Hunting Party

A crime thriller feature written and directed by Danny Patrick and starring Zoe Scott, Ollie Newman, Paul O'Doherty, Hannah Oliver, Tony Curl and Enn Reitel.

Circuit Court Judges are releasing guilty defendants, only to subsequently kidnap them and hunt them down on a vast estate belonging to Judge Hardin (Reitel). Hardin lives in a mansion in this estate, along with his daughter, Katie (Oliver), his unstable son, Stephen (Curl), both of which participate in these vile activities. Meanwhile, government agent, Eve (Scott) investigates and gradually gathers clue that uncover the deeds of these individuals. Additionally, the murder of a young woman named Marilyn (Emily Webber) has dramatic consequences for her partner, Jay (Newman) and his father (O'Doherty).

From the opening scene, this film effectively sets up the atmosphere: in an isolated loation, during night-time, a group of people armed with bows and knives pursue a man. And similar occurrences follow, including murders, kidnappings, chases and hand-to-hand combat. However, the story is not just about that, as it explores the relationships between its variety of interesting characters and it also works as a family drama. Adding to this is the appearance of Russian bad people. The action scenes are probably the highlights, however, the screenplay concentrates on character exploration and there is plenty of tension and nail-biting moments.

There are some well-executed long takes and the frequent aerial shots look great and Gabriele Salomoni's sinister and electronic music adds to the mood.

It would be fair to say that there is not really a main character, although much attention is given to Eve and for good reason. She might be a former pill addict and she might be having an affair with the husband of Charlotte (Lauren Budd), Eve's boss, nevertheless, Eve is a clever, energetic and determined woman who can put up a fight. She could be categorised as an action heroine. Father-and-son, Jay and Danny run a pub together and they are two guys who just want to live their life but end up finding themselves in harms way and it is these two bring some comedy to the table. Looking at the bad guys now, it is Katie who seems to be the leader. A murderous individual, she is also confident and knows how to control situations. And then there is her sibling, Stephen, a violent psychopath who enjoys killing.

Mainly, this is a story about murder and conspiracies. Aside from this, it is also about relationships, family and infidelity.

Arguably, the fight scenes are the times when this feature shines brightest. Additionally, the plot is good and the characters are intriguing. A decent thriller.