Pig Hunt (2008) User Reviews (36)

Oink

[Samiam3 · 6/10 · 10 November 2010]

Horror conventions like Frightfest are an ideal home for z- grade movies, because they will be lucky to find distribution anywhere else. At first glance, Pig Hunt may seem like one such movie, but once you see it you realize that labelling it as Z-grade may a tad degrading. Sure it's low budget, but the premise is something more legitimate than the kind of rip off of a rip off of a rip off that one might be anticipating. Indeed Pig Hunt's problem is not a lack of material. On the contrary, it has too much. The film is overambitious and uncertain of what it wants to be. It delivers a scenario where hunters go after pigs, pigs go after hunters, hillbillies go after hunters, and Eurasian brothel girls are after anyone.

Pig Hunt is arguably enjoyable in that it doesn't feel predictable or familiar. It has a fun disgusting sense of humour, which is sustained for all most the entire running length, but is still not enough to keep the viewer blind to the movie's error. After a while, Pig Hunt starts to feel bloated and overlong. When it's all said and done, Pig Hunt could be called an amusing mess. I can't say I didn't enjoy it, I guess it's all a matter of how you approach it.

A bit uneven & random at times but I liked it.

[poolandrews · 6/10 · 17 September 2010]

Pig Hunt is set in San Francisco where John Hickman (Travis Aaron Wade), his girlfriend Brooks (Tina Huang) & a couple of their friends have decided to go hunting in the great outdoors for the weekend, the four friends travel to John's dead uncle's cabin to prepare for the hunt. Two local Hillbilly brother's Jake (Jason Foster) & Ricky (Nick Tagas) show up & offer to act as guides on a Pig hunt, rumours of a huge 3000lb Hog nicknamed 'Ripper' & 'Hogzilla' are used to add interest. The hunters set out & venture deep into the forest where they find a marijuana crop, a group of lesbian hippies & discover that the rumours of a huge man eating Hog are in fact true...

Co-produced & directed by James Isaac I must admit that I am not a fan of modern low budget horror & I really wasn't expecting much from Pig Hunt but I was surprised to find an oddball exploitation horror film that certainly has plenty going on even if it doesn't quite know how to juggle everything with total success. There are lesbians, cult's, a weird Hog worshipping cult leader, Rednecks, car & bike stunts, Pig hunt's, drugs, nudity, gore, moral dilemmas, a giant mutant Hog monster & lots of backwoods brutality in a really odd mix of Deliverance (1972), Razorback (1984) & Wrong Turn (2003) that has so many things going on but the script doesn't really know how to bring them all together & the climax basically features anyone left alive in the same place with a giant monster Pig as it is finally revealed. Pacing is a bit of a problem in Pig Hunt, at almost one hour & forty minutes it could have done with maybe a good ten minutes cut from it, it just takes a little bit too long to get going & certain sequences just go on for too long. The character's are alright but I can't quite work out the Iraq war symbolism on show, from teens who aren't soldiers dressing up & acting like soldiers to hunt Pigs to John's uncle having lots of anti-Bush newspaper clippings in his cabin for no apparent reason. I assume the intention was to make a film in which hunting, shooting & killing isn't glamorised & have the Pig hunt represent actual combat in Iraq but the whole war vibe is completely ditched about halfway through as either the script or director forgot about it.

There is some decent gore here, a guy's knee cap is torn off, a Pig has it's head sawn off & is then gutted in a very gory sequence, a Deer is shot & killed, a Snake is shot & impaled with an arrow, more Pigs are shot, there's plenty of guts on show, a guy is shot in the head, someone is impaled to a wall, a guy has his head cut off, a severed hand is seen, there's an eye gouging, there's plenty of blood splatter & very little CGI which is nice. The giant Pig monster isn't seen until the last fifteen or so minutes & it's good old latex rather than CGI, even though the makers couldn't afford to make an entire giant mutant Pig monster since we only ever see close-up & tight shots of it's face & eye's. Set in the forest the film does have an isolated feel. There are a few car & motorbike stunts & your typical insulting horror film clichéd interpretation of Rednecks who are all inbred psychos with bad teeth. There's also a fair bit of nudity at the end as an entire cult of women walk around naked.

The IMDb says Pig Hunt had a budget of about $6,000,000 which I find hard to believe, there's no way this cost that much. The production values are nice, it's well made & the lack of horrible CGI is a definite plus. The acting is fine, the cast do a good if not amazing job.

