The Hunting Ground

A documentary that digs deep into the toxic rape culture that exists on our country's college campuses, The Hunting Ground should be required viewing for any stakeholder involved in college life. In true documentary fashion, the film cuts right to the bones of the issue with such laser-beam precision that it reveals an entire web of corruption that is especially salient considering the rash of victim-shaming that emerges when this issue is brought before many political leaders. Perhaps the most shocking part of this story is the implication that (perhaps because of financial or personal pressures) the presidents of these colleges seem to value the health and safety of their athletic programs above those of their other students. This implication is exemplified with the film's brutally honest treatment of the accusations against Jameis Winston, the Florida State football quarterback who is entering the NFL draft this year. Though the bulk of the film focuses on articulating how colleges—we're talking the heavy hitters like Harvard, Stanford and Berkeley—spend more of their resources on covering up these allegations than actually punishing the perpetrators, the stories of the survivors and their efforts to gain national traction and support leaves the audience with the feeling that things are slowly changing for the better. --Alex Springer

This movie is very timely, yet long overdue.There is a culture on college campuses that have encouraged violent acts against women for a long time. The first hand testimonials drive home the horror some of these young women endured. The one cautionary tale is the testimony of the Winston accuser, as he was not charged, yet she is allowed to tell her story without being questioned or allowing Winston to speak. Her movie testimony was different from earlier versions of her story. In my opinion, her inclusion cheapens the movie and takes a way from the other powerful statements of violence against women on college campuses. It is almost as if the producers wanted to sensationalize the movie by using a well known incident to drive up interest. The subject matter alone speaks for itself. A must see for all incoming freshman women and their parents.

It is as easy as that. You have to watch this film. Everyone should watch it and then have a conversation of why this may be happening.

"The Hunting Ground" is a documentary about rape crimes in US colleges and how many of these stories get covered up for different reasons, including prestige, money or influence. It brings many of the victims and victims' families stories to the light, and a chance for them to be heard.

Even if it dedicates a fair amount of time to the "work" of the universities and the system in keeping these rapes silenced, this is not just a documentary on the reasons behind the cover-ups, but much more. It is the story of the victims and of how some of them have gotten together to try to stop the culture that protects the attackers from being persecuted.

The filmmakers do a very good job in explaining the situation and in giving all the victims a fair amount of time. The stories are balanced and all the factors are easily explained so the viewer can understand how it is these rapes are being, in the majority of cases, just plain ignored.

As said in the summary, this is one of those movies that everyone should watch.

When reading the reviews for this film, a lot of the problems our society is facing today become obvious. There is a lot of victim shaming and people citing these girls as liars or attention whores. This could not be further from the truth. To dismiss these women for having the courage to say what happened to them is despicable. Rape culture is alive and well in this country, and there is no excuse for it. Victims should not be asked what they were wearing or what they had to drink. How is any of this relevant to the fact that they were assaulted? Anyone who points the finger at a victim is deplorable. Watch this movie and stand with these women. They deserve our support.

They all know this goes on and this film exploits it and does it very well