The Hunt (2020)

The Hunt is one of the most pointless films of 2020.  The film stars Betty Gilpin from the popular Netflix show GLOW as Crystal.  Crystal was kidnapped by rich elite men and women to be hunted and killed as a game of sport.  Not everyone realizes this is the case immediately which is why characters like Yoga Pants played by Emma Roberts and Trucker played by Justin Hartley of NBC’s This Is Us are dispatched with quickly and have a brief amount of time on screen.  The whole motivation for Crystal is to see who is behind this horrible game and stop them from doing it to anyone else, a natural altruistic motivation by any standard of the imagination.

Imagination is what this film lacks.  There is supposed to be loads of political commentary about how and why the world functions the way it does especially when it comes to the income gap and the social welfare of those around us in society.  This film has none of that.  The Hunt is a mindless exercise in bringing to life every troll comment from both sides of the political aisle and every point is so forced that as a viewer of the film I often asked myself why I am bothering to listen.  Film as an art is supposed to inform and engage but this satire fails to do its job in asking any of the heavier noteworthy questions that could insight a wider discussion relating to why people’s prejudices have such an impact in today’s discourse about how we treat each other as human beings.

The singular bright spot of this film is Betty Gilpin’s performance as Crystal.  She stays in command of her situation the whole time the hunt is taking place and viewers learn why at the beginning of the film’s final act.  The reveal is completely out of left field but its also the only organic plot point in the entire film.  This film gives so much time to how Gilpin moves and attacks throughout the film that the movie would have been better served if she was the only person captured but audiences need their glory kills to bring stakes to the proceedings.

Hilary Swank is the main villain of this film and to say that her motivations for the hunt are flimsy would be giving this film’s writers who are Nick Cuse and Damon Lindelof both of notable for their key roles in television shows like Lost and Watchmen credit for sloppy work.  Swank, already an Oscar winner gives her all in her two scenes of dialogue and her one brutal fight scene in a manor.  The direct nonchalant behavior she has to the chaos she has inflicted throughout the film’s 90-minute run time comes across as cartoonish and we can only hope that was unintended and not a conscious choice because it doesn’t come off believable.

Ultimately, this movie is a waste of time.  Even in the uncertain times we face with the Corona virus epidemic there are more challenging ways to challenge your mind and visual acuity.  Movies are meant to be escapism or to show us something about ourselves and the world around us.  This movie showed me I didn’t care about human lives when no one valued their own.  I would say I wasted my time but then again that’s what movies like this are meant for isn’t it.  A false use of money and time.  You want a better option watch paint dry.  Even though that process may be slow you’ll at least have learned something about what it takes to cause change.  This film could use that lesson.