Pig Hunt is an odd film, it's a Redneck backwoods brutality film, a giant killer Pig film, a slasher thriller film that has lots going on if nothing else. I liked it for it's mix of odd moments, styles & genres & the gore & nudity don't hurt either. Much better than I expected, not a masterpiece but an entertaining backwoods brutality exploitation monster flick. It could have been worse.

more towards old exploitation then a straight horror

[trashgang · 6/10 · 8 March 2012]

is this a horror and does it contain pig hunting. That was what I thought when this flick was finished. I agree, it do contains well executed gory effects but there's more going on than only a pig. In fact it reminded me more to old exploitation flicks added with some horror. There's some resemblance to Deliverance (1972) because it's more how to survive red necks going wild then how to hunt the boar.

The return to exploitation lays in the fact how the red necks move through the woods. It's a kind of mad max style. Suddenly one of the friends come across a lake full of naked women. That's being exploited with the song 'It's A Man's World". It's only towards the end that we see some kind of cult adoring the big boar called The Ripper.

I think a lot of viewers will be disappointed about the fact that it's more about being hunted down by the rednecks then go hunting pigs. On the other hand it do has some nasty scene's with even intestines being ripped out by the boar. But still I would rather call it a thriller with gory shots then a horror.

For the fans of the band Primus, Les Claypool made some tracks for this flick and is seen as the priest here in Pig Hunt.

Gore 1,5/5 Nudity 1,5/5 Effects 3/5 Story 3/5 Comedy 0/5

Who thought that this was a good idea?

[TdSmth5 · 3/10 · 26 April 2011]

A bunch of multicultural guys and a girl go on a trip to the country. They go on a pig hunt as they are military and one of them is a hunter. Once in the country they run into the neighbors. They are the stereotypical movie hillbillies. Two of them go along for the pig hunt. These people don't go along with each other at all, making for a very obnoxious, long and tedious 1:15 of the movie. The beginning of the movie hints at a large hog that eats horses. And there are rumors of a 3000 pound one roaming the country. Earlier in the movie the gang also run into some weird black guru and a couple of his drugged out hippie devotees. The last part of the movie gets entertaining as the remaining guys from the gang escape the violent hillbillies and end up at the cult's house and meet the giant boar as well as some sexy girls.

There is a troubling trend in horror movies to present our cast as nothing but bunch of annoying, bickering idiots, insulting and threatening each other for hours. I don't know who thinks that's entertaining. It's not. It's a pain. This movie for the most part follows that recipe but with an unattractive cast. There is a bit of violence and gore. But if you're into animal death, torture, and gore, then this movie is for you as the camera loves to linger on animal carcasses.

I give this movie 3 stars for the 7 or so topless girls bathing. Nothing else is worth watching here.

I have a better title

[artpf · 2/10 · 19 December 2011]

This film should be called Train Wreck.

It's a much better descriptor for what you'll see.

The plot has like 20 sub plots and you can't follow any of them. Then throw in a big pig that may or may not be killing people. Too hard to tell.

Lots of oblligatory hillbilly scenes even tho this is North California, not Tennesee.

I tell you, I had a hard time understanding who was who, how they interacted and why.

And then there's the sound mix -- it's either super load or super low. Ugh.

It's a mess of a movie not worth your time.

Note to self: Pig Hunters suck.

[ElijahCSkuggs · 3/10 · 10 October 2009]

When it comes down to it, I don't hate many movies. I watch all types of garbage. From German gore flicks to no-budget sci-fi, and everything in between. All I really look for is one saving grace in a movie. One thing that makes me smile. And this movie had two saving graces actually. Well, for me anyways. But the question is, why do I still hate it? I'll attempt it with an high school analogy. Remember in high school the kid who tried to be real cool? The person that would try to talk the talk and walk the walk? The person that just tried to do and say all the 'right' things? The kid who's just a flat-out unoriginal robot-tag-along-Indian, but desperately tried to make himself seem hip and cool? Remember that kid? Pig Hunt is that kid. What a loser.

