Customer Reviews

Hunting Humans

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I had the privelege of seeing this at a local screening. It's clearly very low budget, but for once I think it didn't hurt it.

The star of the movie is Aric Blue, a serial killer. Is that strange? Yes. For most of the movie you are sort of rooting for this guy. Try not to think about the fact that he's a murderous psycho.

I'm not ruining anything(I mean, they say it on the DVD cover) by telling you that at some point Aric finds out that HE'S become the prey of another serial killer. It's a very cool twist, I thought, and I was surprised since I had no idea.

The two killers go at each other for the rest of the movie in some very clever ways. The strength of the movie is it's script and the performance of Rick Ganz who plays the lead. The other thing that surprised me was how good the music in the movie is. Whoever did the score is incredible. I've heard worse scores on big studio pictures.

The bad: Some of the other actors are less than good. It didn't bother me too much as none of them are really in the movie for very long.

All in all, a very entertaining movie. I don't know what extras are going to be on the DVD, but I'll be picking it up regardless. If you like stuff like Henry Portrait of a Serial Killer or American Psycho, you'll dig this movie!

Kevin Kangas is a fresh new Director with alot of talent & i love his follow up to this film "Fear Of Clowns" & i also was enjoying the hell out of "Hunting Humans" until we hit the last 10-15 minutes of the movie head on & it goes from being a very creative & realistic low-budget film to being a corney lame un-realistic & ilogical karate kick of a ending. The movie is not completely ruined because of the ending but i will say that Kevin Kangas & company were about 13 minutes away from giving birth to a low-budget masterpiece & then it slipped out of there hands & hit the floor & slid on the afterbirth into the oblivion of good movies with very bad endings. What the hell happend Mr. Kangas?

I was totally amazed by this film. There I was perusing the DVD's at blockbusters and I decided to get this flick. Kevin Kangas? Rick Ganz? Trent? Who the hell are these people? What I came to find out is that these people made a great film. It's a tad more on the pyschological side so those Matrix freaks who just want to see non stop action might not enjoy as much 'cause you'll have to think. The narration was kind of ornery, but overall it was a good flick. The story revolves itself around one character, Aric Blue (Ganz), who pulls of the arrogant, yet sadistic sociopath nicely. Can't say much more about the revolving cast because they weren't too good. Amateurs in comparison really. Kangas brings us into the world of a sociopath who follows the patterns of his vitims before killing them. Another good twist to this unique story about a sociopathic serial killer where one day he ends up being tracked by another killer in the same city. For a low budget independent its well worth it to watch.

At first, the typical horror movie cliches flash through the ordinary viewer's mind from first glimpse of the title and a casual perusal of the plot summary. However, once you get past the packaging and into the movie, it'll take you on a ride you won't soon forget with brilliance personified from the actors, to the music, to the final scene itself that truly proves realism is the true, driving force of horror movies to scare us all.

Aric Blue (Ganz) narrates the film throughout his adventures as a loan telemarketer for a bank and his unique hobby after hours of, you guessed it, hunting humans. The serial killer is an arrogant, smug genius who thinks he's better than anybody else, and he's right. When it comes to murder, he's the Albert Einstein of the community. This particular killer has a "code" he lives by to allow his slayings to remain hidden from the police. He never kills anybody he knows, anybody who he'd have a motive for, and so on. The clever and absolutely riveting commentary he provides throughout the scenes as he begins describing his actions will grip you as if Ganz himself was telling his life story. Especially meaningful to me was the moment he explained how to pick a lock and stopped in the middle of his explaination to disgustedly mutter "Oh, why am I telling YOU any of this?" to show his obvious complete confidence in himself. However, Aric has a slight problem. His random murders aren't so random anymore, because as he begins to finish off a victim in the movie theatre, somebody came there first and leaves a threatening sign to inform him that his pattern was found!

The movie then goes into the serial killer vs serial killer showdown. Aric is forced to break some of his own code to keep alive, and as the tension mounts, the haunting visions and dreams of "Dark", his arch-nemesis and fellow mass murderer, torment him to continually try and be one step ahead. It seems hopeless, as Dark has his moves mapped, his PI murdered, and through it all Aric remains confident he will walk out the winner.

With the genius industrial bands Hellbent and Velvet Acid Christ to help set the mood, Aric sets out for his final battle with twists and turns galore as the final psychological battle gets physical and Dark and Aric embark to prove who the better killer is. With a strategy as brilliant as his caustic commentary throughout, Aric is able to finally put down Dark and continue on with a menacing thought through his head as he drives away from the city he'd terrorized for so long that maybe he'd end up going to visit YOU.

