Hawk

The performance of Robert Gwyn Davin in the final stages of 'Hawk' is powerful and yet not quite supported strongly enough by the rest of the film. I care, but I feel I could care more.

The location and the cinematography ensure that the film is consistently visually stunning; creating a sense of otherworldliness that provides a powerful foundation for the action. This combined with the excellent score and the characters' mellifluous Welsh accents, works to provide the entire piece with a strong ethereal quality.

For me, other than the extraordinary aesthetic of the film, its other greatest triumph is the animals. Generally when animals are not just on screen but actually directly contribute to the narrative, it can feel very forced. Instead of it making things feel more real, all I begin to imagine is the animal's handler jumping up and down behind the camera whilst trying to reassure the director that Rover can indeed portray grief. Essentially animals often hinder films by making the audience feel more conscious of the work that is going into telling the story rather than the story itself, and at this point all illusion is lost. However, In this film the hawks are obviously key to the narrative, but actually do much more than simply allow the plot progress. Every movement of each animal and particularly the hawks feels natural, and this provides an integral link between reality and fantasy.

Paradoxically it's often when the audience is unconscious of the filmmaker's touch that they are doing their best work. What is remarkable about 'Hawk' is the delicate way in special effects and shot choice have been deeply thought about and brilliantly implemented, making the natural landscape infinitely more vivid and full of possibility. Just as with the inclusion of the different animals everything feels cohesive and natural but at the same time wonderfully enchanted.

In regards to the story my overriding sense is that what is being told is simply too grand for the 39 minutes it is allowed. Certain shots feel rushed which makes it seem as though the plot progression is too quick to properly do the story justice. It battles with other elements of the film that are particularly strong and simply cannot compete. However this is all that is lost in a film that is visually stunning as well as engaging.

'Hawk', a surprisingly dark tale ultimately about survival, sacrifice and loss is a very enjoyable piece of film. Reminiscent of a Tolkien world, the North Wales portrayed in the feature seems like an entirely different plane of existence, allowing the audience to get lost in a fantastical new world. The stunning backdrop accompanied by the great score are two key factors as to why this film is a joy to watch.

The narrative, for the most part, is quite captivating. Gawain mentors young Rowan, where he is also mentoring the audience, truly drawing us in and immersing us, whilst giving us all the information we need to know about this land. Fastforwarding to the end sequence, the build up and the payoff is extremely tense and very exciting to watch.

However, there was one transition that slightly hindered the film somewhat, which is the change from young Rowan to old.

A great deal of the film is dedicated to Gawain mentoring young Rowan, time in which we get to know these protagonists fairly well. In transition, the now adult Rowan, seems to retain little if any of his previous characteristics, thus feeling more like a new character, a stranger. The payoff, whilst powerful, would have been a greater spectacle if we knew this character more or saw something recognisable within him.

That being said, to reiterate, the end sequence makes for some real compelling viewing either way. The Adult Rowan made a great hero - It was a shame we couldn't see more of Rowan as the master hunter/survivalist he had become, but always leave 'em wanting more is the phrase that comes to mind.

'Hawk' is a visually stunning piece of film and a pleasure to watch.

7.5/10

Hawk is an extremely ambitious fantasy film that at its heart has a simple and recognisable story of the internal struggle of good versus bad, told on a grand, epic and audacious scale. The technical elements of this film are a real triumph, with the cinematography and score taking at points precedence over the transparency of the bold but convoluted plot. Set in the mesmerising mountains of Snowdonia and encompassing rarely featured Welsh language and locale, this film offers a bold and original take on the fantasy genre and achieves an admirable and commendable final product.

Immediately the viewer can appreciate the cinematography. The film opens with a striking wide shot of adult Rowan (Robert Gwyn Davin), set against a bleak and enraged Snowdonia horizon, as aerial shots of the majestic Snowdonia mountain range perfectly set the fantastical scene. With limited dialogue throughout, the challenge is set for director of photography, Martin Hill, to guide you on this journey, which, along with Stuart Hancock's score, is expertly navigated and are both a real highlight of the film. The original classical score from start to finish is intensely scintillating and is easily a one of the strongest components of the film that imbeds itself into your unconscious long after the film has finished.