Just like that stupid kid in high school who had nothing to talk about besides 'cool' things, Pig Hunt is the same way. The thing with that loser from high school, he (or she) may have been in an accelerated class. He may have even taken A.P. Physics. But I can assure you Pig Hunt is no way near any accelerated learning classes. Pig Hunt's in the school basement with all the other people with learning disabilities. Acting overall was amateur at best. Writing was even worse. But more than anything was just it's overall feeling of trying too hard to be a hip movie. Honestly, that scene at the hippie commune....what the f@ck?

More than anything with Pig Hunt is it's horrendous characters. First and foremost, the 'hero'. What a pathetic badass he was. Phewy! He played the serious, I talk stern, nothing to smile about role in one of the most basic ways you can imagine. I don't blame the actor entirely, as the writing for his character was abysmal. Honestly how difficult is it to write a character that you care for? There isn't one person in this film that you wanted to live. If that was the film-makers goal, then great f@ckin job! But it wasn't, as there were survivors. Sure they had that cliché weakling character that you're supposed to care for, but he sucked, flat out. I'll be nice for a second and play fair. I wanted to Les Claypool's character to live longer. One second it seemed he was gonna play a bigger role as the movie began to climax, then poof, he's outta the picture. Thanks fer nuthin! Back to that 'hero' dude. There's a scene where they come upon a whole field of marijuana. And what does our Mr. Cool Hero guy do? He complains about it being illegal and not wanting it on his dead Uncle's property. And then he goes on and calls the weed, 'dope'. I don't know about you, but this movie, with all it's failed attempts at being hip, you'd think it'd be about glorifying weed. Instead it's in this weird buffer zone, as there's loads marijuana in the flick, but it's all related to bad things. But again, back to the Captain Kewl. What kind of hero, in a action/horror flick about a monster pig, looks down on weed? What's the reason to root for this guy?? Why is he the hero? Because he uses a f@ckin' crossbow!?

The two saving graces before I forget. I don't recall any CGI. And the character played by Jason Foster. He was the only consistently well-acted character in the movie. I also thought his transition from questionable-villain to evil villain was well done.

I can go on and on about why this movie failed and sucked, but I won't because I gotta take a dump. Bottom line is I didn't like this movie. With it's opening credits in animated fashion, I was impressed. It put in me that it might be something original. But that just isn't the case. Now that I think of it, it's almost kinda trendy nowadays to have your opening credits in comic book style pictures. The more and more I think about Pig Hunt, the more I just feel bad for it. Just like that kid in high school. You didn't hate him. You just felt bad for him. He was pathetic.

Not your typical weekend outing.

[michaelRokeefe · 7/10 · 5 June 2011]

Not for the faint of heart. James Isaac directs this gory low budget flick from Fangoria. John Hickman(Travis Aaron Wade)puts together a hunting weekend for some of his San Francisco buddies that is suppose to be a guys-only thing; but somehow John's girlfriend Brooks(Tina Huang)is a tag-a-long. Fine; John hustles the group off to his late uncle's property in the boondocks to hunt wild pigs. This outing will not be a typical weekend trip...there will be hillbillies, hippies, massive marijuana fields, muddy wallows and the legend of a big ass 3,000 pound wild boar named "The Ripper". Things get violent, insane and bloody. Others in the cast: Howard Johnson Jr., Trevor Bullock, Jason Foster, Rajiv Shah and Christina McKay.

Cannot believe the high scores

[peloquin-3 · 1/10 · 17 September 2009]

I thought this was a truly awful film and have been amazed at the amount of praise placed upon it. First and foremost the score by Les Claypool is one of the worst have ever heard, funky basslines don't really work to convey suspense or anything really, and when it gets to the point of the score consisting of weird chanting by one of the actors in the film, it becomes incredibly confusing as to whether someone is speaking or its the score. The acting too was pretty bad, especially the fat character whose portrayal of emotion is basically none existent. The storyline sways off the track for about half the film, forgetting the 'pig' part of the title altogether. Also I have to say this film contained so many continuity errors easily spotted on you're first view, you wonder if anyone actually watched it before releasing it. I'm normally someone who can find something to appreciate in any horror flick, heck I love the cheesy low budget film of Full Moon, Troma etc, but this film really has no redeeming qualities whatsoever.

