Very Cool!!!

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

Unshakable, witty and deeply felt, the film will be paying emotional dividends for a long, long time.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

A bunch of World War II veterans gather together at a remote cabin in the woods to let it all hang out. Things turn ugly after gruff ex-Marine Charlie (ably played with fierce intensity by Rod Steiger) discovers that caretaker David (a solid and likable performance by David Huffman) is a Vietnam war army deserter.Writer/director Burt Kennedy relates the absorbing story at a steady pace, makes the most out of the beautiful and isolated sylvan locations, builds plenty of tension, and stages the rousing last reel action set pieces with skill and elan. Moreover, the highly charged generational conflict between Charlie and David gives this film a considerable amount of substance and dramatic impact, with both diametrically opposed characters drawn in a complex and sympathetic matter. While Steiger and Hoffman do adeptly handle the bulk of the heavy lifting acting wise, they nonetheless receive sturdy support from Robin Mattson as David's sweet and enticing girlfriend Linda, Jerry Hardin as the easygoing Wilbur, Richard Herd as the jolly, yet lecherous George, and Paul Mantee as the macho Sweeney. Ken Thorne's moody military-flavored score further enhances the overall nerve-wracking suspense. The gorgeous cinematography by Carlos Montano and Alex Phillips Jr. provides lots of breathtaking scenic shots of the striking and misty lakeside setting. A real bang-up little beaut of a sleeper.

A couple of middle aged war buddies led by Charlie arrive at Wolf Lake for their annual hunting trip, but the guy they were suppose to meet isn't there, but instead there's a young man, David and his girlfriend who are care-taking the resort. When Charlie finds out David was a deserter in the Vietnam War. Hate builds up within, as he lost his son in Vietnam and he takes it upon himself to hand out the punishment for fleeing his commitments. If there's a sorely under-valued and truly forgotten pearler, "Wolf Lake" is one of those sleepers that should have a wider audience. It might be far from perfect, as the project has some teetering problems, but for most part it's an adeptly crafted and hauntingly cerebral picture. The problem area mostly arose from the oddly placed flash forward sequences that cut in and out within the narrative. This aspect certainly spoiled what's about to come and clouded the story with confusion. Feels like we the viewer are missing out on details. Actually it begins with the ending, so it's not terribly surprising in the final outcome. But reading a fellow user's review on the flick, it has made interested in seeing the supposed re-edited "The Honor Guard". As the choppy editing that was worked in was the only thing that dampened the film's edge. Despite knowing what was going to happen, Burt Kennedy's sedately crisp direction was a ticking time bomb waiting to explode with the burning tension and scathing actions coming to the forefront in the closing half. Building up to this riveting game of cat and mouse was made possible by a studiously pressure filled script and a sensationally barnstorming lead turn by Rod Steiger. He really does get into his relentlessly, hot-headed character, but its hard to really despise him as the torment really shows in his face and we watch as it tears him apart. Whenever he and David Huffman's character (David) share the screen watch how intensely gripping their confrontations become and how they feed the film's fire. It's a conflict of two generations just waiting to crack over their opinions of the changing face of America. The bleakly threatening atmosphere spun out from the beautiful lakeside backdrop and isolated woodlands was made to great use and a stirring music score truly does hold a lethal sting in its rhythm. All the rich performances are well grounded and focused. David Huffman as the placid-minded young man David is convincing and a lovely Robin Mattson plays hapless Linda. Jerry Hardin superbly plays the concerned and always consciousness Wilbur. His character is the little voice that Charlie would here if something he was doing didn't sit to well. Richard Herd and Paul Mantee do well in their parts. If your expecting a rough revenge / survival exploitation vehicle amongst a familiar setting. Its starts off with a lot innuendo and then some disturbing moments (like rape) show up. There's way more too it and gladly so. Kennedy fleshes out the situation with a diverse range of traits fusing together with excellent suspense and convicted performances. A couple hiccups can't stop this stimulating potboiler from deserving to be picked out of obscurity. Admirers of Steiger or Kennedy shouldn't miss out on this one. Recommended.

Given that the movie takes place in Canada, and with producer Melvin Simon having dabbled with the Canadian tax shelter system, you might have reason to believe WOLF LAKE is one of the outputs Canada made during its tax shelter period. Especially since it happens to be a thriller taking place in the backwoods. Surprisingly, though, the credits reveal that the movie was in fact shot in Mexico!While the premise of the movie may seem somewhat familiar, even though I can't think of any movie with a plot that's *exactly* like this one, it does have some exceptional elements, part due to writer/director Kennedy, a veteran western director. (In fact, some parts of the movie do resemble a western.) The production values are really strong, boosted no doubt by the ability to squeeze more value out of a dollar in Mexico, and the camera placing and other directional touches are very professional. Kennedy manages to give this lakeside setting an unsettling feeling, a sense of the threats to come.Kennedy also handles the cast pretty well, though all the actors seem well prepared and up to the challenge. The acting is really good, due in part that Kennedy gives the actors dialogue that fleshes out their characters. Steiger, no surprise, towers over everyone. Though his character is a villain whose eventual behavior can't be excused, you really sense the grief his character has been suffering for years - a grief that has eaten him up and filled him with poison. He's a frightening character even before crossing the line, because his behavior is so believable.The movie is not perfect, though. The biggest flaw is that (at least in the version I saw) there are flashforwards in the first half of the movie that manage to spoil almost *every* major happening in the second half. (The second half has a flashBACK to a previously unseen event, which makes as much sense as those flashforwards!) Also, it takes over half of the running time before the crisis actually starts! Incidently, the movie runs only 87 minutes, which is a pretty short running time. Given that short running time and those confusing edits, there's a chance the movie's slow (though not boring) first half panicked the investors and resulted in some drastic changes. Apparently the movie was re-released a few years later in its original form as THE HIGHEST HONOR, which I would like to see and compare. Maybe some enterprising DVD company could re-release the movie on that format, with each version on a separate side of the DVD. It's not as if the rights for such an obscurity would cost that much.

Melvin Simon tried to release this film as WOLF LAKE (with bad ending), but that version kept having flashback and flash forward scenes, and kind of made the film confusing. Later, re-edited and fixed in 1980 as HONOR GUARDS(with a good ending). The film has Steiger and his WW2 buddies going on a trip up in the cabin, which is run by a Vietnam draft dodger (Huffman, who was real life murdered by a 16 year old mugger in 1980, who got off real easy for murder) and his girlfriend (Matteson). Steiger's son was killed in Nam and blames it on Huffman. Violence and rape occurs in end in this suspenseful film. I don't know what ending Burt Kennedy, and even Steiger had wanted for the film. Steiger, who really gets into his character, gives one of the best performance of his career.