Where the cinematography, location and score leave you wanting more, a particularly difficult aspect to navigate was the conceivably intentionally-illusive plot. Though of course ambiguity is at this fantasy films heart, it felt at points that it left the audience with too much work to do and at times felt like crucial plot points were omitted or not emphasised on enough. Furthermore, much of the film anchors itself between the relationship between the well-delivered performance of Gawain (Philip Madoc) and young Rowan (Steffan Thomas). However, at points this relationship was difficult to invest in and get behind, resulting in depleted levels of character empathy and insight that were, specifically in Rowan's case, needed later in the film. That being said, many elements of the story really stood out and persisted. Rowan's internal battle between good and bad was plain to see and was well delivered by Robert Gwyn Davin in the final third of the film. The theme of taking only what you need from the land and treating nature with respect resonated particularly well and some nine years after its release, and is arguably more imperative and relevant now, than it ever was.

Undeniably, to deliver a mythic, fantasy film is no easy feat but to deliver one that is original, daring and restricted to a short film and independent budget is an almighty task. Hawk is as close to the finished article as you will find. One can only commend director M. J. McMahon for his ambition for the scale and size of this project, and through captivating cinematography, an astonishing score and a highly original and ambitious plot, Hawk achieves a great deal.

Hawk is a mythical tale of a boy, Rowan, who is removed from the world of man and due to tragedy must make his way through life alone. The film attempts to tackle immense themes, ideas of morality and the human psyche, natural order and man's relationship with nature. Although there is certainly potential for these grand themes to be developed, the films length prohibits it from expressing all it clearly wants to.

Hawk is an extremely beautiful visual piece of cinema. The cinematography and location choices are outstanding. Stunning scenic shots and numerous visuals of the sky and the clouds, perfectly coloured, are what stand out after watching this short. The dream like sequence comprising of, blurred images of the forest, crisp depictions of Rowan's 'crime' and the dark silhouette of the ominous Antlered God result in a distressing but arresting scene. The use of wonderful use of cinematic techniques and colour – the vivid colour in close ups of the Hawk are resounding – as well as a the intricate set, prop and costume design are real triumphs.

Although the film is delivered through superb visuals, I did not feel I was drawn to Rowan as a character. Jumps in the narrative resulted in a lack of connection with the character; we miss Rowan and his Hawk fostering a relationship, and lack an understanding of the intensity of his relationship with the Antlered God who is integral to the films climax. However, these are elements of the film the audience can conjure up for themselves. Although I felt Rowan's grief and burden of being trapped between fantasy and reality, my lack of feeling for him took away from what could be an extremely emotive ending to the film.

Regardless, Hawk is an extremely good watch. The story told is engaging, steeped in mysticism with classic features of a cautionary tale that make it accessible to a diverse audience. Hawk's haunting score and magnificent visuals transcend this film from a Fantasy short, to something much more memorable.

This short stands out amongst Capture's short films as a more ambitious cinematic endeavour, which leaves the real world far behind. Hawk succeeds in seeming to be much higher in production value than it probably is - clever use of drone shots and VFX to create a hawk's eye view of the craggy landscape give the film an epic scale from start to finish. Indeed the way DoP Martin Hill shoots the landscape is shot is a key strength of the film. It is packed with static shots that frame the cliffs and sky very nicely - and the use of the sky different times of day (including some beautiful magic-hour twilight scenes) keeps the lighting varied and interesting. Production Design is also another element that adds value to and richness to the world of Hawk. The shelters, tea boiling bags, drinking horns, leathered and feathered costumes. These work especially well because Rowan and his father would have had to make these by hand which Production Designer Emma Lo Gatto and her team probably did. All of this brings texture and detail to this story and grounds the characters within it by showing us the instruments and tools with which they live day-to-day The story itself is a real journey - from coming of age survival lessons and camp-fire stories with Rowan's kindly, wizened father, to psilocybin-induced nightmarish visions of Celtic demon-gods, and finally to a poignant moment of self-sacrifice. Despite the relatively small cast, the narrative spans many years and many worlds. What's particularly good is that the story is given space to breathe, and the dialogue does not shoulder the entire burden of exposition - meaning we have to fill in the gaps ourselves. All of these elements combine to make Hawk more than the sum of its parts - a short film that feels more expensive and epic, and has the legs to be adapted into a feature.