A flawed but worthy modern style B movie

[Bloodwank · 7/10 · 31 October 2010]

There aren't a whole lot of horror movies out there involving pigs. Or maybe there are, but not as many as there should be. Most of the time pigs in popular culture are cute, funny, a term of insult, to a majority the word pig brings up a dirty, snuffling and shuffling pack of beasts in a farmers yard, waiting to get turned into delicious food. So to use pigs as a force for horror, to have them preying on humans, it's a good role reversal. Plus, the basic form of a pig doesn't take too much distortion and increase in size to become a pretty menacing looking customer. It was with these thought in mind that I sat down to Pig Hunt, unknowing that the pig action is actually just one aspect of the film, it being more of a backwoods genre mash up. The film sets about its build up during the course of a hunt, friends out for macho bonding in the forest (though one girlfriend tags along), a soaking, chilly trek with a few hints and rumours to stir a sense of mystery. Monster pig action is conspicuously absent for quite some time as the film combusts somewhere around the halfway mark, blazes through exciting hick-sploit action and some more unexpected craziness before we finally get into monstrous territory. Fortunately, the beast is mighty impressive, no CGI in sight, a tightly shot ferocious tusked beast rather worth the wait. A downside of all of this is that such a set up somewhat requires decent, memorable or likable characters and performances and Pig Hunt is pretty meh on the characterisation and acting fronts. No one is especially bad, but equally I never felt much for anyone. Travis Aaron Wade is a competent enough hero figure, Tina Huang does a fair tough gal schtick as his girlfriend, Howard Johnson Jr. makes for a decent a-hole, slightly more of a punch is provided by Jason Foster and Nick Tagas as wild natured but initially friendly hicks, while most notable is Les Claypool as a bulky, mystical figure who becomes important later on in the game. Though generally competent, the film suffers from a drawn out first half in which presumably we are supposed to get to know the characters so we can suffer and thrill along with them, but as mentioned they just aren't especially interesting. Slick, wet and vivid cinematography from Adam Kane makes for a suitably arduous atmosphere and when things do get exciting director James Isaac keeps tight, stylish hold on things, making for one or two impressive, thrilling moments. There's more nudity than might be expected, which is rather pleasing to behold, and a few good grisly scenes, the film isn't too concerned with gore but uses it for some nifty jolts. Interestingly, the goriest scene involves a pig rather than a human. Comment on the savagery of man? I could have done with more general gore, a shorter first half and longer final block (the film needs more pig!) but generally I was pretty pleased by this one. No classic, but certainly a worthy modern day B picture.

Well here's what I think.

[terrencepatrix · 5/10 · 20 September 2009]

Honestly, I think this movie deserves a good solid 5. In a world where AMAZING movies rank between 8-10, this one falls into this area. So compared to amazing..this movie is...well it's not bad. It's kinda good even. Here's my reasons why.

This movie comes off as very original. I can honestly say I had no clue what was going on, and I couldn't guess what was going to happen next.

This is not a "horror" film. To be honest I'm not sure what genre this movie falls into. I suppose it falls a bit into the same category as movies like "The Cabin" or "Shrooms". It has horror elements to it. It has suspense. It has gore. It has at times cheesy dialog. It also has the typical badass hot chick that tend to show up in these types of movies.

The plot is as follows. A group of friends, some of which have served in the forces, and one of said friends girlfriends go on a hunting trip at one of their deceased uncles cabins. They are there to hunt wild bore. In the local area there are "clans" of hills people, who hunt and for the most part live off the land. Normally you'd think they would be the main antagonist from the get go, but you'd be wrong. They actually help the "friends" on their hunting trip.

While hunting, they run into many obstacles, including pot fields, crazy hippys, and insane hill people out for murder.

Overall this was a fun watch. The acting is pretty bad sometimes, some of the plot points aren't points at all, some characters make horrible decisions, and some things are left completely unresolved. Also there's some weird person just staring at you in the end. I still have no idea what that was about.

In the end I'd say give it a watch. It's a fun and crazy film. Don't expect too much and you'll enjoy it.

As a horror or monster movie fan you should give it a go !!

[broeoeh · 8/10 · 21 September 2009]

Pig Hunt get's 8 out of 10 points from me. It has everything that should be in a horror movie, some weirdos (like the "redneck family neighbors" or the "hippie community") and some strong characters like Jason Foster who sometimes visually comes up like a sort of "badass" Aragorn ( by the way Travis Aaron Wade and Tina Huang as main char's did a great job, too). The story has multiple threats what makes it more interesting than other films in this genre, it contains enough suspense, horror and gore (great job on the special FX even the mutant pig) and good action too! As there are many horror movies simply duplicating old "hits" this one does not come up with really something new, but it has enough potential not to see it as a copy of the older genre stuff because of his mixture of horror and monster movie. As a real fan of this genre i spend a good time on that!

