When i was younger i was always imagining and wanted to see movies and series of all the comic book heroes and villains. We are currently living in era where this is happening but sadly most of the time the result is poor. Kraven the Hunter is another example of a poor film and thankfully i didn't pay to watch it! I won't bore you with details like directors, casting etc and i will go straight with the plot!
Plot
The story is pretty straightforward. We got Russel Crowe playing Nikolai Kravinoff a Russian gangster or a crime boss if you wish. He has 2 sons, Sergei and Dmitri. Let's say that Sergei is the one with more courage while Dmitri is afraid of that kind of life. Now Nikolai decides to take them on a safari in order to hunt, bond and man up.
For a brief moment, we get to see a grandma talking to her grandaughter Calypso telling her that with a set of cards, she somehow can predict the future and also gives her a vial with some kind of ancient potion. Now in the safari, they find a lion that is supposed to have killed 20-30 people and whoever kills it will boost his ego or something.
The lion attacks Sergei, basically kills him but soon enough and out of nowhere Calypso finds him, and gives him the potion because why not and then Sergei wakes up in his home. Sergei decides to go on a journey to a jungle to find a place where his mother has been (she is supposed to have committed suicide). Upon his visit he realizes that he has animal-like powers, like better vision, he is faster and stronger.
He then decides to protect nature, kill the animal poachers and find Calypso to say his thanks. That's the reason he also gets the "Hunter" name and he is considered among the top ones out there.
What I Liked and What I Didn't
Honestly, i don't know where to begin. The only good thing is the performance of Kraven, Nikolai, his brother and Rhino. The CGI was decent as well. Besides that, everything else was a disaster. For once this isn't Kraven at all. Kraven is a villain, not an antihero and definitely not a good guy. He is one of the main antagonists of Spiderman for god's sake.
The gist that we try to make every character have a good and sob story is honestly lame. That's exactly why the series of Penguin is so high rated. Because Penguin is a villain and he is depicted exactly like that. Kraven is the same and not a good guy, period.
Also, everything in the movie felt rushed. Calypso came out of nowhere, with a 1 minute explanation as i mentioned, then reappeared out of nowhere again. The story moved extremely fast for no reason whatsoever and the other characters that were introduced like the Rhino for example, were a mess even though his acting was great. Overall, i just a plain 5/10 at top for me!
Have you watched it?
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