User reviews

Great directorial debut.

The plot is actually fairly good. Two men set out on a hunting trip filming in an attempt to start a new hunting show.

"I just hope we have enough to show the programming people what our show would look like" - Jake

Hopefully better camera work than what's showcased in The Hunted.

Frequently subjects are out of focus. Poor lighting. Extremely noisy footage. Somethings looked kinda like a poorly done green screen.

Despite the horrible camera work, I thought the movie was fairly scary. It builds tension well, the screams caused me to jump several times!

The acting was done fairly well. The dialog felt organic. The plot was great. I think this may have been a little too ambitious for the budget, or skillset.

Overall The Hunted is definitely worth the watch.

TL;DR: I really enjoyed this one! Solid acting, pacing, atmosphere, and cinematography. Unfortunately, it commits so major FF sins. (Strong 6/10)

"The Hunted" is the directorial debut of Josh Stewart (who also wrote the script and stars in the film). He crafts a dense and moody atmosphere that creates a lasting sense of dread and keeps you glued to the screen. The film manages to be pretty creepy and features two main characters who are, thankfully, not incompetent fools. I was impressed and relieved to see that this wasn't going to be just another typical found footage horror. The script is smart and knows exactly what it wants to be/do. I was never bored and never felt like I was watching an amateur project.

Also, the audio is mixed extremely well! Every bit of audio feels like it was captured by the camera's internal mic. Never once did they just slap a bunch of digital sound effects on in post. At least not that I could tell. This is one thing that helps the atmosphere feel so tense and creepy.

However...

There are 2 key flaws:

1. While the mood is dense, visceral and creepy... Every. Single. Scare... is a jump scare (with large variations/sudden jumps in volume). Yes, the atmosphere is near perfect, but its such a shame that all that build up, all that tension and all of the attention to detail is spoiled by cheap jump scares with little variety. They had so much going for them and they resorted to the oldest trick in the book. Dear filmmakers, jump scares are not "scary." All they do is startle you, not terrify you. So much potential wasted on lazy jumps.

2. For some reason, they used a freakin soundtrack... Why, why, why do so many found footage directors keep slapping on soundtracks? This film could have easily stood on its own without it and it would've been better for it. I will give it credit and say that it was fairly unique and fit the theme of hunters in the woods. But soundtracks Do Not belong in FF. If you want to use a soundtrack, use a traditional narrative style of filming. Period.

Despite these major gripes, I still think the film had enough going for it to mostly transcend its flaws. But it had the potential to be so much more than the final product.

Overall, I'd recommend it to any FF junky. I enjoyed it quite a bit and it is well above the average FF indie flick. Especially when you consider that this is the director's first feature film.

Or, as I have already said, CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST rip off too, to summarize found footage stuff. There were tons of them since all those years, especially BLAIR WITCH, before REC, PARANORMAL ACTIVITY, CLOVERFIELD and so on. So back to this one, the topic itself, without the footage scheme, is not new either. Another DELIVERANCE rip-off too, if you watch closely. Not bad at all, I have seen much worse, but it may be tiring to watch only this kind of material. Yes, you can feel tired and bored. But once in a while, I am OK. This feature sounds very amateur though, but I tried to put that besides. I tried. It remains too much talkative and flat, a problem for this kind of directing.

Someone else said he or she was being merciful bu giving it a 2. This isn't even worth a 1. These are supposed to be established actors? This is barely a quarter or a camp fire story. A beginning build up with nothing else. Just random noises and movements in poor light. The scariest part of the movie was at the very beginning where he scared his daughter in their house before even going on his adventure to the woods. I waited until the end, yet there was no climax. Nice scenery. That's the only redeeming quality. It was like a first time YouTube video with a cell phone done by 4 year olds.

I'm a huge fan of horror, found footage, and Josh Stewart. How could The Hunted not be good? It has all the right ingredients: a creepy setting, two promising actors, and a nice low budget feel. Somehow, The Hunted is just plain awful. There is no sugar coating it. The script feels like a skeleton. The "screams" that scare these two throughout the movie are just plain not scary. Why is there music in a found footage film? You don't need suspenseful music to create a mood - let the situation speak for itself. The ending is frustrating and enough to make you question why you even bothered watching in the first place. Josh Stewart, always reliable, is actually kind of bland here. It is probably to blame on the characters, which feel as hollow as a chocolate Easter bunny. I wouldn't have minded not seeing the entity stalking these two if the film itself had come out on top in the end and really delivered some great moments. The film was clearly heavily influenced by The Blair Witch Project: if you're going to imitate one of the greats, you had better be bringing something original and awesome to the mix. The one and only compelling aspect of this movie lies in the ghost story told during the middle. Sorry, Josh, but it's time to go back to the drawing board for your next movie. I'm rooting for you!

