Wenxia
Hopefully hiking somewhere in the world's mountains as far away from civilization as possible:)
I went into this series expecting more (or any) scenes about the lives of herdsmen, forest guards and wildlife. Instead the focus, for the most part, stays fixed on dealing with past traumas and personal vendettas, falling more on the side of a slow-burn thriller, with some interesting twists and fast-paced arcs.
The split narrative between the 'police group' and poachers group, where each side had things to resolve between themselves, worked quite well. There was a slow rising tension as more light was shed on the characters' pasts, new issues kept surfacing, and both sides kept moving slowly towards another collision point. These explosive or suspenseful 'encounters' between the two groups were the best and most spectacular parts of this series.
Unfortunately, the pacing lagged in some episodes. Unrelated conversations kept happening one after another, while the plot didn't move an inch. I think ep5 suffered the most from this. But don't drop it there! Cause in ep6 the tension skyrockets:)
Another small annoyance was needing to suspend my disbelief much too often. I even got to rolling my eyes a few times watching how the events unfolded. If you like to see a well trained, professional, physically fit police force working together or are allergic to stubborn heroic fools with minds and mouths filled with glory, duty and noble sacrifices, then you might be a tad frustrated with the plot;)
The highlight of this series is definitely the visual storytelling! - not only incredibly beautiful landscape shots of snow-capped mountains, lonely roads and arid plains, but also very intriguing compositions that go for your emotions. I loved both the dynamic fight sequences and the long static shots that let me fully digest all the visual elements.
The director knows how to build a deliciously tense atmosphere, giving enough breathing room to bask in the simmering tension, search for clues, consider the situation from all angles, and wonder who's gonna make the next move in this game of wild hunt...
Final thought or a bit of extra (skippable) complaining:
I've seen a few comments that this series got cut by four episodes, which I think really clipped its wings. Not sure if the censors or the network are to blame, but it's very frustrating to see another good, original story get somewhat ruined by thoughtless editing. I think 'Hunter' had the potential to be exceptional if:
- it either got the chance to tell the full scripted story - giving us better developed characters, more cohesive storyline and a proper closure
- or it got further cut (prefereably removing any mention of the police - perhaps changing the MLs into ex-poachers or roque forest guards), turning it into a no-frills psychological thriller.
At eight episodes, this show is regrettably stuck in between, shooting itself in the foot with unbalanced storytelling, weak characterization (except the poacher brothers! They were the most compelling by far) and overly solemn, rushed ending.
The split narrative between the 'police group' and poachers group, where each side had things to resolve between themselves, worked quite well. There was a slow rising tension as more light was shed on the characters' pasts, new issues kept surfacing, and both sides kept moving slowly towards another collision point. These explosive or suspenseful 'encounters' between the two groups were the best and most spectacular parts of this series.
Unfortunately, the pacing lagged in some episodes. Unrelated conversations kept happening one after another, while the plot didn't move an inch. I think ep5 suffered the most from this. But don't drop it there! Cause in ep6 the tension skyrockets:)
Another small annoyance was needing to suspend my disbelief much too often. I even got to rolling my eyes a few times watching how the events unfolded. If you like to see a well trained, professional, physically fit police force working together or are allergic to stubborn heroic fools with minds and mouths filled with glory, duty and noble sacrifices, then you might be a tad frustrated with the plot;)
The highlight of this series is definitely the visual storytelling! - not only incredibly beautiful landscape shots of snow-capped mountains, lonely roads and arid plains, but also very intriguing compositions that go for your emotions. I loved both the dynamic fight sequences and the long static shots that let me fully digest all the visual elements.
The director knows how to build a deliciously tense atmosphere, giving enough breathing room to bask in the simmering tension, search for clues, consider the situation from all angles, and wonder who's gonna make the next move in this game of wild hunt...
Final thought or a bit of extra (skippable) complaining:
I've seen a few comments that this series got cut by four episodes, which I think really clipped its wings. Not sure if the censors or the network are to blame, but it's very frustrating to see another good, original story get somewhat ruined by thoughtless editing. I think 'Hunter' had the potential to be exceptional if:
- it either got the chance to tell the full scripted story - giving us better developed characters, more cohesive storyline and a proper closure
- or it got further cut (prefereably removing any mention of the police - perhaps changing the MLs into ex-poachers or roque forest guards), turning it into a no-frills psychological thriller.
At eight episodes, this show is regrettably stuck in between, shooting itself in the foot with unbalanced storytelling, weak characterization (except the poacher brothers! They were the most compelling by far) and overly solemn, rushed ending.
Was this review helpful to you?