Pig Hunt- A great horror film....

[MovieGuy01 · 6/10 · 10 November 2009]

I just watched Pig Hunt tonight and i thought that it was a great horror film. It is about a man called John who takes his friends in San Francisco to his deceased uncle's ranch to hunt wild pigs, a guys weekend with guns despite John's sexy girlfriend Brooks being there with them. But as John and his crew go deeper into the forest, they begin to find out the truth about his uncle's death and the legend of The Ripper a murderous 3000 pound black boar pig! They go on an adventure through fields of marijuana and into the muddy landscape of Big Wallow, they are loaded with weapons, they meet the violent Tibbs Brothers, and a group of throat-slitting Cult Girls who grow marijuana by day and worship the giant killer pig by night. there only chance of getting away alive is to stay together. I found there to be a lot a gore and strong bloody violence in this film, but i thought that it ended up being a great horror film. 6/10

"Hillbilly Pig Hunt" would have been an even better title

[Coventry · 4/10 · 7 August 2011]

This movie certainly wasn't anything like I expected, yet I'm not quite sure whether that's a good thing or not. Based on the title and particularly the enticing DVD-cover, I was anticipating (or hoping…) to see a good old-fashioned creature feature and perhaps even a homage to that nostalgic childhood favorite of mine; "Razorback". Instead, "Pig Hunt" is a lot more ambitious than that (perhaps even too ambitious for its own good) and presents a miscellany of creature feature, hillbilly backwoods horror, slasher and even satanic cult horror. Oh, and there are naked lesbians! The film starts traditionally enough, with a bunch of enthusiast friends (read = stereotypical twenty-something idiots that certainly don't belong in the woods) heading out to the Californian wilderness to go a-hunting for wild hogs. They quickly get stuck with two obtrusive marijuana-addicted and aggressive local yokels, who tell them about the most notorious inhabitant of the woods: a humongous and ferocious 3.000lbs hog nicknamed "The Ripper". The group runs into conflict with a sect that worships the giant hog as some sort of deity, but their main issue lies with the hillbillies. Pretty soon, the teens find themselves pursued by bloodthirsty hicks and only then The Ripper. The variety of sub plots made it very difficult for me personally to like "Pig Hunt", but I acknowledge that James Isaac (director of "Jason X" and late 80's guilty pleasure "House III") wanted to try something innovative and daredevil. The film all too often feels overly hectic and incoherent, which is a shame because Isaac does create a decent macabre atmosphere and swears by traditional non-computer engineered special effects. There's also a lot of gore and shocking imagery, including a detailed pig-gutting process, so better make sure there aren't any kids around then. Overall, this is an admirable attempt at hardcore horror but nevertheless ends up in the dreaded category of mediocrity because it's too random and all over the place. I like foaming hillbillies and naked lesbian hog-worshipers as much as the next guy, but here I wanted to see a big fat monster eating idiots from the city. Call me naive, but I think a movie entitled "Pig Hunt" should largely stick to humans hunting pigs and vice versa.

There's more action happening in a trash can than in this piece of...

[nufafitc · 1/10 · 16 September 2009]

Crap. Unfortunately a comment needs to have 10 lines of text, and as writing "crap" so many times to fill the page is pretty stupid, I can as well waste some words and time about this movie: There is not one interesting or likable character, there's no plot which is okay for this sort of trash movie, but what is worse: It's boring as hell. There is really no tension at all. Why should there be? There's nothing really happening. Okay, there's more running, screaming, shooting, bike riding in it than in "Long Weekend" (a film which is as boring and irrelevant as this one).Oh, well, 10 lines are enough.If you expected a detailed analysis, I have to disappoint you. Like the "pig" surprise.

