The Hunt

The Hunt
Starring Betty Gilpin, Hilary Swank, Ike Barinholtz, Ethan Suplee
Directed by Craig Zobel

There was much more story surrounding the release of "The Hunt" than what was actually delivered, but it doesn't mean the film itself was bad.  Scheduled to be released, it received criticism from some highly-powerful people, which led to the film being shelved entirely, with no plans of it ever being released.  Later, they decided to bring "The Hunt" to the big screen with a stellar viral marketing campaign, but once it hit theaters COVID-19 occurred, and the film was sent to VOD almost immediately.  After finally getting an opportunity to watch it, I must say that it was much ado about nothing, but again, that doesn't mean the film was bad - quite the opposite actually.

Crystal (Betty Gilpin) and a group of other conservatives awaken in the middle of a field, gagged, and have no idea how they got there.  They find a crate full of weapons, and immediately find themselves under attack by unseen enemies.  As the others are mercilessly butchered, Crystal manages to get away using her intelligence and resilience, and uncovers a vast conspiracy of liberal elitists led by Athena (Hilary Swank), who abducted conservatives and hunted them down for sport.

The concept for "The Hunt" is nothing new.  It's been used in novels such as "The Most Dangerous Game" (which was also made into a film) and "The Hunger Games" (also turned into a film), and films like "Battle Royale" and "The Condemned."  Throw a bunch of people who don't know one another together and hunt them down for sport.  So it's kind of a played-out idea, but director Craig Zobel tried to re-invigorate the concept in different ways - some worked, some didn't.

The most obvious thing he did was make it highly political, with the hunters being liberals (which in Hollywood is something seemingly unheard of), and the victims being conservatives, when you usually expect the opposite to be true.  Here is where the film really fumbles, with him wanting to craft some sort of political divide that's already alive and well in America and make it for entertainment purposes.  He adheres to the stereotypes of both parties (with liberals, even though they murder for sport, still show support for climate change, white-bashing, and non-gender labels; conservatives for their love of guns, talk radio conspiracies, and freedoms), and each character isn't given much more than that.  If the film didn't have this odd political overtone/undertone, it would've been the complete package.

Where the film does shine is in its biting dark humor, delivered with perfection by the entire cast, but most notably (and obviously) Betty Gilpin and Hilary Swank.  Gilpin plays the heroine Crystal with sheer determination, but also grit and low-brow humor you'd expect from a woman born and bred in the South.  She's headstrong and smart, and is always on the alert for any possible problems that could come her way, but she's still a redneck woman and proud of it.  Hilary Swank is the opposite, the liberal elitist who doesn't claim to own a Manor (she calls it a house) and who shifts the blame of everything to the victim.  She plays Athena with a steely resolve, and when these two women come to blows, it results in one of the most elegant and extreme female fights in recent cinematic history.

Another aspect where the film shines is in the great misdirection and the sheer bloody gory goodness of it all.  With big names like Ike Barinholtz, Ethan Suplee, Emma Roberts, and Justin Hartley, you'd expect them to live - even though you know Betty Gilpin has top billing.  Equally, the deaths are unique, gruesome, and all around fun - some of them made me think of the classic slapstick kills in cartoons like "Looney Tunes" - and more than once I found myself laughing out loud and having to re-wind to watch them again.  It's a bloody good time, as long as you leave the politics out of it.

Creating more drama outside than inside, "The Hunt" suffers from an overtly political message but delivers in the gore, violence, dark humor, and the stellar performances from Betty Gilpin and Hilary Swank, resulting in an epic clash of the female titans.

The Score: A