*** Official "THE HUNTED" Review Thread (1 Viewer)

[Robert Crawford]

This thread is now the Official Review Thread for "The Hunted". Please post all HTF member reviews in this thread.

Any other comments, links to other reviews, or discussion items will be deleted from this thread without warning!

If you need to discuss those type of issues then I have designated an Official Discussion Thread.



Crawdaddy

 

[LennyP]

Just came from watching it as well. Even 9 mins prior to showtime I was driving by Mann's Chinese and still deciding whether to see it or wait for DVD as the price of ticket + parking equals to a DVD to own from DDD, but as I'm saving Laurel Canyon for a "special occasion" next week and seen or avoided everything else, I went in, alone.

Basically I was surprised! The trailer makes it out like a general rip-off movie, but it's more than that, it's like a more extreme, grittier version of all the movies it reminds of, and I really liked how from the opening frame you're suddenly in Kosovo, 1999, all the slaughter, more horrific than that in Tears of the Sun. Del Toro's guy is actually bad and nuts, but you still feel pity for him, unlike mostly innocent protagonists of The Fugitive and First Blood. All the chases are prolonged and awesome, and the knife fights are bloody, I wasn't expecting much but it was great. Fitting for these first 3 months of a year, I'm sure 6 months later I'll forget about it in light of so many better films, but for now it's one of the best of the 10 weeks so far.

 

[Joshua_Y]

This moviekicked so much booty! It didnt feel anything like First Blood...both actors are great and do their stunts and the fights for once are actually real...I went with my friend who is pretty much a professional fighter...teaches classes...three black belts...etc...and he said thats how they would actually fight and damn that final fight is so bloody...yum! Loved it!

:star: :star: :star: :star: :star:

 

[Beau]

I saw this yesterday, and I felt a little dis-illusioned by the trailer. I thought that it was going to have a lot more story to it, Benicio's line in the trailer "I was set up" made it look like that he was falsly accused of something that was the reason he was being chased through the whole movie, but it ended up he was just plain crazy. That would have been fine, but I hate it when trailers make a movie look like it was something it's not. It wasn't bad, but it should have had better previews. Also, I really only saw this movie because it was filmed in Portlnad, the city I live in. And notice how in some of the scenes when people are in the street all with umberellas, but we here in Portland never use any stinkin' umbrellas! Damn Hollywood stereo type!

 

[Alex Spindler]

A very interesting film. It appears to be well researched, and the fights do indeed seem to be very authentic. But it's mixed with some very questionable activities as well. There is no plot to speak of, and the character development does little to establish them beyond what a spoken sentence could do. It is fairly clear that Tommy Lee Jones doesn't have much to build on when he starts gesticulating to show his uncomfortability with the office environment.

The very best of this film is in the fighting, which there are several good sequences. The end is quite bloody, although the combatants seem to be barely hampered by what look like disabling wounds. However, the choreography and performance by mainstream actors is impressive and worth viewing.

The bad is pretty abundant in the overall story, of which there is none. They try to broach some naturalist concepts, but quickly discard them. They try to bring up some conspiracy concepts, but then discard them. There is no effort to explain why Tommy Lee Jones is willing to help. There are a few attempts to develop sympathy for Del Toro, but are easily negated by his ease in killing ordinary citizens. I feel like the lack of a story was intentional, but they really should have done more to develop some backstory. They way it is now, Del Toro is "wigged out" and Jones is "chasing his because he can".

Then there is the silly. Tommy Lee Jones, a natural born tracker, proceeds to track Del Toro through downtown Portland for what feels like forever. I haven't seen this kind of supernatural tracking since Jason Voorhees was able to corner naked camp counselor #7 in some Friday the 13th movie. Then there is the bizarre break when Del Toro and Jones get down to some solid stonecraft and smithing. Right in the middle of a chase. I haven't seen the like since that MacGyver vs. A-Team TV Movie.

In total, I would say that the technical proficiency of the movie makes it worthy of view, but the superficiality and nonsensical scenes probably keep it from being consistently enjoyable.

 

[Steve_Tk]

So far, this definately wins the award for "Best popcorn flick of 2003".

Like some have said. If you go in expecting a lot of story, then don't go. If you just want to see some "plot-less" action with some of your favorite actors, then go.

Fun popcorn flick.

 

[DaveF]

"Hunted" started out strong. Aaron (Benici Del Toro), a black-ops soldier, has killed too many times and has now left "the range", killing hunters in the Northwest using his elite military training. LT (Tommy Lee Jones), now working for the Wildlife Fund in some undefined fashion is an uber-tracker with a military history brought in to help locate and capture Aaron. LT's survival skills are nearly a match for Aaron's and they square off in a seemingly realistic way.

However, the movie falls apart in the second half, as the hunt for Aaron escalates. The relationship between Aaron and LT is made ominous, then discarded. LT's fear of heights, built up initially, is forgotten and unused in the final climatic conflicts. And terrible plot cheats are used. In one scene, LT tracks Aaron through the city in a interesting series of scenes. The police, so far incapable of doing the same, easily find Aaron making pointless LT's hunting skills. And later, in about an hour, Aaron is able to build a fire, forge several knives from rusted scrap metal, traverse several miles, and build multiple traps in the forest.

(Spoilers, regarding end of movie)
And somehow this elite soldier, fresh from the battlefield, is defeated by a man 20 years his senior who has never actually seen combat.


I recommend hunting for a better film; "Hunted" truly disappoints in the end.