Yesterday I watched, by special invitation, a new movie, The Hunted. It was a movie about two brothers getting into the TV Hunting Show business. Like most movies, we can all identify with most of the movies we see. For us, this one is no different.
For we hunters and outdoors people I don’t have to tell you that if you spend any time in the woods, they can get you a bit uneasy at times. Especially when night falls. And especially when we are alone. Beautiful and serene when the sun is shining but when the sun drops and the darkness envelopes you the woods seem to take on a life of it’s own. If you have an imaginative mind the shadows take on a sinister look. The sounds are more disconcerting too and every one catches your attention. Small sounds seem loud and loud sounds startle. This movie counts on it.
Jake (played by Josh Stewart) is out to make a TV series about bowhunting. Many of you have that same dream so you may relate. So Jake and his best friend Stevie hit the woods in a remote location in West Virginia where the outfitter has acquired some new property that not only hasn’t been hunted in decades but is home to a monster whitetail buck they call ‘Movie Star’. No one has ever actually seen Movie Star but the trail cameras are proof he’s there. The cameras have been set, the stands placed and all Josh and his cameraman brother have to do is wait for Movie Star to show up. It’s never that easy.
Well, strange things start on the first day of the hunt. The most startling being heart stopping sounds like a woman screaming that they chalk up that of a bobcat. Seems valid until they hear the tale of an abused woman who finally reached the end and set her home on fire, with the husband nailed inside. She then goes down to the stream and blows her brains out with the husbands shotgun. Her ghost haunts this little stretch of land where Movie Star waits to be filmed and taken.
I won’t spoil it for you. Overall I liked the movie. There were a few parts that almost seemed like they were going to drag and then didn’t as they moved to the next scene. I also thought I knew, a few times, what was going to happen and then they didn’t but I have to admit too there were a few times there was a notable space between my rear and the seat.
Scary? Yep. At night in the woods, two buddies in camo walking with head lamps when that anguished scream suddenly pierces the darkness. Yeah, it quickens the pulse. This movie is anticipation from start to finish. Thankfully, there is no blood and gore, bodies being torn apart, zombies sprouting from the ground and slower moving victims spurting blood like so many of today’s gore fests. That was nice. But fear, after all, doesn’t have to be thrown at you in buckets, does it?
Sum it up: You may not mind going into your treestand at dawn but you will probably want to get down and back to your vehicle before dark.
You can The Hunted DVD from Amazon or for additional information visit their official website at hunted-movie.com or Facebook page facebook.com/TheHuntedmovie. I think you’ll enjoy the show and maybe, just maybe you’ll have a different opinion on night in the woods.
