THE FOLLOWING REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS OF THE DISCUSSED FILM. READERS DISCRETION IS ADVISED.
Some people are not born to be heroes and when they’re not, it can be a bad thing.
PLOT
Kraven the Hunter follows assassin Sergei Kravinoff. As a child, he and his younger brother Dimitri grew up with their drug dealing father Nikolai who was relentless in teaching them to be dominant over everyone & everything. In one hunting trip they had in Ghana, Sergei gets mauled by a lion but is saved by a local girl named Calypso who gives him a serum. Unbeknownst to both of them, it gives him physical attributes that make him animalistic in comparison. Only after returning home does Sergei choose to run away in disgust when he finds out his dad killed the lion to teach him the same lesson. He would flee to a sanctuary in Russia that belonged to his late mother and 16 years later, he’d become the titular vigilante solely attacking criminals. After eliminating a Russian trafficker, he returns to London to visit Dimitri on his birthday. While he also catches up with Calypso, things haven’t changed at all with his dad. The reunion would also be short lived when mercenaries capture Dimitri for ransom. When Nikolai refuses to pay to avoid showing weakness, Sergei reaches out to Calypso for help. The perpetrator happens to be a leading merc named Alexei Sytsevich who is nicknamed The Rhino for taking a drug that gives him the strength & visage of the titular creature. With the assist of another assassin dubbed The Foreigner, who uses ocular hypnosis to disorient his targets, he is able to lure Kraven to Turkey but he survives the ambush. Both villains pursue the Hunter to his sanctuary and use his brother as bait. Kraven almost dies from the Foreigner’s neurotoxin until Calypso gives him another serum that helps him recover from the drug after she kills The Foreigner. Although Alexei embraces full strength in his attempt to defeat the eldest Kravinoff son, the protagonist is still able to outsmart & overwhelm him in the midst of a buffalo stampede. Before dying, the Rhino revealed it was Nikolai revealed his existence to him. Shortly after, Sergei confronted his dad about who confesses he needed help eliminating competition and knew he would save Dimitri. Irritated that he put his brother at risk, he takes ammunition from him, leaving him to be killed in the Siberian woods by a bear. A year after this, Sergei checks on his brother again only to find out he has succeeded their father’s empire rather sell the assets to put that life behind. Dimitri also reveals to have gained the ability to shapeshift thanks to the same scientist that experimented on Alexei, Miles Warren. They leave each other on bad terms when the youngest brother disowns the eldest for what happened to their dad. The film ends with Sergei finding a gift left behind by Nikolai, a vest made of the lion he killed.
THOUGHTS
The best way to discuss this film is through Pros and Cons
PROS: We all know Sony wings it when it comes to adapting Spider-Man related characters without even showing the iconic web slinger. Since it backfired on Madame Web & Morbius, it’s a miracle that it pays off for the Venom movies. I don’t want to overrate this one because I know it ain’t as good as what you get from the MCU, but this far from terrible because I enjoyed what director JC Chandor was going for. This is an origin story that starts out slow to build the bond with the protagonist and then it picks up when the action gets going. In all honesty, the editing is well done with each sequence that is shown from the opening prison escape to the climactic stampede and the fact they made it R rated violent was refreshing because it helped differ from the formula. I wont overrate the visual effects because while they’re passing on the lion and said stampede, it definitely paid off when it came seeing Rhino who looked just the way I imagined in comparison to the mechanical suit he wore in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. Even with the whammy on Dimitri becoming Chameleon made my expectations because there is no other way I would’ve wanted the character to appear. In Sony’s standards, this film differs from the rest because it has an arguably creative spin in saying self validation is more important than seeking validation from others because you don’t need the latter to be satisfied in how you choose to live your life. This is the case when following the titular protagonist who is completely different from the sadistic villain you expect from the comics. Instead, Aaron Taylor Johnson shows him as a man who respects nature as a whole that he’ll kill poachers without hesitation. He has this approach because he can’t fathom why people enjoy being