Review of The Hunt (2013) by Jon T — 06 Nov 2013

Not an easy watch but a very fine film.

An innocent man suspected of paedophilia was murdered in the UK the week before l saw this so no question this is real stuff. Apart from the plaudits for acting, script, direction and cinematography what does this movie tell us?

First scapegoating has not gone away and never will. The violence Lucas endures comes from people he does not know with no real connection to his alleged crime. Its not dissimilar from Quatermass and the Pit when the crowd simply turns on someone. The only difference is what is exposed in The Hunt; its in all of us; it is not put there by aliens.

The second less obvious but to my mind most interesting aspect of the movie is the subterranean sexual politics because we live in times when men, even good men like Lucas, are all suspected abusers and rapists. His female work colleagues quickly close ranks against him and it is the men in his life who provide belief, support and love. Like many men l am often ashamed of my sex but also uncomfortable with contemporary fictional portrayals of men. The stereotypes- hero, lovable idiot, rogue etc do not resonate greatly with me but Lucas is a man l recognise as a contemporary everyman. He is just trying to get along despite the divorce and losing his job. He barely sees hos boy and loves hos dog. He clearly loves children and is uninhibited about it. He likes a beer and hanging out with the lads. He is not really interested in his appearance and a big career. He is hopeless with women and does not know how to make a pass. He always tries to do the right thing. But none of that can save him as he is guilty of being close with children and living alone. Its a lot harder to be a man these days..