No genre rests on its laurels quite like horror, and there’s a simple reason for that. Take a basic premise, litter it with predictable, generic tropes, plus the odd, timely wink to your audience, and chances are, there will always be a faithful following, big or small, primed and ready to lap it up. Take this effort from co-directors Greg Swinson and Ryan Thiessen, based on a story by Swinson. Hunt Her Kill Her is about as basic a stalker-slasher you could imagine, and yet even in this most uninspired of attempts, there are enough play-it-safe rules which are abided by for the film to just about tickle the fancy of your everyday horror enthusiast.
The setup – shock horror – is extremely basic and rather poorly executed. But it doesn’t really matter. If I were to say it involves a young, single mother starting her new job as a caretaker on the night shift at a warehouse, we’ve all seen enough interpretations of this story to understand exactly where said night will lead… And sure enough, Hunt Her Kill Her isn’t a film about to push beyond those classic genre stereotypes, and thus, as you would expect, Karen (no, honestly, her name is Karen – it’s as if the filmmakers are self-aware to the point of parody) is in for an extremely rough night…
When the bad guys do turn up, the film does at least have a sense of humour to its horror elements. The villains – yes, there are multiple – may don masks that make them look like budget Jason Voorhees, but their wisecracking, bumbling, sweary nature has a hint of Ghostface to them. Swinson sure is channeling all his influences, but at least he understands them. And if Hunt Her Kill Her lacks originality, there’s something to be said about that sheer absence of ambition to stray too far from the beaten path.
Everything you will find here has been done better many, many times before, and yet because the film never attempts to bring anything new to the table; instead opting to deliver on all conventions in the most rudimentary sense, there’s a familiarity to proceedings, where as a viewer, you can pick apart the next logical step in the story, and nod appreciatively as the film hits the exact mark you expected, right on cue.
None of this makes Hunt Her Kill Her a successful, or particularly enjoyable watch, but there’s something to be said for a film that understands genre beats in the way this film does. There are no standout set pieces or characters that live long in the memory, and the performances are as inessential as the story itself, but there are individual brief moments that nod towards a knowing audience, indicating that behind the camera there are fans just like us who understand what we all want from a movie of this ilk… Even if they don’t quite have the skill or resources to deliver anything fresh and exciting.
Hunt Her Kill Her is out now on Screenbound Pictures Blu-Ray
Joe’s Archive – Hunt Her Kill Her
Discover more from The Geek Show
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
