The Hunt (2020)

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“Dangerous.” - Indiewire

“Not appropriate” - Time

“The most talked about movie of the year is one that no one’s actually seen.” - The movie’s marketers


We’ve seen The Hunt. We’re ready to talk about it.

The Hunt has not lacked for controversy. Originally scheduled for release in late 2019, it was delayed after mass shootings in Dayton and El Paso until February, 2020…and then put off again as cinemas around the nation began to close in the wake of the COVID-19 virus. The film was finally released via streaming platforms in March.

So what’s this thing all about?

The premise of the movie is that a group of “Deplorables” wake up in a meadow to discover that (initially) invisible enemies are hunting them. The twist (spoilerish, but something you likely know if you’ve seen anything about the film) is that the hunters are a bunch of politically correct - if you set aside the whole murdering people thing - ultra-liberals who spout catch phrases like “Climate Change is Real!” before killing their victims.

The set up is essentially framed as a mirror universe reflection of The Purge, with White, largely heartland and southern-originating, people taking the place of victims de jure. Like that movie, there is an abundance of over-the-top violence (which I’m generally not a big fan of). Also like The Purge series, there is a strong subtext…but one much more subtle than a simple rehatting of liberal for conservative.

“We need to lean into the stereotypes.”

The first hint that there is more to The Hunt than obvious comes in the first thirty minutes of the film, when one “Deplorable” after another comes into focus as the leader of the storyline…only to fall victim to death by arrow, hand grenade, or heavily processed sugar products. It is not an original trope. The HBO series Oz was built around that idea. But it is entertaining. It is also a soft set-up for one of the film’s major themes: what you think you see may not be what you get.

So stereotypes…

The movie is big on the idea that stereotypes are often not accurate…the obvious hero is killed early on…the victim is not what she seems to be…and so on. We won’t spoil too much but, throughout, characters prove to be something other than they appear.

One of them is our hero, Crystal (Betty Gilpin, most recently Ann Coulter in American Crime Story), who pops into the story around minute 30. None of the characters get much past two dimensional cutouts…which is kind of the point…but she does a lot with what she is given.

“What we have here, is a failure to communicate.”

We have to go truly spoiler-free at this point, but the last half hour of the movie explores a number of interesting ideas. The most apparent is that many of the problems in our current political climate do not come from genuine disagreement, but from assuming and ascribing the worst motives to those who disagree with us.

This is a blinding flash of the obvious to those who follow social media (which plays a huge role in the backstory of the movie), but Craig Zobel (the director) handles it cleverly. An even more interesting idea they roll around is how a fake conspiracy theory can evolve into a real conspiracy.

So what is the verdict on The Hunt?

First, we have to give the film props for trying to be original. It is not what it appears to be, and what it is is reasonably entertaining. At the same time, there is not much new in its twists or its morality lesson ending. For those, we recommend the quirkily meta The Cabin in the Woods.

And the acting, what little there is between exploding heads, is competent, particularly Gilpin and her arch nemesis Athena (Hilary Swank).

But…in the end…despite a pretty good ending and some smart ideas, The Hunt is not particularly inspired or original. It is not a bad movie…which may be part of the problem (its grasps for relevance turn a potentially interesting idea into a cliché) but it is not a really good one either.

But look past the stereotypes and decide for yourself.

You can catch The Hunt via Amazon.

Two our of Five Poison Donuts.

🍩🍩



Most reviews I see for this movie are along this line. A mixed bag of sorts. I just don't know if I can stand a fictional movie length watch of political stereotypes and ideas when there is so much of it already in reality.



“Dangerous.” - Indiewire

“Not appropriate” - Time

“The most talked about movie of the year is one that no one’s actually seen.” - The movie’s marketers


We’ve seen The Hunt. We’re ready to talk about it.

The Hunt has not lacked for controversy. Originally scheduled for release in late 2019, it was delayed after mass shootings in Dayton and El Paso until February, 2020…and then put off again as cinemas around the nation began to close in the wake of the COVID-19 virus. The film was finally released via streaming platforms in March.

So what’s this thing all about?

The premise of the movie is that a group of “Deplorables” wake up in a meadow to discover that (initially) invisible enemies are hunting them. The twist (spoilerish, but something you likely know if you’ve seen anything about the film) is that the hunters are a bunch of politically correct - if you set aside the whole murdering people thing - ultra-liberals who spout catch phrases like “Climate Change is Real!” before killing their victims.

