The Hunted

When I was a kid, we used to tell ghost stories or re-tell urban legends around the the campfire. With the advent of the "found footage" genre, we've found a whole new way to keep our kids awake all night, even camping in the backyard.

"Blair Witch" did it first. But in my opinion, Josh Stewart has done it best. The filming wasn't so obviously orchestrated as to suggest a D.O.P., but then again, this stuff doesn't just 'happen'. The editing was great and the thrill of terror and suspense was heightened by the anticipation of the next 'event' (don't want to spoil what happens).

This is a very well crafted, well presented and well produced film - unlike so many other "found footage" projects that make you wonder if maybe someone's dad bought them an editing suite for Christmas.

Next time I pitch a tent around a campfire - if I'm ever so brave after watching this - I'll bring along a laptop and share this tale. Then, spend the night in my SUV with the doors locked.

Ironically, the only thing missing in this film was an actual campfire. Otherwise, very very well done and the cast and crew deserve an 'A' for effort and an "A+" for execution.

The phrase "pretentious drivel" comes to mind. Nothing happens in this film. Let me repeat that - Nothing happens. Nothing. Nada. Zilch. If your idea of a scary film is hearing a woman scream in the woods, do yourself a favor - find some woods close to your home, go there at night with a woman you know, and ask her to go into the woods and scream. You'll waste far less time than if you viewed this pitiful excuse for a "thriller". Trust me - I LOVE horror films (and I've been a fan for 54 years, and have seen 'em all). Watching paint dry is far more exciting. The really scary thing is that there are those who think this crap is worth making. They should be ashamed of themselves. Please, please don't waste your time - there are far better films to see. Avoid this at all costs !! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED !!

Or, as I have already said, CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST rip off too, to summarize found footage stuff. There were tons of them since all those years, especially BLAIR WITCH, before REC, PARANORMAL ACTIVITY, CLOVERFIELD and so on. So back to this one, the topic itself, without the footage scheme, is not new either. Another DELIVERANCE rip-off too, if you watch closely. Not bad at all, I have seen much worse, but it may be tiring to watch only this kind of material. Yes, you can feel tired and bored. But once in a while, I am OK. This feature sounds very amateur though, but I tried to put that besides. I tried. It remains too much talkative and flat, a problem for this kind of directing.

I had high hopes for this movie. I really liked "The Blair Witch", and I thought that this effort might be reasonably close. Unfortunately, I was wrong. You would be better served to watch an episode... ANY episode... of the television series "Mountain Monsters".

Someone else said he or she was being merciful bu giving it a 2. This isn't even worth a 1. These are supposed to be established actors? This is barely a quarter or a camp fire story. A beginning build up with nothing else. Just random noises and movements in poor light. The scariest part of the movie was at the very beginning where he scared his daughter in their house before even going on his adventure to the woods. I waited until the end, yet there was no climax. Nice scenery. That's the only redeeming quality. It was like a first time YouTube video with a cell phone done by 4 year olds.