reminded of his twisted Vic character in White Water Summer. WWS did a stint on HBO a few years back, and that's where most people probably saw it. But it's usually eroding under a dripping air conditioner at your local flee market rent-a-flix. Did it ever show at a theatre?

The film: Vic wants to make men of boys, and yearns to school them the hard way...by assuming he is a higher order, and thinking he knows everything there is about wildlife, camping and adventure. There will be no knives, no radio, no weed and no softcore magazines on this journey. What is Vic's primary objective on this trip? It's clearly obvious that his only ambition is to traumatize the young, feeble minds of four teenage boys...and you can thank the parents for forking over their hard-earned dollars for the abuse.

What's so insane about WWS is that you can ALSO get the impression that Vic wants to make a positive impact on these kids' minds and souls. Sean Astin portrays Alan, a quiet, somewhat timid teenager who could've been picking his nose at any middle school in America. He's quite easy to relate to, and you can see clearly why he hates Vic. To Alan Vic is nothing more than your typical 30 year-old lowlife with no direction or purpose. Which is true.

If you want to know more about this oddball flick then just read the other comments by other users who cared more about this movie than I did. Oh yea, one more thing - the soundtrack isn't as great as some of you WWS fanatics make it out to be. Just your typical mid/late 80's "American Anthem-like" softrock. Nothing special or unique in there.

I like this movie for its soundtrack, I have been looking for this movies soundtrack forever it seems. sean astins role is a typical city boy with no real experience of the great outdoors, yes vic (bacon) does push him a little over the edge, but overall I'd give it a solid 7..