Alice, played by Camille Rowe (known for her role in “The Deep House”), sleepily video chats with her husband while he gets ready in their hotel room. She ends the call moments before her lover, John, played by Jeremy Scipio, enters the scene, narrowly avoiding a disastrous encounter.
After a brief moment to compose herself, Alice encourages John to accompany her as they venture into the night to begin their journey home. However, their progress is halted when they make a stop at a remote rural gas station in the dead of night, which quickly turns into a dangerous battle for survival when Alice discovers that she is trapped there, the target of a sadistic sniper.
Director: Franck Khalfoun
Writers: Rubén Ávila Calvo, Glen Freyer, Franck Khalfoun
Stars: Monaia Abdelrahim, Abbe Andersen, J. John Bieler
Director Khalfoun, who co-wrote the script with Glen Freyer, wastes no time delving into horror territory after introducing the enigmatic protagonist, Alice. The desolate setting inherently sets an unsettling tone, and the filmmaker quickly ramps up the suspense with sudden gunshots, leaving Alice isolated, injured, and desperate for shelter. This sets the stage for an intense cat-and-mouse showdown between hunter and prey, as Alice struggles to reveal the motives of her attacker and find a way to escape.
“Night of the Hunted” excels when it focuses on the chilling and thrilling pursuit of an unseen assailant with astonishing precision. The more Khalfoun delves into the mysteries behind the attack and presents scenes in which Alice must maneuver to avoid the sniper's line of sight, the more fascinating the story becomes. The ambiguity over whether this is a random act of violence or a calculated attack on an unsympathetic main character adds to the unpredictability in the film's opening stages.
However, when the sniper begins to reveal his motivations and beliefs, the film's polarizing message threatens to overshadow the horror elements. A misguided subplot attempts to divert attention and prolong the central question of what drives this relentless search for Alice, but ends up bogging down the intense action. The situation is not helped by direct dialogue that tries too hard to make the point. The silver lining is that, just when the social commentary teeters on the edge of overexposure, a bloody climax and a nail-biting final twist effectively convey the cautionary message.
Camille Rowe carries the film with grace, often appearing as the only character on screen for extended periods. The fact that Alice is presented as morally ambiguous adds depth to the character, and Rowe masterfully evokes empathy through her physicality in heartbreaking sequences and nuanced vulnerability.
A tense showdown scenario is occasionally marred by prolonged dialogue between Alice and the sociopathic sniper, delving into a "both sides" argument to a somewhat uncomfortable point. Khalfoun takes his time stating his position, and only in the final moments does the intricate message become evident. The journey to that point is usually intense, but is occasionally muddled by clunky dialogue. However, every step of the film serves to set the stage for the final shocking twist. “Night of the Hunted” taps into the prevailing anger of our times, producing exciting results, although it occasionally fails to articulate its message.
Watch Night of the Hunted 2023 Movie Trailer
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