Starring: Betty Gilpin, Hilary Swank, Ike Barinholtz, Wayne Duvall, Ethan Suplee, Emma Roberts, Sturgill Simpson, Amy Madigan, Reed Birney
Director: Craig Zobel
Release date: 11th March 2020
What seems like a normal plane flight, immediately becomes something more sinister when a man come bursting into the cabin, looking bewildered and a bit out of it. Suddenly the occupants of the cabin are on him and we immediately know that something very wrong is happening… Who are these people and where are they going? A short time later, a woman wakes in a clearing, only thing is that she is gagged and there’s a padlock on it so it cannot be removed. Taking in her surroundings, she sees other people, both men and women wandering around in confusion and panic. There is a huge wooden box in the middle of the field and a crowbar and one guy decides he’s going to open it. Everyone runs for cover, not knowing if it’s a good or bad thing. The box is pried open and inside is a huge armoury of weapons in all shapes and sizes. The group exit their hiding places and run to the box, not knowing what it all means. Suddenly an arrow appears from nowhere and ‘the game’ becomes a lot clearer… What exactly is going on, how are these people connected and who is hunting them?
There’s been a lot of new releases from the Blumhouse Production company in recent months, including ‘The Invisible Man’ and also ‘Fantasy Island’, and ‘The Hunt’ is the next on a long line of films they’ve made in the past. These include; ‘Glass’, ‘The Purge’, ‘The Gift’ and ‘Happy Death Day’. Founded by Jason Blum back in 2000, Blumhouse is going from strength to strength. The company’s model is built upon producing films on a low budget, so as to give their directors more freedom creatively.
On watching ‘The Hunt’, you get a bit of a ‘Hunger Games’ vibe of of it but that’s pretty much where the comparison ends. The violence is very graphic and with a 15 certificate on it, you can kind of see how much people of that age are now so used to seeing violence on this level. It’s just the norm.
The story is interesting and finding out who’s actually responsible for things is a great journey and story arc.
This movie will not be everyone’s cup of tea, but any squeamish people out there, make sure you have a look at the trailer before you go and see this on a big screen. As I said, the violence is pretty graphic and you see ‘everything’; the lady that falls in a pit is a good case in point.
If you like your movies graphic and violent with a few jumps along the way, this will be right up your street. Probably not one for a first date but go see it with your mates. There’s plenty of laugh out loud moments, though sometimes it’s not clear if they are intentionally funny. Give it a watch and make your own mind up.
Overall: 7/10
