The live-action adaptation of the Monster Hunter video game franchise is preparing to arrive in theaters on December 18th, after being moved up on the calendar several times. With most big movies either being delayed or being sent to on-demand/streaming platforms, Monster Hunter is taking a much different approach, yet has somehow flown under the radar to this point. Given how little conversation there has been surrounding the film, it’s somewhat surprising that it debuts on the big screen in just a couple of days. In anticipation of its premiere, the review embargo for Monster Hunter was lifted on Wednesday morning, revealing the first critical opinions about the movie.
Unfortunately, like most adaptations of video games, Monster Hunter hasn’t exactly been met with the most positive reviews. At the time of writing this article, on Wednesday afternoon, Monster Hunter currently has a 54% score on Rotten Tomatoes, giving it the “rotten” designation.
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So far, just 13 critics have posted Monster Hunter reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, six of which have been negative. The other seven reviews have been positive. More positive reviews usually leads to a “Fresh” score, but those red tomato icons aren’t handed out until a film hits 60% or higher. Monster Hunter isn’t quite there yet.
That could change, of course, as more reviews roll in over the course of the next week. Then again, the first batch of reactions is normally telling, and it isn’t often that a score wavers too much over time. So, even when more reviews come in, expect Monster Hunter to stick around that same 50% mark.
ComicBook.com‘s own Rollin Bishop reviewed Monster Hunter, giving it a score of 2/5 and adding a number to the “rotten” end of the Rotten Tomatoes score. Bishop explained in the review that Monster Hunter “flirts with being an absolutely fine movie,” but that the film’s exciting intro quickly spirals into nothing more than a headache for the rest of its run time.
You can our full Monster Hunter review here.
Have you been looking forward to seeing the Monster Hunter movie? Will you be heading out to theaters or waiting for it to arrive on VOD before seeing it? Let us know in the comments!