The set up is essentially framed as a mirror universe reflection of The Purge, with White, largely heartland and southern-originating, people taking the place of victims de jure. Like that movie, there is an abundance of over-the-top violence (which I’m generally not a big fan of). Also like The Purge series, there is a strong subtext…but one much more subtle than a simple rehatting of liberal for conservative.

“We need to lean into the stereotypes.”

The first hint that there is more to The Hunt than obvious comes in the first thirty minutes of the film, when one “Deplorable” after another comes into focus as the leader of the storyline…only to fall victim to death by arrow, hand grenade, or heavily processed sugar products. It is not an original trope. The HBO series Oz was built around that idea. But it is entertaining. It is also a soft set-up for one of the film’s major themes: what you think you see may not be what you get.

So stereotypes…

The movie is big on the idea that stereotypes are often not accurate…the obvious hero is killed early on…the victim is not what she seems to be…and so on. We won’t spoil too much but, throughout, characters prove to be something other than they appear.

One of them is our hero, Crystal (Betty Gilpin, most recently Ann Coulter in American Crime Story), who pops into the story around minute 30. None of the characters get much past two dimensional cutouts…which is kind of the point…but she does a lot with what she is given.

“What we have here, is a failure to communicate.”

We have to go truly spoiler-free at this point, but the last half hour of the movie explores a number of interesting ideas. The most apparent is that many of the problems in our current political climate do not come from genuine disagreement, but from assuming and ascribing the worst motives to those who disagree with us.

This is a blinding flash of the obvious to those who follow social media (which plays a huge role in the backstory of the movie), but Craig Zobel (the director) handles it cleverly. An even more interesting idea they roll around is how a fake conspiracy theory can evolve into a real conspiracy.

So what is the verdict on The Hunt?

First, we have to give the film props for trying to be original. It is not what it appears to be, and what it is is reasonably entertaining. At the same time, there is not much new in its twists or its morality lesson ending. For those, we recommend the quirkily meta The Cabin in the Woods.

And the acting, what little there is between exploding heads, is competent, particularly Gilpin and her arch nemesis Athena (Hilary Swank).

But…in the end…despite a pretty good ending and some smart ideas, The Hunt is not particularly inspired or original. It is not a bad movie…which may be part of the problem (its grasps for relevance turn a potentially interesting idea into a cliché) but it is not a really good one either.

But look past the stereotypes and decide for yourself.

You can catch The Hunt via Amazon.

Two our of Five Poison Donuts.

🍩🍩
Great review, pretty much what I was thinking, though it’s been a while. One of the reviews I read soon after I saw it in the cinema suggested the biggest problem with The Hunt is that it doesn’t want to ‘defend’ either side. I’m inclined to agree, it doesn’t seem to quite know where it stands and what it wants to say.



Great review, pretty much what I was thinking, though it’s been a while. One of the reviews I read soon after I saw it in the cinema suggested the biggest problem with The Hunt is that it doesn’t want to ‘defend’ either side. I’m inclined to agree, it doesn’t seem to quite know where it stands and what it wants to say.
"...the biggest problem with The Hunt is that it doesn’t want to ‘defend’ either side."

Said perfectly.



A system of cells interlinked
Great review, pretty much what I was thinking, though it’s been a while. One of the reviews I read soon after I saw it in the cinema suggested the biggest problem with The Hunt is that it doesn’t want to ‘defend’ either side. I’m inclined to agree, it doesn’t seem to quite know where it stands and what it wants to say.
Wouldn't taking a side in the end sort of undercut its stance about stereotypes? I know it's somewhat rare these days to leave the final moral decision up to the audience, but personally, I would like to see more of it. There are other films that slay both sides equally, if we are talking about the red/blue spectrum anyway. Knives Out is such an animal, even if it clearly sends a message about class inequality by film's end.
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“It takes considerable knowledge just to realize the extent of your own ignorance.” ― Thomas Sowell



Wouldn't taking a side in the end sort of undercut its stance about stereotypes? I know it's somewhat rare these days to leave the final moral decision up to the audience, but personally, I would like to see more of it. There are other films that slay both sides equally, if we are talking about the red/blue spectrum anyway. Knives Out is such an animal, even if it clearly sends a message about class inequality by film's end.
Yes, I suppose it would, which is why I said ‘I’m inclined to agree’. I love grey area films, I just didn’t take The Hunt to be one - unlike No Country for Old Men etc. You’re quite right in that perhaps that’s not what really bothered me. To be precise, if Zobel wanted to explore stereotypes, he could have taken the trouble to show the pros and cons of both sides. That way, we get a sense that no position is perfect or constitutes the answer.

