KRAVEN THE HUNTER is a 2024 superhero action thriller film directed by J.C. Chandor (A Most Violent Year), from a screenplay by Art Marcum, Matt Holloway, and Richard Wenk, based on the Marvel Comics character created by Stan Lee.
Kraven's complex relationship with his ruthless father, Nikolai Kravinoff, starts him down a path of vengeance with brutal consequences, motivating him to become not only the greatest hunter in the world, but also one of its most feared.
The cast includes Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Ariana DeBose, Fred Hechinger, Alessandro Nivola, Christopher Abbott, and Russell Crowe.
KRAVEN THE HUNTER made its debut in theaters December 13th, courtesy of Sony Pictures Entertainment.
KRAVEN THE HUNTER was at a disadvantage before it even hit theaters as it was delayed several times going all the way back to January 2023. The 4th and final release date of December 13th, 2024, finally stuck and I had an opportunity to see what this film had to offer. Now I will start by saying I went in with fairly low expectations for obvious reasons and I will say that I wasn’t completely dissapointed. Overall KRAVEN THE HUNTER was what I expected, which was a flawed yet still entertaining R-rated superhero flick.
This is an origin story of course which I thought was great because I honestly went in knowing nothing about this character from the Spider-Man universe. I thought they did a nice job setting the stage for the character by utilizing flashbacks and it all came together pretty well overall. The story has a strong emotional element as it relates to the bonds of family and the dysfunction we are forced to navigate throughout our lives.
I really liked how Kraven served as the protector of animals which led to some satisfying action sequences. I thought the cast was solid, particularly Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Kraven, and Russell Crowe as his crime boss father. Plus to say that Taylor-Johnson looked the part would be an understatement, that dude is a beast. The majority of the supporting cast was just okay for the most part and mostly forgettable. I will say that the ending felt a bit rushed and out of left field which was too bad because I liked the overall setup that got us there.
The screenplay was very much lacking in many ways and the less-than-great special effects certainly didn’t help, but the biggest complaint for me would be the fact that they really didn’t take full advantage of the R-rating. It just never had that moment where you were like damn, let’s go9! And I feel like a movie like this needs that. Now I know it can be a slippery slope especially when you are trying to attract the largest audience possible, but in my mind when you have the R-rating you need to have a gritty feel that sets you aside from the PG-13 superhero films. KRAVEN THE HUNTER has some intense fight sequences and some very violent kills which were great, but I just never felt like it pushed the envelope or ever felt as intense as I would have liked it to have been. In my opinion you need to go big or go home when it comes to having an R-rating.
THE VERDICT
Although it suffers from a watered-down screenplay and mediocre special effects, KRAVEN THE HUNTER is still a fun and entertaining R-rated origin story worth occupying 2-hours of your time. Although it could have been much better, the fact that I didn’t leave the theater feeling disappointed felt like a win for me, and if you can keep your expectations in check KRAVEN THE HUNTER does just enough in my opinion.
TED TAKES RATING - 5.3/10
KRAVEN THE HUNTER is now playing only in theaters. Check out the latest trailer below.