I went with this movie not knowing much about it, so when I first saw it was POV\FF format I thought "Oh boy, not again" because last movie I saw as in fact a terrible found footage movie (not to be named here).

Then I saw Josh Stewart and thought "Ok it might not be that bad".

and to my surprise, this turned out to be not only really good P.O.V. movie, but also a very effective horror movie. Even bigger surprise was "Directed and written by Josh Stewart". Starring in all those horror movies recently really payed of for Josh, because he clearly picked up few tips on what scares the people... and that's coming from a horror veteran who nearly lost all hope in new(er) horror movies for relying either on too much jump scares or too much gore, or just plain old stupid guys doing stupid things in stupid screenplays, surviving only because script said so.

The movie is about two guys, one of them being hunter Jake (Josh Stewart), the other his friend journalist Stevie (Ronnie Gene Blevins), who go out on private ranch to hunt animals and record it so Jake would get enough footage for his planned hunting show... Then they soon realize they are the prey and something else in the woods in hunting them.

Honestly, if you want to be surprised like I was, don't read anything about this movie. Don't even read cast listing (it gives too much).

It's has good atmosphere which is missing a lot from new horror movies, it fallows "the less is more" logic which works well for the movie, it's really tense in "night in the woods" scenes and it becomes very tense and creepy when things finally get going.

Now, Josh clearly got influenced by Blair Witch Project (maybe unintentionally) because he manages to capture similar mood of that movie (only better in my opinion) and feeling of unease while characters are all alone in the woods surrounded by pitch black of the woods.

It's a horror movie that relays heavily on the sounds, which is perfect. Think original The Haunting. You'll hear that sound and know something is there, something is right in front of the characters. Sometimes it's falls alarm, sometimes it's there.

Big thanks to Josh for not relying on jump scares too much, there are few of them, but they are not annoying like in most of modern horror movies. They are not accompanied by loud orchestra music that will pierce your ears, they come naturally and usually have good build up before it, so they are earned and you as viewer are satisfied. (first jump scare is actually really good because there's a huge build up to it)

"The Haunted" reminded me of John Carpenter's "The Thing" at one point. Josh was very effective in building up tension where most of the tension comes from expecting things to happen, just like J. Carpenter played with us with "The Thing". You knew Thing was going to pop up eventually, it was just a question when it will show up. It's a same thing here. You know it's going to happen, it's just a matter of time when it will happen.

so this reminds me, why are you still and actor Josh? You're a good actor in my opinion, but you're even better director, and horror director on top of that and all of us horror fans know we need more of those these days!

The phrase "pretentious drivel" comes to mind. Nothing happens in this film. Let me repeat that - Nothing happens. Nothing. Nada. Zilch. If your idea of a scary film is hearing a woman scream in the woods, do yourself a favor - find some woods close to your home, go there at night with a woman you know, and ask her to go into the woods and scream. You'll waste far less time than if you viewed this pitiful excuse for a "thriller". Trust me - I LOVE horror films (and I've been a fan for 54 years, and have seen 'em all). Watching paint dry is far more exciting. The really scary thing is that there are those who think this crap is worth making. They should be ashamed of themselves. Please, please don't waste your time - there are far better films to see. Avoid this at all costs !! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED !!

This is far from original at all, especially when The Blair Witch Project remains the scariest film I've ever seen. That film's tension is just masterful, and I have to say that this film is able to recreate some of its ingenuity and real terror. I think the acting in this is really good and a big part as to why it's pretty effective. At times, the film is a bit too similar in its showing-less-is-more approach, but I'm glad it took that route. I wish the ending had been crazier and that it had done more, but I guess that it was comfortable just feeling safe. Overall, this isn't a necessary viewing, but it is pretty good, especially for such an indie.

The Hunted was director/actor/writer Josh Stewart's first film project I believe, and I thought it was pretty well done! This was a solid found footage suspense/horror movie in the vein of The Blair Witch Project. Very much in the vein in fact.

Let me start off with what I didn't like.