For example (this is very crude): the liberals think one shouldn’t defend oneself and they just let themselves be killed (one scene). But counter: they give the enemy a fighting chance/the benefit of doubt and engage in dialogue before blindly shooting. Likewise, the conservatives: cons - immediately kill all enemies indiscriminately, but pros: always try to save their own and never think it’s fine to sacrifice the individual for the group. The film could theoretically construct scenes around questioning/dragging out into the light/exploring these contradictions. Obviously I’m brainstorming to make a point. I think Lost (I’m aware it had x20 the time for that) had a similar approach to contrasting Jack & Sawyer as community leaders.

I think The Hunt was done pretty much as a one-girl show, which has already been said. The later scenes with Athena were way too derivative of Kill Bill IMO.

Knives Out to me was a bit different, because it explored character as well as class, and most of the family members were shown to exploit Harlan in one way or another. No one except Marta seemed to take an interest in him as a person. But I do agree it was more balanced. Though it could be argued everyone in the family is mean except Marta (not that I’m saying that), in which case, how is that balanced/nuanced?



A system of cells interlinked
IMO.

Knives Out to me was a bit different, because it explored character as well as class, and most of the family members were shown to exploit Harlan in one way or another. No one except Martha seemed to take an interest in him as a person. But I do agree it was more balanced. Though it could be argued everyone in the family is mean except Martha (not that I’m saying that), in which case, how is that balanced/nuanced?
It was balanced it its unmasking of the rotten core of most of the family members, no matter where they fell on the political compass. When it came down to it, both the hard-headed and crass right wingers and the elitist blue blooded liberals in the family exposed themselves as greedy and ultimately uncaring about anyone but themselves. The older generations were calculating and cold, while the younger generation were aloof and self-absorbed. The only redeemable characters in the entire affair was Marta, Harlan, and Daniel Craig's Southern dandy, Benoit Blanc.

For the record, I adore Knives Out, but I don't want to derail this thread on The Hunt, so I won't go into more detail.



It was balanced it its unmasking of the rotten core of most of the family members, no matter where they fell on the political compass. When it came down to it, both the hard-headed and crass right wingers and the elitist blue blooded liberals in the family exposed themselves as greedy and ultimately uncaring about anyone but themselves. The older generations were calculating and cold, while the younger generation were aloof and self-absorbed. The only redeemable characters in the entire affair was Marta, Harlan, and Daniel Craig's Southern dandy, Benoit Blanc.

For the record, I adore Knives Out, but I don't want to derail this thread on The Hunt, so I won't go into more detail.
Point taken. I agree.



What a strange movie. Should watch it again, but I doubt that I will. Hilary Swank very good. Betty Gilpin (new to me) even more so. Not at all sure I understood the storyline.
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Welcome to the human race...
Yeah, that's what really sinks it - it wants to do the Get Out thing where it satirises out-of-touch upper-class liberals above all else (plus it makes the targets into right-wing caricatures in an attempt at balance) but then it doesn't really give Gilpin's character enough in the way of definition (especially in terms of a distinct political perspective) to put the rest of the film into any coherent context.
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I really just want you all angry and confused the whole time.
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Hilary Swank's performance is great, but the film itself left a double impression, I think it is worth revising later, maybe I missed the storyline.



Hilary Swank's performance is great, but the film itself left a double impression, I think it is worth revising later, maybe I missed the storyline.
I agree. I have decided to watch it again.



waaait, i still didn't catch it, hope it's a nice one



I agree. I have decided to watch it again.
I have watched it three times and it does kind of improve once you do that. No masterpiece, for sure, but it benefits from you knowing what’s going on. Not sure that’s a point in its favour.



I have watched it three times and it does kind of improve once you do that. No masterpiece, for sure, but it benefits from you knowing what’s going on. Not sure that’s a point in its favour.
Two times is gonna be fine for me. It does benefit from knowing what the heck is going on! The time shifts so confused me first time around.

Good movie. Original & an amusing screenplay. The “woke” characters were hilarious.