I'll Never Look at Emu-Raising, Pig-Worshiping Cults the Same Way

[FilmFatale · 4/10 · 16 June 2012]

Yeah...so Pig Hunt. I'm pretty sure I've seen lots of movies like it, but at the same time, I've never seen anything like it. We've got city boys going to the woods for a guys weekend of hunting, we've got the "unexpected" girlfriend tagging along, we've got an (apparently) inbred family of rednecks, we've got family drama, we've got a killer giant boar on the loose, and a Les Claypool cameo AND soundtrack. I didn't even get to the cult of emu-raising, pig-worshiping, pot-growing lesbians and the Baron Samedi-esque man who lives with them. Pig Hunt isn't a good movie, and it's not even particularly entertaining, but it's so wildly random that I probably wouldn't discourage anyone from watching it.

ff

Oh, this was bad...

[paul_haakonsen · 3/10 · 13 May 2019]

Suckered in by the Fright Fest presentation? ... Check.

Suckered in from the director of "Skinwalkers" and "Jason X"? ... Check.

Bored senseless throughout the entire movie? ... Check.

Right, well initially I had hope for something more than the less than mediocre drag that "Pig Hunt" turned out to be. Granted, the title of the movie wasn't much of a grand appeal, but still, from time to time the creature features can be enjoyable movies to watch.

"Pig Hunt" wasn't one such movie.

The storyline in "Pig Hunt" was just unfathomably boring and uneventful. And I am not kidding when I am saying that you might as well just skip the entire movie and just watch the last 10 minutes or so, because that is the only part where the movie actually had any worth. But even at that point, the movie had slipped so far out of director James Isaac's hands, and the writings of Robert Mailer Anderson and Zack Anderson had turned into the muck that the boar was dwelling in.

As for the acting in the movie, well let's just say that the performers were crippled by an inferior script and horrible characters. The entire movie was totally devoid of anything that even resembled character growth and development, and they could just as easily have been replaced by cardboard cutouts. But at least Tina Huang made the movie somewhat worthwhile to endure.

I was bored throughout the course of "Pig Hunt", yet I managed to stick around to the end, in sheer defiance that a movie could really be so bad when it definitely had so much potential. But now that I've seen "Pig Hunt", I am never returning to it again. I suffered through this ordeal of a movie so you don't have to. Stay well clear of this 2008 creature feature, because there are far, far better movies in the creature feature genre.

Rocky Road at first but a STRONG finish (No specific spoilers but I AM commenting on the script structure)

[OakWriter · 6/10 · 17 January 2010]

One of the basics of screen writing is that in the second act you've really got to shake things up for the climax to really mean something. This film, IMHO, got AWESOME as soon as a minor character dies, triggering a series of death/vendetta moments to follow. It took a lesson out of the George Romero guidebook, which is that the tension can't all be "outside". Little mutinies and unexpected stumbled-upon enemies can really amp up the excitement.

Since the acting quality is not so evenly distributed (sorry, it's just not!) I really could have done without the long winded first act and a half. I'd have preferred to spend a bit longer seeing the cat-and-mouse sequences unfold.

With that said, I was impressed with this project. Really liked the diverse cast of friends and foes, the makeup and the effects. I'm guessing that's where the budget went, although to be honest I thought this movie cost a lot less than it turns out it did.

Summary: Creative horror premise, good gore factor and bonus points for possibly THE most random assortment of characters to ever hunt each other on screen.

This little piggy.............

[QueenoftheGoons · 1/10 · 13 July 2022]

Razorback and Boar were 10x better than this, with Razorback being better than Boar. The pig shows up at the end. I think he starred in the Boar; mutated and ugly. The inbreds i could do without. Needed a better story too. What a waste of money.

Pig Hunt

[Scarecrow-88 · 6/10 · 16 September 2010]

