Review by Sarah Sharp
Stars Ricky Mabe, Trevor Hayes, Kaniehtiio Horn, Claudia Jurt | Written by Mark Antony Krupa
UK certification 15 | UK RRP £15.99 | DVD Region 2 | Runtime 97 minutes | Directed by Alexandre Franchi
The Wild Hunt is a cautionary tale of fantasy gaming gone horribly wrong. It is set in the Canadian wilderness over a weekend when warlocks, elves and warriors come together to forge alliances and make a carefully documented number of hits against one another.
But when unbeliever Eric infiltrates the group in search of his errant girlfriend Lynn – Princess Evlinia, as she has styled herself - the barrier between fantasy and reality becomes blurred, with disastrous consequences.
The film does well to make a motley crew of fantasists become genuinely sinister, and to suggest such brutality is not so far removed from all of us. It is, however, a very slow build up, and before the gruesome denouement the tension has started to lapse more than once. It redeems itself spectacularly by the end, but some slimming around the middle would not have gone amiss.
Features include original trailer and storyboard, as well as some behind the scenes images and interviews, but regrettably no commentary or discussion with either writer or director. In a feature of this sort this is somewhat disappointing: certainly it merited one.
The film keeps an even keel between earnestness and humour, which serves it well – a heavier touch could have alienated the audience, while a lighter one would have trivialised the brutal conclusion. There is excellent use of "authentic" music as if conjured straight up from a Nordic saga - this is one of many elements that show how real this created world is for the characters, and illuminate the danger such absorption can hold.
EXTRAS Nothing on the preview disc we were sent, but according to the rpess release there should be the trailer, a making-of feature, storyboards, festival footage and commentaries.