Hunting Bears

I recently viewed this short online and felt compelled to leave a review. It's not often you see a short that sticks with you - and this one does just that. I enjoyed it so much that I viewed it twice and I'm sure I will return to it again in the future. It is a dark drama set around the themes of caring and mental health - themes that are not covered enough on screen. Wonderful performances from the lead actors, Nathaniel Parker and Joel Beckett. I was also blown away by the fact that this was a debut from the director, as the direction and writing was fantastic. I would love to see what the director does next as this was an interesting first film and a conversation starter for what it covers.

Hunting Bears is a dark drama, with also a slight thriller aspect to it. The performances from the leads (Nathaniel Parker and Joel Beckett) is flawless. I would love to see them both perform together again, as there was a real sense of chemistry between them - even in a film of this kind.

There are not many films that touch the subject of carers and how looking after a loved one might affect them mentally. Hunting Bears explores this subject carefully and clearly lovingly, but also in a thought provoking way.

Overall I really enjoyed it (would have loved it to be longer). It is definitely a short that will stay with me for a while.

Jason Ruddy solidly crafts suspense in this short that will surprise you and lead you to reflect on societal standards and pressures regarding caretaking.

HUNTING BEARS is meaningful storytelling wrapped in (and upending) genre conventions. Worth the watch.

This was a really nicely paced, well directed short film which tackles important themes when it comes to taboo subjects. For a low budget short, this film had really high production values, with great cinematography, incredible acting talent and a emotion, professional score. As a film lover and someone that appreciates short form film, Hunting Bears is one of the stand out ones I've seen. It stayed with me for several days, as all good films should, and since I have watched it another two times, picking up on little things I missed the first time round. Parker and Beckett are on top form, a duo who I think work well together and should be on screen more often. All in all, worth ten minutes of your time.

I throughly enjoyed this short film. It's dark, gritty and very real. All the right ingredients for a dark drama.

The acting from the main cast is superb, with Nathaniel Parker putting on a rememberable performance that is award worthy.

As it's short format, it's just 10 minutes, but I would have happily watched a much longer version of this to see the relationship between the brothers develop.

The soundtrack works really well with the mood and tone of the film, and adds another layer - as all soundtracks should.

It's a film I will revisit in the future and will definitely stay with me for the next few days. Looking forward to seeing what comes from the director, Jason Ruddy, next.