‘The Hunt’ might tick you off, and that’s a good thing
The controversial film “The Hunt” picks its political side clearly and quickly, with enough middle fingers for every ideological extreme.
The satirical horror thriller in theaters nationwide this week has taken a long, winding and tumultuous road to release and kicked up some dust along the way. “The Hunt” has been contentious because of its subject matter: A group of conservative-leaning “deplorables” (including Emma Roberts, Justin Hartley and Ethan Suplee) are captured and hunted for sport by a cabal of liberal Americans fronted by a mysterious leader (Hilary Swank).
The film was shelved in August after mass shootings in Dayton and El Paso, as well as criticism from President Trump, and now is back with a snazzy new marketing slogan: “The most talked about movie of the year is one that no one’s actually seen.”
A little over the top? For sure, though subtlety doesn’t exist with “The Hunt.”
Here’s the thing: “The Hunt” is definitely controversial, but it’s an equal-opportunity offender that forgoes partisanship to poke bloody, gory fun at everybody. A 90-minute ride that zooms as right wingers are hunted down, the movie — like “You’re Next” and “Ready or Not” — tweaks the “final girl” trope with
Crystal (Betty Gilpin of “GLOW” fame), a seemingly ordinary Mississippi woman who battles back with heroic mettle. At the same time, the movie takes no prisoners, eviscerating both sides of the political aisle and gleefully showcasing how ridiculous this divide truly is.
Director Craig Zobel’s film uses the real-world language — “inbred rednecks,” “snowflakes,” “crisis actors” — that these sides volley at each other, usually online, and unleashes a flurry of stereotypes, such as big-game hunters, white supremacists, Kid Rock wannabes and common trolls. “The Hunt” leans into how dumb “godless elites” really does sound out loud. “Woke” PC culture is also targeted with the precision of an X-Acto knife.