We seem to be living in the never-dwindling supply of thrillers, with movies and shows like The Asset, The Woman in Cabin 10, and A House of Dynamite rising to the top of the streaming charts. Now, a Henry Cavill-led thriller from almost a decade ago is rising back to the top of those same charts. Despite its sad 14% on Rotten Tomatoes, it’s nabbed a top spot on Paramount+ this week.
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Night Hunter, also known as Nomis, stars Henry Cavill, Stanley Tucci, Ben Kingsley, and Alexandra Daddario. The plot is tried but true, bordering on trite; Night Hunter focuses on a police task force that traps an online predator, discovering in the process that his crimes are much darker and more intricate than they had expected. Despite a solid cast, the movie comes across as little better than a Cavill-shaped cliche. “You’re going to want to break out your crime cliche bingo card early, lest you miss the full house,” said one reviewer.
It’s Definitely a Mixed Bag
Leslie Felperin of the Guardian says, “This is such twaddle it becomes kind of fun, except that there’s an uncomfortable feeling – as with many vigilante movies – that the film is revelling in the sexual violence and covering itself with the fig leaf of justice-seeking.” And that seems to be the consensus of the film—it’s a flashy vigilante flick with no substance behind it and a desire to highlight sexual violence for the sake of it. One critic summed it up perfectly: “As far as you can work out, the film isn’t aiming for slippery Lynchian dream logic or head-scratching dead ends, just stumbling into that arena through sheer confusion.”
For a C-rated action movie that would have gone straight to DVD back in the day, the script somehow managed to lure in some really good actors. And it’s not entirely irredeemable, according to some viewers. One said, “This had so much promise and such an amazing cast, but there were so many plot holes and things that were obnoxious with how dumb they were. Like going into buildings with no back up etc. still enjoyed parts of It though after watching It tonight.” Another added, “So bad, yet I still enjoyed it. So much promise in the very first scene, the dread of the girl being chased and her absolute despair and defeat when she drops from the bridge. Pretty good really. I love a lot of the actors here, but the police bits were laughably far fetched. The commissioner instructing his detective to kill the killers? LOL.”
What are your thoughts on Night Hunter? Tell us in the comments before you head to the ComicBook forum to see what other fans are saying.
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