The Hunted (2003)

William Friedkin's taut direction highlights The Hunted, a bloodsport thriller that works best without dialogue. It's a prime vehicle for costars Tommy Lee Jones and Benicio Del Toro, whose rugged screen personas are perfectly matched in a manhunt between a military assassin and the man who trained him to kill. Traumatized by atrocities in Kosovo four years earlier (the site of an action-packed prologue), Hallam (Del Toro) is seemingly psychotic and now killing in the forests of Oregon; Bonham (Jones) is lured out of retirement by a tenacious FBI agent (Connie Nielsen) to end Hallam's murder spree. The hackneyed plot is derivative to a fault (no surprise from the screenwriters of Collateral Damage), and the whole movie's a foregone conclusion, but Friedkin inspires fine work from his well-trained stars while exploring the ambiguity of Hallam's character. Lushly photographed by Caleb Deschanel, The Hunted is a survivalist's dream, militarily authentic and most effective when its primal instincts are cinematically expressed. --Jeff Shannon Amazon.com

What happened to William Friedkin

God! This movie sucked. I can just imagine the hack pitching this to a studio head.

"Okay! It's Rambo-gone-bad meets Apocalypse Now and throw a little French Connection into it! It's gonna be awesome!"

What a bunch of high school manure! No, really. Manure! Crap! Crusty skid marks in old underwear!

What happened to William Friedkin? He hasn't made a decent film since To Live & Die in L.A. That was over 20 years ago! Did he burn out? Is it only about the paycheck for him now? Anyway...

Though the movie's plot was a real nose-pincher, Friedkin hasn't lost his technical skills, and he can still direct actors well. He's still got edge, and for that I believe there's hope yet.

I dream that someday the novel Roadwork (by Richard Bachman - aka Stephen King) will be made into a script. I think William Friedkin would be perfect to direct the film. I'd bet my savings that it would be a showcase movie for him.

But I recommend you not waste your money on The Hunted. It's a real clunker. As for me, I'll just keep on dreamin'. November 7, 2008

Good action movie for us die hard action fans

I walked into The Hunted expecting a action movie and that's what I got. William Fredkin has made one of his best action movies since The French Connenction and To Live & Die In LA. Tommy Lee Jones is in his top form as usual but for me Benicno Del Toro made the movie as a ruthless crazed vet. The film is full of intense action sequences and is pretty violent but if you're a action movie buff then you'll like it. Forget the story just sit back and enjoy the ride. September 14, 2008

Bare Bone Action

The Hunted is one of William Friedkin most underated pictures.The Director who defined Film as an art with classics like French Connection or The Exorcist brings us the story of a burnt out soldier who starts a killing mission.His instructor is the one who is chosen to hunt him down.The film is a well structured action cracker full of violent knife- duels and very tight action pieces.It doesn't use wire-tricks or CGI.The DVD itself has a very informative commentary by Friedkin and short making of featurettes.Highly Recommended. May 27, 2008

WILLIAM FRIEDKIN, OPUS 17

**** 2003. Directed by William Friedkin. Four years before Bug (Special Edition), his last film to date, Friedkin, in THE HUNTED, already took an interest in the case of a soldier suffering from a mental disorder. But when one knows that it was his teacher/father who had the duty to stop him, the movie acquires a very interesting dimension. Recommended. February 21, 2008

An Old Story but Very Well Told.....

Yes, we have seen this plotline before, but that didn't stop me from thoroughly enjoying the movie. Tommy Lee is at his laconic best and Benicio definitely has the eyes of a cold blooded killer. The tracking and knife fighting scenes were as authentic as it gets, and the setting provided a beautiful backdrop to the cat and mouse hunt that takes up most of the movie. The action is relentless and exciting. I strongly recommend this movie to anyone who enjoyed Rambo when it first came out. The highly skilled loner evading both a mob of law enforcement officers and a highly skilled tracker makes for a good viewing experience, especially in the hands of a world-class director like William Friedkin. September 1, 2007

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