Interesting choice for a kind of Friedkin memorial, one of the less heralded Friedkin cuts. I haven’t watched this for a long time but one thing I instantly agree with with your description - Lean and Mean. Most definitely. Friedkin usually does really pare down his characters to their most essential elements. In fact, the two chief characters are Elemental. And this usually serves the narrative really well. The pace of this I remember being brutal and brisk. He does it well here with this movie. It’s wonderful to have Benicio Del Toro in a Friedkin movie too! There’s something this actors ability to exude a haunted expression that’s begging to be in a movie by him. I’ll have to go back to this. There was another of Friedkin’s that I had mixed feelings about from a similar period, Rules Of Engagement. Remember that one? Great to see you guys back on my Tablet 😄
I saw Rules of Engagement not too long ago and I think I quite enjoyed it, that’s Tommy Lee Jones too isn’t it? I remember thinking the battle sequences were very well done, but perhaps the courtroom scenes weren’t as strong as, say, A Few Good Men but there was quite a stand out scene near the end, does a character go back to the scene of the battle and find a doctor? I think I’m thinking of the correct film! I think those scenes were well done and had some emotional crunch to them ~ J.
It’s been a while since watching that too so my memory of it currently is hazy. The main thing I recall is how good Guy Peace was in it, he was really coming up that time wasn’t he? What with L.A. Confidential and Memento to name but a few. He has a talent in certain roles of portraying a mildly despicable, officious and jobsworthy type whilst maintaining a respectable level of ethical responsibility within. I recall his character being a little in that league in Rules Of Engagement. Actually I watched the opening few minutes of RoE last night and you’re spot on about the battle scenes. The establishing prologue is a Vietnam war scene. It wasn’t flashy or painfully over stylised it was simply a heavy hitting, clear and tense bit of gritty action. Friedkin isn’t showy generally but uses technique very specifically. Like, the are moments where various soldiers are being penetrated by the many bullets flying around. it’s a fluid no nonsense firefight but during the impact moments the frame rate is slowed down by just a notch, it’s not quite slow motion, but it helps demonstrate the thudding impact of the bullets on bodies, the death or maiming involved in that. It’s a director/cinematographer/editor combo choice that makes it feel like what you might call ‘a Friedkin Movie’. I will carry on with it. At the moment I’m watching RocknRolla. And man, it’s really quite frigging good!! 😄 Watched it years ago and really couldn’t have given much of a stuff about it afterward. Which is not much of a surprise for some of Guy Ritchie’s yarns. But this time… I’m really quite charmed by it! It’s itched my latent geezer side 😄
Guy Pearce made some great movies round that time, all in quite quick succession. Yes, I think he was particularly good in Rules of Engagement. The Hard Word is cool slightly unknown Aussie crime flick from around then that he was in, I recommend that if you haven’t seen it. He still turns up in some good things occasionally but apparently he has gone back into Neighbours, so perhaps the offers aren’t quite as strong as they used to be 🤷😂 ~ J.
@@cineXplorers ha, yeah I nearly choked on my chicken Kiev when I saw an ad for Neighbours revealing a bearded Guy Pierce in it. I thought ‘now that’s dedication’ considering it is a programme that gave foundation to his career. I wonder if actors find being on a soap rather comforting a working environment. It probably has far less headache inducing demands than other areas of filmmaking/professional acting. A reliable pay packet too. I was looking at his filmography last night, see if I could find a film that I had no idea about, something with what seems like a half decent if not compelling story and perhaps other interesting actors/writers and director. I found a title called Traitor (2008). It’s an FBI/post 9/11 terrorist conspiracy thriller with Don Cheadle and Jeff Daniels (plus that blonde guy from Ravenous, you know, the guy who’s militant about being a solid soldier, all about the rules and regulations… he’s pretty much the same personality in this 😄). And it’s not bad, so far (I haven’t finished it yet). Guy Pearce is instantly interesting and likeable a character, you feel safe supporting his thoughts and actions pretty quickly. It’s one of those thrillers there was glut of in the mid to late 2000’s. Like Body of Lies, Rendition, The Reluctant Fundamentalist, The Kingdom and so on. That weird interesting mix of quite liberal flag wavers that can sometimes be quite good examinations of American foreign policy in the Middle East in light of the September 11 terrorist attacks. Sometimes they’re more like American writers revising history so it makes them look like true victors in what is ostensibly is a made up war (that’s The Kingdom haha). Probably Zero Dark Thirty is one of the most accomplished and truthful of that sub genre. Oh, actually the Reluctant Fundamentalist is far from a ‘patriotic’ movie. So far though, yeah, Traitor is pretty solid.
For me, The Hunted is like a much darker version of Bourne trilogy. Bourne and Hallam are both assassination agent who failed at their mission and get chased by the government agents who are trying to cover their secrets... And They are both haunted by what they did in the past. The only difference is that Bourne has some sort of a salvation whereas Hallam doesn't. Also, the fight sequences in those movies are fast, lean and brutal. But, i have to say that i like the fight sequence in The Hunted more than the one we see in Bourne trilogy.
Thanks for the review guys, I think I’m gonna have to check this film out, never heard of it which is strange, as this would have been around my era? 🧐
The deer hunters weren’t actually deer hunters they were man hunters, sent by the government to sweep Aaron cause he know he was setup in his last mission when he killed the innocent people
Just watched it. Really enjoyed it. Cinematography is both lush and intimate and the fight scenes are brutal.
Never seen this one; thanks for bringing it to my attention!
Interesting choice for a kind of Friedkin memorial, one of the less heralded Friedkin cuts.
