The Hunt vs. Ready or Not: A Hunting People Movie Head-to-Head

Armageddon and Deep Impact. Volcano and Dante's Inferno. Sometimes movie studios just seem to have the same idea at the same time. Whether serendipity or the plain old sincerest form of flattery, it's happened since movies have been released, and now we've got two "People Hunting Other People" movies in the same time frame. How is one to decide which "People Hunting Other People," or as it's more commonly known, PHOP, to watch? Should you watch both of the recently released PHOPs? The Nicsperiment is here to help you decide. Let's start with the most recently released The Hunt.

The Hunt
2020 Universal/Blumhouse Pictures
Directed by: Craig Zobel; Written by: Nick Cuse and Damon Lindelof
Starring: Ike Barinholtz, Betty Gilpin, Amy Madigan, Emma Roberts, Ethan Suplee, and Hilary Swank
MPAA Rating: R; Running Time: 89 Minutes
The Nicsperiment Score: 8/10

A group of strangers wake up in the middle of a wooded wilderness with no memory of how they arrived. A nearby meadow contains a large wooden crate full of weapons, along with a live, dressed up pig. The pig flees, the strangers look at the box with puzzlement, and then bullets start raining down upon them. The hunt has begun.
The Hunt thrives, not just on its continued and delicious upending of expectations, but on continuous genre thrills. The film's protagonist isn't immediately apparent, which is a thrill unto itself, but when they suddenly and unquestioningly step to the center, they're a capable person who can throwdown with anyone. This allows The Hunt to ride a wave a non-stop action for the majority of its refreshingly brisk 90 minute run-time. Director, Craig Zobel, isn't huge on atmosphere, but he can sure shoot action and blood-spattered violence. The Hunt is as violent as advertised. However, The Hunt also frequently exercises a wild and wicked sense of humor, which somewhat undercuts the darkness of the violence, and gives the film a politically pointed edge.
It turns out the hunters have chosen their prey for ideological reasons, an act the film clearly views as ridiculous. However, it also appears to view the hunted themselves as quite ridiculous, and quite honestly most of the characters involved in the entire proceedings. The film is quite clearly attacking extremism, and the dehumanization involved when one set of humans generalizes another into a set of viewpoints instead of as people just like them. Quite humorously, much of the critique for this film has come from those equating the film's perspective with that of our current President's "very fine people on both sides" comments, a view The Hunt quite clearly refutes. The movie isn't saying that both sides of any given political divide are wrong or right--it's saying that viewing someone as non-human because of their political party is wrong. Of course, because this is a more nuanced message than right/left good or right/left bad, there's no room for it in today's discourse. However, I think this message is very important in today's Fox News/CNN divided world. Again The Hunt isn't even saying that the two political sides are morally equal. It's saying that a Republican and a Democrat are both human beings, for whatever that's worth. The movie even throws in a few faint, but cutting observations on class, as well. These are wise words from a movie that casts Emma Roberts as a character only referred to in the credits as "Yoga Pants." The Hunt writer, Damon Lindelof (who cowrote this film with Nick Cuse), can miss spectacularly at times, but when he hits, he hits hard.

Ready or Not
2019 Fox Searchlight Pictures
Directed by: Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett; Written by: Guy Busick and R. Christopher Murphy
Starring:Samara Weaving, Adam Brody, Mark O'Brien, Henry Czerny, and Andie MacDowell
MPAA Rating: R; Running Time: 95 Minutes
The Nicsperiment Score: 7/10

Grace can't wait to marry the fabulous and wealthy Daniel Le Domas, the man of her dreams. Unfortunately, Daniel's family at best seems to tolerate her, and at worst seems to wish she was dead. Ironically, Grace, who grew up in foster homes, wants nothing more than to have a loving, constant family. She's finally found that in Daniel, and hopes she can win over his strange and unwelcoming brood, as well. The wedding takes place at the Le Domas' ridiculously large and extravagant estate, where Grace and Daniel plan to spend their wedding night. After the wedding, though, Daniel starts acting strangely. He informs Grace that all new members of the Le Domas family must play a game at midnight, after their wedding ceremony. Grace thinks this is weird, but she loves and trusts Daniel, whose family made their fortune in games and entertainment. As the family sits together in their lavish study, Grace is told to pick a card...and then given a head start.
These two PHOP films are quite different from one another. While The Hunt's Craig Zobel is less worried about atmosphere, Ready or Not's directors, Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, drench their film in it. As Ready or Not contains a surprising touch of the occult, the film turns out to be as much a haunted house flick as it is a PHOP film. It's candle-lit, filtered in gold, brown, and subtle greens, and cinematographer, Brett Jutkiewicz, seems to cast everything beneath a subtle mist. Also, it's...well, at the heart of The Hunt is a warrior, but Ready or Not is full of a much of folks who have no idea how to fight, let alone handle weapons. Indeed, where The Hunt skewers political divides, with quiet remarks about class, Ready or Not leaves politics out to solely focus on class themes. To better portray wealth-induced atrophy, our hero's greatest asset here isn't her own competence, but the incompetence of those hunting her. This leads to plenty of humorous moments that may still please gore hounds, but leave action fans out in the cold.
The script here by Guy Busick and R. Christopher Murphy is pretty clever, and contains some astute observations about not only what it takes to accumulate wealth, but to keep it, while, much like The Hunt, often subverting expectations. However, there's less rewatch value here, as once you know the twists and turns, there's little to come back for but the atmosphere, and to parse through some of the film's more wry economical observations. Ready or Not is also not quite as clever as it thinks, as there are a few surprisingly generic beats that had me shouting at the screen, "I've already seen Kill Bill!" Still, overall, Ready or Not is a fun ride, with some laugh out loud moments, spooky ambiance, and a fun, yet gritty performance by Samara Weaving as Grace. This reminds me that I want to praise the fun, yet gritty and delightfully sardonic performance of The Hunt's lead, but I don't want to spoil their character's identity. Maybe it's Yoga Pants?
Well, it looks like I've chosen a side. The Hunt, despite it's apparently divisive nature, is my favorite PHOP flick of this duo. Both films make some astute observations, one film favors atmosphere and one action, but both offer meat for gorehounds. However, for me The Hunt feels a little more original in its presentation. It doesn't go for the most obvious cinematic beats like Ready or Not does at select moments. I've got to give the edge to The Hunt. Congratulations, The Hunt. You're the PHOP quarantine movie champion.