superior over those who don’t cross them. With Russell Crowe making Nikolai a sociopath of a parent, if made sense why he had to distance himself from him. Although he only kills bad people, he plays fire with fire in order to get his message across some things are better off alone. That would also be his defense in eliminating his dad because he was tired of him being selfish rather than show a fraction of affection. Little did he expect his good intentions would backfire the way it did. Fred Hechinger showed Dimitri as one who was scared of his dad he’d do anything to show his worth to him. With his brother choosing to be absent, he grew up a man who lived in fear. In a way, he did when perfectly imitating voices which foreshadowed what he would do. His decision to be distant towards his brother is valid for many reasons: With his dad gone, he won’t get to show him how powerful he can be in his own way and since he didn’t stand how he was to him, it bothers him that he couldn’t stand up to him and he feels like his brother took away that opportunity to reach maturity the way he wanted to. For that, he’ll see him as a rival first and a brother last from now on. As the Chameleon, it’s a no brainer their rivalry will wreak havoc wherever they find each other. I also think Ariana DeBose was a fine addition as Calypso because rather than be psychotic like some comics depicted her, she is the one who strategizes first and attacks later. That’s a method that pays off for her because she chose to save Sergei rather than mercy kill him and chose to kill Foreigner in time to save her friend. Looking back, their friendship comes from respect because they both have their ways to do good by others and don’t overreact in how they approach things. Going into the main villains in this story, it’s safe to say we had a distinguishable pair. Christopher Abbott made The Foreigner a standout because he was the kind of antagonist that chose to toy with his targets with his powers like a cobra, which was effective for a good while until it backfired solely off of the fact he had two targets to worry about simultaneously. By the end of it though, I totally dug what Alessandro Nivola brought to the table as Rhino. Rather than be plain muscle, he’s the mastermind with the muscle. He was one who wanted to make a name for himself and knew in his perspective, being dominant like Nikolai was his way to do so and would’ve solidified himself by wiping out the Kravinoffs. Had he not have an Achilles heel so visible, his victory could’ve been done with ease. Of course there may be many more villains in Spider-Man’s rogues gallery that might exist in this particular universe, but if there are still sentimental figures like Kraven willing to help, then there is not much to worry about because evil will continuously be taken care of.
CONS: I don’t kid when I say I genuinely had a good time watching this, but there were multiple things that bothered me way more than the ADR used in the climax or waiting to see Kraven’s costume until the very end. Like the odds were forcibly high for Calyspo to be in Ghana with her parents where she would conveniently give the serum to Sergei she just got from her grandma, but where the hell did her parents go as that happened? Like they didn’t even drive to the chopper as she watched the boy get taken to a hospital from and it’s really weird. And while Alexei somewhat redeemed himself when it came to leverage, but why the hell would he not have any if he knew how dangerous Nikolai was? I mean that’s having a pitch with nothing to sell and it’s so awkward. It’s already an issue to taxiderm the lion because that’s just disturbing, but why keep his son’s torn clothes? The last thing you need is a cruel reminder on your son almost dying. I even can’t stand the fact nobody noticing shit whether it was Kraven using his powers in public, such as lunging onto/jumping off of buildings or Dimitri shapeshifting in front of citizens. It’s like they’re all blind and it’s ridiculous. Not even the knife throw did people see it and that is a big safety hazard compared to walking barefoot. I don’t blame Sergei in turning down Alexei’s proposal in going against his dad because that’s could’ve led to betrayal, but why the fuck does Calypso not run away when the jaguar tackles him? That’s a wild animal, don’t stop running until you know you’re safe. She was playing with fire there and was lucky it went smooth. Other than that, this movie is generally fine on its own In short, Kraven the Hunter is an anticlimactic finale to the Sony Spider-Man Universe but a moderate action film when isolated. If you’re a casual action lover and enjoys whatever Marvel brings tot the table , check this out
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