(Not the most ideal military recruitment flick, wouldn‘t you agree?)
CAST: Tommy Lee Jones, Benicio Del Toro, Connie Nielsen, Leslie Stefansen.
DIRECTOR: William Friedkin
WARNING: Some SPOILERS and one decidedly woodsy version of Jason Bourne (sans amnesia) straight ahead…
IT’S LIKE THIS: Ex-military black ops trainer L.T. Bonham (Tommy Lee Jones) has got a big problem: his top student, Aaron Hallam (Benicio Del Toro), has gone all Jason Bourne (without the memory loss) and is slicing and dicing hunters left and right in the Northwest woods. Sssssmokin’ hot Portland FBI agent Abby Durrell (Connie Nielsen) feels the least Bonham can fucking do is help her catch the nutjob he created and put a stop to the murders. Good luck with that, L.T. and Abby. Have you seen the knife that Aaron has? I’ll leave the heroics up to you.
THE DUDE (OR DUDETTE) MOST LIKELY TO SAVE THE DAY: L.T., who is to the wilderness what James Bond is to glamorous cities. In short: a bad-ass mo-fo. Abby’s no slouch in the cojones department, either, and gets to wave a gun like she means it.
EYE CANDY MOST LIKELY TO FIRE UP A WOODY: Connie Nielsen. Since when did FBI agents start looking like statuesque supermodels?
MOST INTENTIONALLY HAIR-RAISING SCENE: Aaron pulling a Cuisinart move on a couple of hunters at the beginning, proving that all the high-tech deer hunting rifles in the world is no match against someone with a knife and the training to use it.
MOST UNINTENTIONALLY HAIR-RAISING SCENE: L.T. helping a wolf with its legs stuck in sharp wire. I kept waiting for that fucker to take a bite out of our hero. Alas, I was disappointed…
HOTTEST SCENE: This ain’t that kind of movie. Benicio Del Toro is like a Hispanic Brad Pitt, but he spends most of this movie looking like he wants to cut something up, and if there ever was a #1 boner-eradicator, it’s that. So we’re left with reliable hottie Connie Nielsen, who could be walking around with crack-whore stringy hair and a burlap sack for a dress, and you’d still want to spank her ass and call her a dirty bitch.
INQUIRING MINDS WANT TO KNOW: Will L.T. and Abby catch up with Aaron before he kills more hunters? What is Aaron’s beef with hunters, anyway? What happens when the military swoops in to claim jurisdiction for Aaron? Are they afraid he might spill the beans about some top secret operations? Don’t they realize that Aaron’s been ten steps ahead of them this whole time? Like I said, this is basically Jason Bourne - but with more body odor.
WHY YOU SHOULD WATCH “THE HUNTED”: If you like lean, mean, gritty thrillers that move like a bullet and offer solid entertainment.
WHY YOU MAY NOT ENJOY “THE HUNTED”: If you get queasy at the sight of guys going at each other with knives and sharp stakes.
FINAL ANALYSIS: THE HUNTED is a solid thriller with good performances from everyone concerned. It introduces intriguing layers of moral ambiguity, mostly to do with L.T.’s recognition of the fact that he not only helped create the monster that is Aaron Hallam, but turned his back on him when the going started to get tough. This is an interesting backstory to give a lead character, as it provides a strong motivation to make things right. And L.T. tries to do this by helping Abby nab Aaron before it’s too late.
Benicio Del Toro turns Aaron Hallam into the right blend of steely intensity, scary precision, and unexpected fragility. If there was an actor that could do this kind of role justice, it’s Del Toro. Connie Nielsen graciously lets her two co-stars take center stage, but doesn’t shy away from making sure that Abby Durrell holds her own in each scene. I understand that earlier drafts of the script featured more of a focus on Abby and L.T.’s relationship than it did on Aaron and L.T.’s. Fortunately, this was corrected. The guilt that L.T. carries for not helping Aaron when he should’ve is the moral and emotional fulcrum that this movie pivots on. Keeping the focus off Aaron and L.T. would have compromised the whole movie. Abby’s role is still large, but it is appropriately second to the two male leads because that’s the way this story should be told. It has nothing to do with her being a woman.
Director William Friedkin brings a kinetic yet also somber vibe to the proceedings. He perfectly captures the rainy gloom of Portland and its surrounding forest, playing up its brooding grays, greens, and browns. Friedkin’s experience in creating tension (THE FRENCH CONNECTION, JADE, THE EXORCIST) is well-utilized here.
In the end, THE HUNTED is a sleek and no-nonsense thriller ride that just might make you think twice about taking up hunting. It’s also a great showcase for the talents of Tommy Lee Jones, Benicio Del Toro, and Connie Nielsen.