John Hickman(Travis Aaron Wade), his girlfriend Brooks(Tina Huang)and friends, Ben(Howard Johnson Jr), Quincy(Trevor Bullock), and Wayne(Rajiv Shah)decide to go huntin' into the California wilderness. John's uncle is killed by something fierce at the beginning of the movie which turns out to be a gigantic monstrous pig known as "the ripper". John is using his uncle's land to camp on and old pals(he'd soon have avoided like the plague)from his childhood, dirty, foul hick brothers Jake(Jason Foster)and Ricky(Nick Tagas)impose themselves on the group. Tagging along(despite John and company's desire for them not to), Jake and Ricky go on and on about killing hogs, in particular, the ripper. Well, an incident involving the dirty duo's insistence on bagging up dope for profit(marijuana fields are being illegally cultivated on John's uncle's land), turns violent resulting in accidental murder, which spirals out of control as Jake warns them of the wrath to come as he heads for his family's residence to round up his redneck troops for a showdown. John and his friends also have to contend with a hippie cult who sort of worship the ripper, led by the intimidating machete-wielding Cimi(Cimi Ahluwalia). I have to say it takes a while to get to the goods, but director James Isaac(JASON X)does, to his credit, eventually deliver. Most of the gore and action happens between John and his friends contending with Jake and his family of gun-toting hillbillies. Isaac provides some stunningly photographed stunt sequences such as when Quincy is caught in Ben's SUV as Jake drives his huge truck into him, and the director shoots the hillbillies cruising in their various off-road vehicles at rapid speeds, hooping and hollering in anticipation. Isaac, to his credit, doesn't use computer generated effects when the ripper's presence is finally revealed, carefully shooting the pig's massive face(mostly mouth, husks, and eyes at close-up)without long shots which would disrupt the intensity of the situation exposing the beast as a special effects fraud. I imagine it could've resulted in chuckles instead of thrills, but Issac, before the finale, decides to shoot with point-of-view and end results(the scene with the horse's head a highlight). The more gruesome scenes involve Ricky gutting a pig, pulling out it's innards in graphic detail. And, yes, we get plenty of nudity as the hippie commune has uninhibited pot smoking honeys with nothing better to do than lay around, getting high and such. Maybe, many viewers will not like the fact that it takes until the end before the giant pig is introduced, but Isaac tries to make up for this with the mayhem which erupts between the groups of John and Jake.

Problems

[kosmasp · 4/10 · 19 November 2009]

I will start with the one really good thing about the movie! It's the sound(track). I really loved it. It's a bit country mixed with other influences and it really worked for me. Not everyone at the Festvial I watched this at, was as hyped about it as me though, but that's how everyone receives certain things.

Now onto the problems: There is not much happening in the movie. And while the direction it takes (concentrating on the characters) is not really a bad one, it doesn't have either the script/dialog nor the actors to carry something like that. Still a few (too little) action set pieces and some fine moments plus the music prevent this movie from falling completely down ...

Variety review from Dennis Harvey

[MysticalGibberish · 8/10 · 15 April 2009]

A mashup of elements from "Razorback," "Deliverance" and other rural-peril faves, "Pig Hunt" proves an enjoyably offbeat hybrid horror exercise. Helmer Jim Isaac's first indie production, following several compromised studio efforts including sci-fi slasher "Jason X," amplifies the quirkiness of Robert and Zach Anderson's screenplay by unpredictably mixing disparate pacing, tones, humor and brute action. Sum isn't entirely satisfying, and the current marketplace preference for formulaic scare pics won't help B.O. But fans tired of rote remakes and ripoffs will appreciate the pic's idiosyncrasy. It's currently playing limited theatrical gigs while in search of a wider distribution deal.

Four twentysomething buds, led by John (Travis Aaron Wade), leave San Francisco for a weekend of game hunting in rural Mendocino County, though the guys-only plan goes south when John's g.f. Brooks (Tina Huang) -- who turns out to be the group's sharpest shooter -- insists on coming along.

After being warned about an improbable 3,000-lb. "Pigfoot" (aka "the Ripper") roaming wild, they acquire uninvited company in the form of two local yokels who have an apparent score to settle with John.

City-slicks-vs.-hicks tension soon gets ugly, resulting in full-on war waged by the large, inbred Tibbs clan against the panicked visitors. Meanwhile, carnivorous Hogzilla turns out to be no mythical beastie.

A local "hippie commune" consisting of one charismatic male (Bryonn Bain) and his sizable harem of Amazonian babes further adds to the eventual mayhem, which doesn't explode until halfway through the pic's runtime.

Slow start has its own rewards in atmosphere and slyly offbeat rhythms; when the porcine stool finally hits the fan, the action (especially that taking place chez Tibbs) is no-holds-barred muscular. Given the welcome sense that the story might lunge in any direction at any time, however, the final payoff (which involves some not-very-convincing creature effects) is a little less kicky than one might have hoped.

Perfs are enthusiastic, tech and design contribs above-average.

Score by Les Claypool of Primus adds to hipster cachet; he and blues mouth harpist Charlie Musselwhite contribute cameo roles.

There's a lot of crazy shite in these woods.

[lastliberal · 6/10 · 20 September 2010]

I've seen a lot of animals used for terror - Jaws, boas, alligators, bears, etc., but I have never seen a three-thousand-pound pig.

