Hunt Her, Kill Her Review

Hunt Her, Kill Her review.

Hunt Her, Kill Her has one sole focus…to present a long cat and mouse game. It attacks the idea with confidence and finds success in the relative simplicity of its story. A worthwhile experiment.

New movie reviews will not contain spoilers.

Hunt Her, Kill Her

Directed by Greg Swinson and Ryan Thiessen

Written by Greg Swinson

Starring Natalie Terrazzino, JC Oakley III, Larry Bunton, Philip Zimny and Trevor Tucker

Hunt Her, Kill Her Review

At times it feels as if Hunt Her, Kill Her is more of an experiment than a film.  It’s a worthy one if that was the case.  After about twenty minutes of introduction and set-up…the bulk of the film is one long game of cat and mouse.  Or, more accurately, cats and mouse.  The intention seemingly to find out whether a chase scene can sustain a full hour of a horror movie.  Turns out…it can.

Karen (Natalie Terrazzino) is a single mother who takes a job as an overnight janitor in a furniture factory.  She’s supposed to be locked in alone for the night…but finds herself in a battle for her life when masked killers break in.  A first day on the job has rarely been this stressful.

Run, hide, fight back.  That is the story of Hunt Her, Kill Her.  It wears its intentions proudly on its sleeve.  Minimal characters, even less story.  It would have been very easy for a movie like this to fail.  For people craving more character driven story…it might still.  But if you are in the mood for something where clunky dialog and rushed character development doesn’t get in the way of a good time…Hunt Her, Kill Her is for you.

While most of this review, like the movie itself, will focus on the extended cat and mouse game…I do want to take a moment to give credit to another aspect of Hunt Her, Kill Her.  Despite its stated purpose…it manages to provide a stronger backstory/motive for the killer than movies that are far more character based.  We can’t give away that spoiler here…but I don’t want you to think that this is a brainless or meaningless exercise.  It ends up making more sense than a lot of killer reveals. 

The way that it is presented is another positive.  It’s less of a mystery and more the story beat that you don’t know Hunt Her, Kill Her is even looking to provide.  It lulls you in with its breakneck pace and sustained tension…you forget that there could even be a reason this is happening.  But there is.  It isn’t just a wrong place at the wrong time scenario. 

The story is playing out in the background.  The movie is the relentless hour of hunter vs. hunted.  It’s one of our oldest and simplest plot devices.  The new ground that Hunt Her, Kill Her treads is making it more of the focus than ever.  After (around) the twenty-minute mark…hunter vs. hunted is the whole enchilada.  

That’s why I opened talking about Hunt Her, Kill Her as an experiment.  A successful one, at that.  The final hour of the movie takes the climax of similar films and extends it for two full acts.  It won’t be for everyone.  Many reviews (correctly) note that there isn’t enough going on in the movie.  It’s true…it’s a lot of “run, hide, fight back”.  But when the running, hiding, and fighting back are done well…it makes for a fun hour of entertainment.

They even manage to mix in some funny moments.  That’s always a welcome addition…especially so when there’s going to be some unavoidable repetition.  It culminates in a well-earned and satisfying climax.  For reasons we can’t talk about in a non-spoiler review…things you didn’t know to count on add up very well. 

You’ve already decided whether you are interested in Hunt Her, Kill Her.  If the concept sounds appealing to you…you were in from the drop.  If this sounds like the parts of horror that you enjoy the least…there’s no chance you are touching it.  There is a strong lead performance that tasks our hero with a difficult physical and emotional journey through crevices and confrontation.  Clever kills and tense moments sprinkle in some fun.  If you’re looking for more story-based horror…look elsewhere.  If your favorite part of the journey is when you go through the tunnel or the rickety bridge…give Hunt Her, Kill Her a look.

Scare Value

Hunt Her, Kill Her is a “why don’t they make the whole plane out of the black box” movie. If you like the run/hide/chase aspect of slasher movies…Hunt Her, Kill Her gives you a full hour of it. It makes for a fast-paced, entertaining watch. It even manages to give a satisfactory backstory for why this is happening…something that many movies focused far more on story fail to do as well.

3/5

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Hunt Her, Kill Her Trailer

If you enjoyed this review of Hunt Her, Kill Her, check out You’re Killing Me