First, and this is a fairly minor gripe, was the fact there was music added to build suspense. Normally this wouldn't be a problem, but unfortunately in this case it's supposed to be a found footage film so it seemed very out of place and actually distracted me to the point I exclaimed "Where is this music coming from!?".

Second, I found too many similarities to The Blair Witch Project. I don't mean similarities as in they are both found footage films, but similarities as in some scenes and scenarios seemed very very close. I appreciate the fact it appears he is trying to honour that film, but there is a fine line there. It's very clear this was his influence.

Finally, it was a little to formulatic. I think Josh was trying to play it safe and stuck to a tried and true found footage formula. Not a huge deal but I would have been excited to see something a little different. This whole movie felt a little bit like I had watched it before.

Now the good. I loved the premise, two hunters alone in the woods when things start to go awry. The reasons for being out there make total sense, and it also makes sense why they would continue to push forward even with the strange goings on. They are trying to film a hunting show and need to get the footage of the hunt completed in order to secure their TV deal. Everything is on the line for them.

The acting was very good; both Josh and Skipp do a great job with their characters. You can tell this is something they were very excited about doing and their heart's were into it. It felt very natural and they were believable.

I enjoyed the story, it was very well written and very well done on what was obviously a very teeny tiny budget. I watched Willow Creek a couple of weeks ago and felt this was a far superior found footage film.

Even with the small problems, this is one of the better found footage films I've seen in a little while. Perhaps the fact that it was heavily influenced by what I consider the original found footage film was a smart move, and not a negative after all. I enjoyed it, and hope to see more work from Josh Stewart in this genre in the future. A great first effort!

When I was a kid, we used to tell ghost stories or re-tell urban legends around the the campfire. With the advent of the "found footage" genre, we've found a whole new way to keep our kids awake all night, even camping in the backyard.

"Blair Witch" did it first. But in my opinion, Josh Stewart has done it best. The filming wasn't so obviously orchestrated as to suggest a D.O.P., but then again, this stuff doesn't just 'happen'. The editing was great and the thrill of terror and suspense was heightened by the anticipation of the next 'event' (don't want to spoil what happens).

This is a very well crafted, well presented and well produced film - unlike so many other "found footage" projects that make you wonder if maybe someone's dad bought them an editing suite for Christmas.

Next time I pitch a tent around a campfire - if I'm ever so brave after watching this - I'll bring along a laptop and share this tale. Then, spend the night in my SUV with the doors locked.

Ironically, the only thing missing in this film was an actual campfire. Otherwise, very very well done and the cast and crew deserve an 'A' for effort and an "A+" for execution.

This movie can be summed up with the above line which Josh Stewart says himself in the movie - something to the extent of "I can't believe how slow it is". How meta.

Anyway, I had high expectations from Arkin of The Collector, especially considering how this is billed as "from the producers of the collection/collector". I quite liked both of those, despite their high level of implausibility, however, Arkin's directorial debut could not be less like either of those films. Basically The Hunted has two guys that go out into the woods to film a hunting documentary and...that's it. That's seriously 99% of the movie, the other 1% being comprised of random shrieking in the woods (sadly, the characters interact with the shrieking thing for a whopping 1-2 minutes max out). Nothing substantial ever happens, and any moments of suspense (where the ominous music starts to play...even though it's supposed to be found footage...) end all too quickly without any actual punch. There are SO MANY spots where they could have utilized this suspense brilliantly, but they drop the ball every time. I guess this is like Paranormal Activity in the woods except that even less happens, if that is actually possible - perhaps more like it wants to be Blair Witch, except 14 years too late. It's a real shame too because everything about this movie had potential. The film/camera work/"found footage" style and sound are good; the acting, while mediocre at best, was passable for this type of movie; and the setting & concept were solid.

There really isn't much else to say because NOTHING happens. Avoid unless you like really slow, soporific movies that show and explain nothing, or half baked hunting documentaries.

This is possibly the worst movie I have seen ever. What was the people who put this movie to the screen thinking? Do they take us audience as morons? From start to finish there is simply nothing which brings a little light in this dark movie. The story line is stupid, the acting mundane and the background music terrible.

The story line was so poor you couldn't make out what was going on from the start to finish. I don't know how I managed to see the complete movie. Probably the synopsis and the rating given here made me think that all as not bad.

I advise the readers not to waste their time in seeing this movie even if it was given free. You will not only be left disappointed but totally disgusted.

