Hunted marks director Vincent Paronnaud’s debut into live-action feature films.
He is best known for the remarkable Belgian coming of age animated feature, Persepolis. Hunted couldn’t be further from his award-winning animated feature. It is co-written by Léa Pernollet.
A solid cat and mouse fast-paced thriller, Hunted takes inspiration from the world of fairytales. To be more precise, Little Red Riding Hood or the horror reimagining, Company of Wolves. Only our villain ain’t a snarling wolf – he’s human but we see a ferocious beast-like transformation take place. Sometimes, humans are more to fear than monsters
HUNTED – WHAT’S IT ABOUT ?
Under pressure from a failing construction job, Eve (Lucie Debay) hits the local pub for some drinks to unwind and relax. After a brief encounter with a local sleaze, she is rescued by a mysterious local (Arieh Worthalter). Eve thinks that her night is about to change…it is. Before we know it, Eve is kidnapped by her once-charming hero and his clueless accomplice (Ciaran O’Brien). She is thrown into the boot of a car and then released into the woods to be hunted and killed.
OVERALL
While Hunted doesn’t offer us up much originality in this sub-genre it is a beautiful and often brutal film. Is it extreme? well, that depends on how extreme you like your movies. It is simplistic and very effective and shot beautifully. Our lead characters are both two-sided and it is super-fun to watch that transition take place. From charming hero to psychopathic killer and from scared prey to a badass savage warrior!
HUNTED premieres on Shudder January 14th in the U.S., Canada, U.K., Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand
You can check out the trailer below. I hope you enjoy.
As always, thanks for reading.
Words by GG
Founder/Owner/BigCheese @ Moviehooker
