Kraven the Hunter

Tom Rothman, the current snake suit and his henchman at Sony, in 2017/2018, they started a cinematic universe called SPUMC, I kid you not, it was an acronym for Sony Pictures Universe of Spider-Man Characters. In reality, this is Tom Rothman's cynical Spider-Man-Less, spider man movie universe. It was a cynical and lazy way for Rothman and his repugnant army of suits to capitalize on Marvel cache without actually making a real movie. (Tom Rothman was the overlord at Fox when the were churning out regrettable outings like X-men 3 and X-men Origins Wolverine)

Though most of the SPUMC movies are utterly unwatchable and meandering garbage, and then along comes Kraven The Hunter, directed by the inimitable JC Chandor (Margin Call).

Is Kraven a great movie? No it is not, however Kraven is a brutal and fun enough romp that it's easy to sit through for a couple of hours and take pleasure in all of the monstrous and gory shenanigans. Unlike the other SPUMC waste before it, Kraven is actually earnest in its attempt to deliver straight forward brutality and the actors are having a ball. Aaron Taylor Johnson is having a blast and taking Kraven every bit as seriously as Hugh Jackman has ever taken Wolverine. Russell Crowe and the other cast members are having an equal blast.

The story/screenplay is an absolute mess, but JC Chandor directs with a creative eye and the cast are taking this movie more seriously than anyone should ever be asked. It's an easy 5.5 if you want to turn off your brain and see what kind of onscreen murders they can dream up on screen.

I wasn't expecting much with Kraven the Hunter. The recent run of Sony Marvel films has been pretty dismal and i wasn't holding my breath.

It's unfortunate to say that Kraven follows suit. The screenplay felt like it was written by a 5 year old playing with Marvel toys. It felt fake and awkward. A poor screenplay makes everything else the film brings uneventful and lame. The skilful actors of Aaron and Russel couldn't save it.

What the film had going for it (if anything) was the look of Kraven and the action sequences. His beast like movement and sequences where he is tearing up was awesome to say the least. However, the villians are basically not worth mentioning. One dimensional.

To sum up, Kraven the Hunter doesn't provide anything new or inventive to the superhero genre. The awkward screenplay and basic villains suffocate Kraven's better moments as a character.

It's a shame that a character so loved in the Marvel universe gets such poor treatment.

Six stars is probably generous. This movie is NOT good. In many aspects, it's actively bad (see below). But I was still able to enjoy this in a dumb-fun kind of way. Here are a few factors that helped.

First, I am a big Spider-Man fan and remember liking the Kraven character from the 90's animated series. I also regularly find entertainment from stupid, lower quality movies. And I've enjoyed many of the other Sony-Marvel side universe movies.

There are also some cool actions scenes. I'm ecstatic they went for an R rating instead of being cowards (looking at you, Morbius). But by far the best part of this movie is Aaron Taylor-Johnson. His acting talent is on full display and he elevates every scene he's in.

Okay now the bad. This movie is all over the place, unfocused and pretty dumb. There are multiple moments of unintentional humor, including one of the funniest character reactions I've ever seen. The dialogue and line delivery is bad. The CGI is bad. It's a generally poorly-made movie.

But by far the worst part is the performance by Ariana DeBose. I really don't like being mean, but this is third thing I've seen her in (Argylle and I. S. S.), and she does NOT belong. I couldn't stop noticing how unconvincing she was. Her line delivery made me laugh. In scenes with her and Taylor-Johnson, the contrast in talent could not be more stark.

Look, you already know if this is something you would enjoy. If it looks stupid to you, don't watch it. If you aren't as picky and can still enjoy something with major flaws, you might have a good time.

(1 viewing, opening Thursday UltraScreen 12/12/2024)

I decided to ignore the bad ratings of the movie because I have loved Aaron Taylor's Johnson acting ability in every movie I've seen him in. I just came back home from the cinema and I have to say I'm very disappointed in the movie's script! The script had so many clichés, it was predictable, it lacked depth, it didn't give the actors a chance to act. It left me feeling like it was written to be easily consumed by the viewer.. I love action movies, I love super hero movies and this was arguably worse than Thor love and thunder. Other than that, I'd love to see this character in a new film (with different writers).

It's far from a disaster. While the dialogue occasionally veers into awkward territory, and not the greatest CGI, the film delivers well-executed action sequences that keep the momentum going. Aaron Taylor-Johnson is particularly impressive, showcasing both physical prowess and screen presence, further cementing his status as a compelling action star.

The second half does feel a bit rushed, but at just 120 minutes, the filmmakers seems to just want to quickly wrap things up. That said, this story might have worked even better as a mini-series, giving more time to flesh out characters like Dimitri and Calypso. A longer look at Sergei's transformation into Kraven during his isolation in Far Eastern Russia could've added more depth and made his journey feel even more impactful.

It's a very decent movie for a Saturday night with your brain in park. Just don't take it so seriously. Definitely worth a watch just because of Aaron Taylor-Johnson's wild action sequences. No pun intended.