A crime with unforeseen consequences in a dystopian economic crisis — Time to Hunt
Premiered on Netflix, 23 of April 2020, this crime action thriller by Yoon Sung-Hyun (Bleak Night, 2010) bets on timing and plausibility.
Outside the law
Fresh from prison, Joon-seok (Lee Je-hoon) reunites with his brothers from another mother Jang-ho (Ahn Jae-hong) and Ki-hoon (Choi Woo-shik) and sees that the economic crisis is worse than what he could recall. Having no other option, they decide to rob an illegal casino, which leads Han “the killer” (Park Hae-soo) to hunt them.
Set in a dystopian future that looks like the dark alleys of New York but it’s in fact South Korea, filmmaker Yoon Sung-hyun depicts the desperation of people in times of a tremendous inflation issue as stores close, jobs are non-existent and criminality rises. Despite the desperation of the situation, the film addresses the importance of family and brotherly love, as for the young characters, the family is an aspect that they value and treasure.
Through a floating camera and shots that immerse the viewer into the scene, the spectator is included in the familiarity of these protagonists from the start. Nevertheless, this immersion is lost afterwards, as standard shots replace those intimate ones.
Red is the warmest colour
The dystopian effect is not only achieved through the Children of Men like-setting but also by the colouring of the images. Red is the predominant colour that evokes violence, desperation and dangerous times for the protagonists, while the brutal blood becomes one with the cinematography and the characters.
As the story develops, increasing gaps appear in the reasoning and motivation of the protagonists. Accordingly, Han the killer is bloodthirsty but there is no background on why he is like that, which would have added more context to his actions and make him less shallow. Lee Je-hoon’s character is clever, as he can successfully plan and rob a highly secured casino, however, he is ignorant of the consequences of executing such an action.
Timing on his part, is crucial, as he evades multiple times being killed. But timing is also pivotal to the film itself, as under these circumstances (COVID-19, self isolation), it invites us to imagine how a drastic unforeseen economic change could happen to our society.
Having said this, one cannot ignore the acting — a top-class casting. These high valued actors, let see that they have more in their repertoire, providing an intense and profound performance — especially Lee Je-hoon, as one can see the fear in Lee Je-hoon’s eyes while playing Joon-seok.
Besides this, the intensity of acting matches the pace and fierce action parts, which are decent adrenaline pumping scenes.
In short
Time to Hunt is an interesting take on the what-if possibility of an aftermath of a catastrophe or pandemic with repercussions for the economy. However, its deficiency in a solid narrative and character’s in-depth leaves a considerable disappointment behind.
Rating: 2.5 out of 5 futuristic cars.
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