I haven’t watched this for a long time but one thing I instantly agree with with your description - Lean and Mean. Most definitely. Friedkin usually does really pare down his characters to their most essential elements. In fact, the two chief characters are Elemental. And this usually serves the narrative really well. The pace of this I remember being brutal and brisk. He does it well here with this movie. It’s wonderful to have Benicio Del Toro in a Friedkin movie too! There’s something this actors ability to exude a haunted expression that’s begging to be in a movie by him.
I’ll have to go back to this. There was another of Friedkin’s that I had mixed feelings about from a similar period, Rules Of Engagement. Remember that one?
Great to see you guys back on my Tablet 😄
I saw Rules of Engagement not too long ago and I think I quite enjoyed it, that’s Tommy Lee Jones too isn’t it? I remember thinking the battle sequences were very well done, but perhaps the courtroom scenes weren’t as strong as, say, A Few Good Men but there was quite a stand out scene near the end, does a character go back to the scene of the battle and find a doctor? I think I’m thinking of the correct film! I think those scenes were well done and had some emotional crunch to them ~ J.
It’s been a while since watching that too so my memory of it currently is hazy. The main thing I recall is how good Guy Peace was in it, he was really coming up that time wasn’t he? What with L.A. Confidential and Memento to name but a few. He has a talent in certain roles of portraying a mildly despicable, officious and jobsworthy type whilst maintaining a respectable level of ethical responsibility within. I recall his character being a little in that league in Rules Of Engagement.
Actually I watched the opening few minutes of RoE last night and you’re spot on about the battle scenes. The establishing prologue is a Vietnam war scene. It wasn’t flashy or painfully over stylised it was simply a heavy hitting, clear and tense bit of gritty action. Friedkin isn’t showy generally but uses technique very specifically. Like, the are moments where various soldiers are being penetrated by the many bullets flying around. it’s a fluid no nonsense firefight but during the impact moments the frame rate is slowed down by just a notch, it’s not quite slow motion, but it helps demonstrate the thudding impact of the bullets on bodies, the death or maiming involved in that. It’s a director/cinematographer/editor combo choice that makes it feel like what you might call ‘a Friedkin Movie’.
I will carry on with it.
At the moment I’m watching RocknRolla. And man, it’s really quite frigging good!! 😄
Watched it years ago and really couldn’t have given much of a stuff about it afterward. Which is not much of a surprise for some of Guy Ritchie’s yarns. But this time… I’m really quite charmed by it! It’s itched my latent geezer side 😄
Guy Pearce made some great movies round that time, all in quite quick succession. Yes, I think he was particularly good in Rules of Engagement. The Hard Word is cool slightly unknown Aussie crime flick from around then that he was in, I recommend that if you haven’t seen it.
He still turns up in some good things occasionally but apparently he has gone back into Neighbours, so perhaps the offers aren’t quite as strong as they used to be 🤷😂 ~ J.
@@cineXplorers ha, yeah I nearly choked on my chicken Kiev when I saw an ad for Neighbours revealing a bearded Guy Pierce in it. I thought ‘now that’s dedication’ considering it is a programme that gave foundation to his career. I wonder if actors find being on a soap rather comforting a working environment. It probably has far less headache inducing demands than other areas of filmmaking/professional acting. A reliable pay packet too.
I was looking at his filmography last night, see if I could find a film that I had no idea about, something with what seems like a half decent if not compelling story and perhaps other interesting actors/writers and director.
I found a title called Traitor (2008). It’s an FBI/post 9/11 terrorist conspiracy thriller with Don Cheadle and Jeff Daniels (plus that blonde guy from Ravenous, you know, the guy who’s militant about being a solid soldier, all about the rules and regulations… he’s pretty much the same personality in this 😄). And it’s not bad, so far (I haven’t finished it yet). Guy Pearce is instantly interesting and likeable a character, you feel safe supporting his thoughts and actions pretty quickly.
It’s one of those thrillers there was glut of in the mid to late 2000’s. Like Body of Lies, Rendition, The Reluctant Fundamentalist, The Kingdom and so on. That weird interesting mix of quite liberal flag wavers that can sometimes be quite good examinations of American foreign policy in the Middle East in light of the September 11 terrorist attacks. Sometimes they’re more like American writers revising history so it makes them look like true victors in what is ostensibly is a made up war (that’s The Kingdom haha). Probably Zero Dark Thirty is one of the most accomplished and truthful of that sub genre. Oh, actually the Reluctant Fundamentalist is far from a ‘patriotic’ movie.
So far though, yeah, Traitor is pretty solid.
For me, The Hunted is like a much darker version of Bourne trilogy. Bourne and Hallam are both assassination agent who failed at their mission and get chased by the government agents who are trying to cover their secrets... And They are both haunted by what they did in the past. The only difference is that Bourne has some sort of a salvation whereas Hallam doesn't. Also, the fight sequences in those movies are fast, lean and brutal. But, i have to say that i like the fight sequence in The Hunted more than the one we see in Bourne trilogy.
Lol Hallam did not fail
Thanks for the review guys, I think I’m gonna have to check this film out, never heard of it which is strange, as this would have been around my era? 🧐
If anyone wants to see where this is filmed, especially the forest kills, check out Silver Falls State Park, and hike the Trail of Ten Falls.
Hope you guys can review Sky High, which came out a couple years after this
Wheres Christopher Lambert? Or john lone??
The deer hunters weren’t actually deer hunters they were man hunters, sent by the government to sweep Aaron cause he know he was setup in his last mission when he killed the innocent people
This is less of a review and more a case of two blokes having a chat about a film, you might aswell be sitting in the pub lol