Walking Out

It is a well done movie, breath taking cinematography and marvelous music. The rhythm is slow in some parts of the movie though. Not a waste of time.

Okay movie but could have been a lot better. When do you see that much bear activity during the winter months?

Flashbacks like an after-school special are the device of choice to force the audience to care about the characters...this backfires, of course. Perhaps there is a film out there using flashbacks that isn't this weak and insipid. It's not JUST that, offensive and hack-y as they are. One never gets behind these characters. The actors try but the script is poor. The writer writes conflict but never creates it. We cannot get behind them. But we are constantly reminded that we're supposed to be behind them and there is supposed to be some deep reality to their lives. It's maybe an American pitfall these days. Just tell a story why don't you? Don't try to make us care. We will care if you give us something to care about. But not everyone is Graham Greene. There are other jobs in Hollywood, after all.

City boy David (Josh Wiggins) joins his estranged reclusive father Cal (Matt Bomer) in remote Montana for some hunting. There are flashbacks to a young Cal with his father Clyde (Bill Pullman) on a similar hunting trip. David is forced to abandon his phone in the isolated wilderness. An incident with a bear leaves them struggling in the middle of nowhere.

The incident is problematic. David's stupidity colors the movie in a bad light. He can be clueless but he shouldn't be stupid. I was with the boy up to that point. It's unnecessary to have David be so dumb. Did he think that he's in a petting zoo? Otherwise, this is perfectly good survival in the woods movie. The father and son relationship has a good strained vibe although Matt Bomer is no classic woodsman. He's too pretty and needs a bigger beard to cover that face up.

I was not sure what to expect when I first saw the trailer for this film. I will say I am very glad I watched it.

Avoiding spoilers, I will say right off....the the story was original in a theme and setting often used. Cinematography and score were beautiful. Acting was terrific and narrative told with heart and realism.

This is the story of a boy and his father who go hunting for "Big Game" together for the first time. During their search for game a terrible accident occurs. From this point on, the film is a study in human endurance and love. Also a strong element of a boy becoming a man.

I felt the story was told perfectly without overdoing it and keeping it as real as possible. You actually feel like you Are there with them and feel their pain. This pain, however, it suppressed by the human spirit. It's a simple story, yet, original and wonderfully shot IMO.

There are parallels between Father and son and the Sons Grandfather. The flashbacks are relevant and illustrate the dynamic between the three generations.

A very well done and aesthetically beautiful film.