But, the pig is the least of the worries for the group that came out to hunt. One of them killed the brother of these hillbillies that live there. The whole coked-up alcoholic dysfunctional family will be out for revenge.

And, into the mix is a hippie commune that worships hogzilla. Now, lots of people are going to die in some very disgusting ways.

All the ones you don't like will be dispatched, and little piggies will roam the woods and grow into more killer pigs.

Don't look for any great acting or witty writing, just sit back and enjoy the carnage.

This movie was a "boar"

[JoeB131 · 5/10 · 21 August 2010]

Actually, it was kind of a mish-mash to where you didn't know what it was.. I mean, was there some kind of tectonic shift where California is right next to Arkansas? Because that's the only way I could explain how inbred, bible thumping rednecks could be smack dab right next to dope-smoking hippies who worship giant pigs for some reason.

Smake dab into this mess comes our hero and his girlfriend, an Asian actress actually playing a character with a little depth and not a token or stereotype. He brings some of his buddies to go hunting, but everyone seems a bit off. They go to his uncles house, and find it full of graffiti, animal parts and scrapbook clippings. Never really explained why.

But overall, this movie is overcrowded with too much stuff going on, few likable characters, and much of it seems like filler for the whole ten minutes the monster is on screen.

That's One Big Pile Of Pork Chops...

[azathothpwiggins · 20 August 2020]

The best way to go into PIG HUNT is to not expect a non-stop horror / thriller about an enormous, killer pig. Is there a monster pig involved? Yes, but he comes in quite late in the film.

Until then, we have a story about hunters out for an adventure in the woods, looking for said swine. Along the way, they encounter odd / crazed hillbillies, murderous cultists, a marijuana farm, and several beautiful, naked hippie chicks! One of these women in particular, is worth paying any price for this movie! I'll let the viewer decide which woman that is.

At long last, the 3000 lb. horror makes his presence known. Wow! This thing is impressive! No cartoonish CGI, just fur-covered latex over a huge, animatronic skeleton. Pure, beastly joy! Could this have been a better movie? Perhaps, in that it seems a bit over-long, and some of the main characters aren't that interesting. Still, if you love monsters, or "animals-gone-insane" movies, this is a hit...

Far better than expected but still problematic

[kannibalcorpsegrinder · 7/10 · 2 October 2020]

Arriving at a remote ranch, a group of hunters looking for wild boar in the woods on a weekend getaway come across a deranged family of inbreds targeting them as well as a commune's living God in the form of a massive, flesh-eating pig forcing them to get away from both threats in order to leave the area alive.

This one actually has a lot going for it. One of the stronger features here is that even with all the different plot threads, it manages to keep everything together with all the varying elements coming together surprisingly not as bad as it sounds. The idea of having the hunters coming from the city and having the culture shock of being out of their depth in the woods while trying to hunt wild boar for sport, coming across the old friends he left behind who have turned boar-hunting into their way of life which makes them jealous of his new lifestyle and then introducing the commune on the outskirts of the story who get enough mentions to keep them in the conscious framework. This tangled setup works nicely once it gets to the main series of encounters throughout here. The scenes of the family hunting down the friends are really good and contain some good action scenes, where the wilderness atmosphere is really played up nicely and gets some tension in their tribulations escaping through the dense underbrush of the woods around them. As well, the scenes at the convent are really enjoyable, packed with nudity and the majority of the gore with the pig being center stage for all it's worth. Most of the positive aspects come from here with those all making for a great time getting to see the prop creature in action, generating lots of action and suspense that all manage to come together and give it a lot to like about it. This isn't much wrong here but their pretty big issues. The main problem with it is the pig is off-screen until the end, not even being a central figure hunting them down on the outskirts of the main plot. Focusing more on the culture-shock of their more refined and dignified ways of hunting as a pass-time versus their more down-and-dirty means of killing the pigs for sport takes up tons more time in the first half than the main exploits of the pig. In fact, these don't even feel like a horror film at times but more like a survival/hunting film setup and it's only once they get to the end do we get to see the central figure involved, making the beginning really boring at times. Still, this isn't all that bad as it's still somewhat watchable.

Rated R: Extreme Graphic Violence, Graphic Language, Nudity, numerous amounts of violence against animals and drug use.