8.5/10
Over a year after it won Mads Mikkelsen a Best Actor prize at Cannes, I can finally see The Hunt for myself, legally, in theatres. And the studios can't figure out why people download movies? Give me a break. The day this sorry film distribution system breaks down the better we'll all be.
ANYWAY. Was it worth the wait? Definitely. Mads Mikkelsen plays a kindergarten aide wrongly accused by one of the children of inappropriate conduct. It was co-written and directed deftly and with a lot of maturity by ex-Dogme 95 adherent Thomas Vinterberg. It's a story that easily could have been played for over-the-top emotions, but both Vinterberg and Mikkelsen do a fantastic job keeping things in check. The bottled-up rage and injustice is felt in turn by the audience, who are rarely allowed any catharsis or any release from the predicament, just like the protagonist. It's a situation that plays out without any easy solutions offered, which is how it should be (unfortunately for all).
My only minor complaints is that the story plays out pretty much as you'd expect without much coming unseen, and that it felt to me like some of the reactions from the other adults in the film to the child's accusations were exaggerated for the benefit of the plot. However, maybe those reactions would indeed be a true reflection of real life reactions, so I can't criticize it too much. Overall highly recommended, and hats off to Vinterberg and Mikkelsen for elevating the material way above what might have been expected.
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