Pitching Tents Review

Pitching Tents is a 2017 feature film directed by Jacob Cooney and written by Rob A. Fox and Jayme Petrille.

A film that tries to mix a little too many elements from classic coming-of-age comedies of yesteryear, Pitching Tents has a unique story at its core, but just ultimately can’t find its own identity.

All things considered; this is a decently made film that has a lot of fun moments. The debate of whether to go to college or start working at the encouragement of your family is an interesting jumping off point for the movie. It is one that is explored throughout, and the story comes to a satisfying conclusion.

Where things miss though are some varying technical issues, such as some scenes being blown out in the highlights, some jarring editing moments, and a few places of sound issues.

Saying this all-in succession would lead one to believe that these are a huge misfire moments, which is simply not the case. Nothing in any of those points is egregiously bad, but they happen throughout the film enough to be a minor distraction.

The bigger issue really is where the film borrows from the likes of Superbad, Dazed and Confused, and the myriad of coming-of-age movies from the 80s. Some of these moments felt like solid sendups, but mostly hinder the film from really carving out a unique place of its own.

It is a bit of a sad note ultimately, as there is a lot to love here. The soundtrack is a particular standout with fully licensed music that fits the scenes perfectly. There is some great art direction in the different locations used and a lot of care put into the wardrobes/makeup for the characters.

The acting was also mostly really solid here, too. The only weak link would arguably be the characterization of Stash, who Spencer Daniels does a valiant effort portraying, but the material just wears thin pretty quickly on.

Overall, Pitching Tents is ultimately a film whose mileage will vary for viewers. For those who grew up in the 80s this will probably serve as a fun nostalgia trip to a time gone by, but for anyone else it might not serve as well. It teeters a line of being not as sensuous a film like American Pie but not as wholesome as classic John Hughes films. It just falls in the middle, which can be an awkward position to land. One can certainly appreciate the effort though, flaws and all.

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Cheers!

Daniel Hess

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