Movie Review: The Hunting Ground
By Kim Reynolds, Contributor
[Cinedigm; 2015]
Rating: 5/5
“One in five women in college is sexually assaulted.”
This daunting statistic has created enough momentum to engender a nationwide conversation. The Hunting Ground is an incredible piece of introspective art helmed by Kirby Dick, who was also the writer and creator of The Invisible War. The Hunting Ground delves into the epidemic of sexual assault and rape culture on college campuses. The film dives into this issue by multiple interviews across multiple campuses as well as statistics, news articles and headlines from several campuses.
This movie is incredibly poignant as it covers all the aspects of rape culture cohesively. The backbone of the documentary focuses on Annie Clark and Andrea Pino in their journey to fight for justice of their rape crimes and create a network of advocates all over the country. Perhaps the most impactful aspect of the film is the intimacy. Multiple interviews, reports, and stories of victims of sexual assault were often times hard to stomach. I could feel the shame the victims felt from unhelpful administrators, the anxiety victims feel in attending the same university as their rapists, and the burning passion to end this problem and bring justice to every single person affected.
The documentary does an excellent job of identifying the systems at work that enable these problem to ensue. For example, capitalism is a driving force. Universities are very hesitant to ever report sexual assaults in order to maintain image and ensure donations from alum and consistent enrolment.
One of the best takeaways, however, was seeing Ohio University featured in the film as participating in protests of solidarity for students around the nation. This was a very proud moment for organizations like Fuck Rape Culture and The Student Union, as well as the campus as a whole.
However you feel about the subject, this is an incredibly important film to see.
