The Hunted Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		3.5

The Hunted Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf June 6, 2019

One day, someone is going to write a book about the career of Christopher Lambert, hopefully titled, “Why Him?” Here’s an actor with a positively bizarre filmography, achieving his greatest success with 1986’s “Highlander,” where the Frenchman played an immortal Scotsman, showing proper physicality for the part, but never slam-dunking its emotional potential. Hollywood tried to do so much with Lambert, casting him in plenty of B- movies (such as “Fortress,” “Gunmen,” and “Knight Moves”), with the actor ultimately reaching the peak of industry support in 1995, with the release of “Mortal Kombat” and “The Hunted,” with the latter returning the star to the dangerous ways of swordplay. Lambert remains well out of his range in the feature, but “The Hunted” is perhaps the second best of his Americanized efforts, adding some hard stares and mild comedy to what’s largely a deadly serious investigation into honor and revenge concerning two rival ninja clans. Writer/director J.F. Lawton does relatively well with Lambert, but one can sense he’s had enough of the actor as the picture unfolds, slowly pushing his character into the background when the opportunity arrives to deal with some wonderful Japanese actors.

Paul (Christopher Lambert) is a businessman in Japan who’s just closed a major deal in the computing industry. Hoping for a quiet night at the hotel bar, Paul meets Kirina (Joan Chen), an alluring stranger who’s very interested in spending some time with the American. Pairing up for the evening, Paul is disturbed when he must go, leaving Kirina before quickly returning to her room to plead his case, stumbling into a crime scene after Kinjo (John Lone), a top ninja, takes her life. Seeing the killer’s face, Paul is marked for death, miraculously managing to avoid slaughter from Kinjo’s clan, Makato, newly forced to navigate Japan with bleeding wounds and no sense of the real danger he’s in. Reluctantly helping Paul is Takeda (Yoshio Harada), whose clan has carried a longstanding feud with the Makato, using the witness to encourage a final stand with Kinjo on the home island he shares with his students and partner, Mieko (Yoko Shimada).

For its first hour, “The Hunted” is tense and mysterious. Lawton does a competent job restoring the threat level of the ninja after Cannon Films decided to turn the assassin culture into a cartoon during the 1980s. And there’s earnestness with Paul, who’s a lonely guy suddenly finding himself in the company of an interested Japanese woman, enjoying an evening of local culture and sake before returning to her room for sexual relations. The American has trouble shaking such luck out of his mind, setting up a meeting between Paul and Kinjo, who cannot be seen by those outside the clan, fearing part of his soul is lost by such a reveal. Paul is badly wounded in the melee, and Lawton triggers a chase scenario to get “The Hunted” up and running, tracking the stranger’s experience running through the city, eventually caught in a Pachinko parlor, where a little curious girl becomes his savior. With the ninja in pursuit, unable to extinguish a meek target, Paul is soon moved to a bullet train for travel, and Lawton serves up what’s easily the highlight of “The Hunted,” with Takeda and Mieko steeling themselves inside the speeding vehicle, soon battling waves of ninja who don’t care about civilian casualties.

The bullet train showdown is fantastic, representing the best of Lawton’s ideas for “The Hunted,” which also deals directly with Japanese codes of honor and mysticism, as both Paul and Kinjo are haunted by memories of Kirina. Lawton also provides tight action with lots of bloodshed, maintaining the chase through Japan, presenting a tense ride of near-misses and ninja-branded mayhem. Such velocity subsides in the second half, where Paul is put into protection on Takeda’s island fortress, handed a subplot where he pals around with a drunk bladesmith while the clan leader prepares for Kinjo’s arrival. Lambert goes full clown here, adding more pronounced elements of humor to lighten up “The Hunted,” but his character is also ignored for the most part, as Lawton has more interested in the details of the impending battle between the seasoned warriors. While dramatics are welcome, the pace notably slackens, sending the feature into a final act that’s not nearly as enticing as its first.

The Hunted Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (1.85:1 aspect ratio) presentation handles like an average Universal catalog title. A new scan wasn't available, but Shout Factory does what it can with the master, which is diluted some by filtering. Softness remains, but not all detail is lost, finding close-ups delivering some sense of facial surfaces, and interior decoration is open for study. Exteriors aren't defined sharply, but distances are adequate, showcasing city visits and island activity. Colors are satisfactory, securing brighter neon highlights of Japanese nightlife, and costuming is passable, including red dresses and business attire. Delineation is acceptable, without extended stretches of crush. Source is in decent shape, without major elements of damage.

The Hunted Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 5.1 DTS-HD MA sound mix offers a more frontal position, but it's a forceful one, with rhythm presented by the Taiko drum score, which offers a pleasant rumble during the listening event, helping to secure suspense needs. Dialogue exchanges are sharp and true, handling accents without concern, and emotional volatility doesn't reach distortive extremes. Surrounds detail the expanse of music, and atmospherics are served well, delivering a feel for bullet train speed and violent activity, and rain is pronounced for a circular sense of position.

The Hunted Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary features writer/director J.F. Lawton.

• Workprint (123:49, SD) presents the 1994 "preview" cut of "The Hunted," which is notable for its inclusion of Paul's co- worker, who's briefly seen in the opening of the Theatrical Cut, but is offered a larger, more critical role here. There's more with Kinjo and his identity crisis, unable to shake the "ghost" of Kirina. And, surprisingly, there's some third act romantic connection between Paul and Mieko, who's tempted by the businessman's strange energy.

• Deleted Scenes (11:09, SD) provide even more additions to "The Hunted," delving deeper into the coworker's relationship with Paul, offering backstory on his marital life. There's extended time with Kinjo and Paul's hospital stay, where he's question by a cop.

• Behind-the-Scenes Footage (13:51, SD) is an excellent peek at the production experience driving "The Hunted." There's a fly-on-the-wall vibe to the featurette, observing technical adjustments and thespian interaction, with Lawton commanding a loyal crew of North American and Japanese individuals. Also on display is cast camaraderie, with Lambert eternally playful (and always smoking), trying to add some fun to the workday. While on the short side, there's enough here to really get a sense of daily labor, ending with the final day of the shoot.

• Still gallery (7:02) collects film stills, publicity shots, and an ad slick.

• T.V. Spots (:48, SD) offer two commercials for "The Hunted."

• And a Theatrical Trailer (1:48, SD) is included.

The Hunted Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Some of Lawton's screenplay choices are awkward (this being 1995, computer chip salesman Paul is turned into an expert swordsman to give Lambert something to do), but "The Hunted" doesn't fall apart. It just slows down, which is always a mistake with this type of entertainment. Lawton gets too caught up in his version of an Eastern showdown, soon unable to balance subplots and focus as he braids Japanese culture with Hollywood demands. He doesn't quite know how to end "The Hunted," but Lawton has a distinct way to begin it, and that's enough to support the viewing experience.