I have never seen such a bad movie - this is a newer version of "The Blair Witch Project" in a hunting scenario - I am an avid hunter.

They will never see any wildlife with the local bar type chatter conversations & constant movement like two cheerleaders in a tree stand.

There is no wildlife footage worth mentioning, there is a 20 something year old man screaming "eye roll" the cameraman.

The story is a typical ghost story that could of been filmed in my woods by a couple local drinking buddies trust me the budget is not much, at least I could of offered better buck footage.

We have these two running around the woods running into trees they should be ashamed of themselves. I am thankful they didn't hear a turkey GOBBLE as it dropped from its perch as the sun come up, they would need a defib. LOL

Nothing here worth mentioning, honestly not even scenery - reading these comments the wife & I enjoyed more than the actual movie its BAD.

Chasing their dream of landing their own hunting show, two hunters head into the dense, secluded mountains of West Virginia only to realize they are not alone.

Josh Stewart has seen great success as an actor. Although he is known to horror fans as Arkin from the "Collector" films, he has appeared in a wide range of titles. Here he branches out more to the production end, taking part in almost every aspect of this film.

While it is not quite found footage (we never rely completely on the characters to show us around), the film is guaranteed to call to mind parallels with "Blair Witch Project" and "Willow Creek". Any point-of-view film in the woods is likely to bring these connections up, and for those who wish to be critical it is a fair criticism.

But rather than simply dismiss the film as a copy or as being derivative, we should recognize this have become an entire subgenre of the horror or thriller film in its own right. The slow pace can be either boring or suspenseful depending on how the film is directed and edited (here it is more suspenseful). And there is something about playing with the imagination that can be a fun game for the filmmaker.

This is the sort of film that plays best in dark, crowded theaters. At home, on a small screen, it cannot provide the full impact of giving people the jump it might.

I twas a fun movie and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I have little else to say in that regard, and whether or not that is a good or bad mark on the movie I can't say because I enjoyed it.

what I can say is criticizations. For one, this is largely a "found footage" type thing, yet there are also general out-of-camera theatrical shots which feels unnecessary since the entirety of the story can be contained within the handheld cameras the protagonists are carrying and using.

Second, it takes entirely too long to tease us with the suspenseful bits. A bit too much is spent building to it and taking its time in setting up the aura and that time could've been better spent with just a bit more in the way of odd, inexplicable events.

Third, and the most important bit, the music. They shouldn't have used music. It does not go well at all with the style, and has the effect of diminishing tense moments, sometimes even getting ahead of the viewer's eyes and spoiling a big shock moment about a half-second before it actually appears on screen.

I had high hopes for this movie. I really liked "The Blair Witch", and I thought that this effort might be reasonably close. Unfortunately, I was wrong. You would be better served to watch an episode... ANY episode... of the television series "Mountain Monsters".

I gave it a 10/10 because it deserves less hate. But I'd honestly rate it 8.5/10.

It was so good. One of the best horrors. Because you don't actually see anything. All to your imagination. Plus it's filmed like it's real life, it feels that way, a lot more realistic than other horrors for sure.

Not dragged out and not too short. Perfect length for a horror. And I would highly recommend it to anyone, especially if you enjoy scary horrors like myself.

313. The Hunted. Just a couple of hillbillies following their dream of having their own reality hunting show! What they don't expect is to hunted themselves while in the woods! And its not Tommy Lee Jones! What it sounds like is a woman screaming for her life, at first they brush it off as a wild cat out there being attacked or killed, but I don't think they dismantle your equipment, steal your knife, so what does? An urban legend come true perhaps?? Not bad for a low budget flick, probably shot in someones back yard one night. Filmbufftim on FB.

I tried to watch this thing because I love horror movies even when it is based on real events I can't wait to watch a movie. But this one is a real disappointment for me.

acting, pacing everything sucks in this thing,it is a thing not a film for sure..I watched it my finger on fast forward button waiting to see something happens but guess what the thing finished but I was still waiting. it is so slow and boring yeah there is Blair witch but it is somehow keeps you on the line but this one makes you bored from the very beginning till the end.

The man with the bow even can't make you watch him because when he talks you feel that he is acting. don't let the info that it is based on real events..you never miss anything it is just waste of time.

How do I feel about this movie? My first instinct was to stop watching at 2 seconds into the movie. I thought no give it a chance and I did. My final thoughts.

STUPID STUPID STUPID.