Terrifying, in that it shows how little we know of the lives of our co-workers and friends that such a person could exist, undetected. The realism is there with the "code" that's the fulcrum of his actions throughout the movie, and most importantly this is not a film involving two immortal creatures who cannot possibly die. This is two human beings, neither one quite sane, who embark on a very diabolical path to near mutual annihilation. Unlike slasher movies or teen scream triologies, this is a movie where it's the smarter killer who wins, not the one with the largest weapon. Without a doubt something to make you lie awake wondering if the man or woman next to you also decides to go "hunting humans" when their daytime job is over. Rent this movie, it'll change your perception of predictability in the horror genre for a long time to come.

This has got to be the worst movie I have ever seen! Who on earth wrote that corny script. The acting was a joke the lead character was hot and thats all he had going for him. The man that was playing "Dark" was terrible but he made so many facial expressions it made the ending quite funny, he was trying to be serious and it turned out to be ridiculous looking. This was a waste of my time I should have left this thing on the shelf. Dont waste your time.

When a group of friends and myself picked up this dvd at a rental place we got it because we thought it was going to be a terrible film. From the description we figured it might nearly be as bad as Manos Hands of Fate. (Ok maybe not nearly but in the general area). We were all pleasantly surprised.

The acting was bad, film quality low, and special effects very low quality. Despite this the plot and dialogue was interesting and enjoyable. Everyone in the group really enjoyed the film. Several parts were even quite witty. Also they don't try to get your interest or keep you entertained by having tons of gore.

If you are looking for a high budget film or a gore fest this film is not for you. If you don't mind a low budget horror film with a good story, that is enjoyable, and really works despite its problems this movie is for you.

"Hunting Humans," a zero budget serial killer flick directed by Kevin Kangas, represents the latest entry in what I like to call my fixation with all things horror. Others would call it a fixation of all things idiotic. Considering many of the films I've watched since I went out and bought a DVD player all those years ago, they would have an excellent point. I now have the opportunity to watch really great classic horror films, movies that knock your socks off with great acting, great special effects, and highly imaginative plots. Unfortunately, it's the other side of the coin that often garners the most attention, thus giving people who hate horror movies plenty of ammunition to blast the genre. "Hunting Humans," in many ways, is a prime example of this latter category. Bad editing, lazy camera work, raspberry inducing dialogue, and bad acting are all on full force display here. I'm not entirely sure, but I think the movie is shot on video too. Why not? Pound another nail in the coffin! But, and this is a big but, the idea fueling the plot is intriguing enough to engage the viewer. Well, at least I thought so. Others will probably take a different tack.

Anyway, "Hunting Humans" tells the story of Aric Blue (Rick Ganz), a beefy chap who just happens to be a serial killer. The movie opens with our boy stalking and murdering a girl in her own shower. He then proceeds to clean up with the poor gal's body hanging off the showerhead. Nice. Aric spends a lot of time talking to us in voiceover, explaining his little hobby and giving us his opinions of the people around him. Blue never has anything nice to say about those he knows, whether they are potential victims or his co-workers at his job at a real estate office. Needless to say, this cynicism and nihilism make killing his fellow humans an easy task. So does his obsession with patterns. Aric Blue is big into patterns. He knows, and explains to us in great detail, that everyone has a pattern. A guy steps outside his house for a smoke break at a certain time of day. A young woman returns home from work at the same time every day. An employee at a grocery store always arrives early in the morning to open up for business. We've all got patterns that others could readily observe and use for some nefarious purpose.

Aric Blue is that somebody. He picks out his prey and then follows them around, jotting down their every move with an eye for choosing just the right moment to swoop in and stick the knife in. Or slip the rope around their neck. Or shoot them. His technique has worked wonders. Aric tells us he's killed dozens of people over the years, and he has little fear of the police. Until one day he arrives to deliver the coup de grace to a victim only to discover someone else already killed the guy. Worse, this killer left a note for Aric on the body, a note that says, "I've got your pattern." Oh man! The rest of the movie has Blue desperately trying to discover the identity of this killer. He keeps getting messages from the guy even as he engages in a competition with him (or her) to see who can make the biggest splash in the headlines. It's a game, but one with deadly consequences. Aric hires a private detective to try and track down the killer only to discover that the other guy also hired a P.I. to smoke him out. Hmmm. Who is this mysterious killer and who will win in the inevitable showdown? It's an odd movie that actually has you rooting for a cold-blooded killer, but "Hunting Humans" somehow manages to get the viewer involved in the proceedings.

I already mentioned the negative aspects of the film. The technical qualities of the movie really do hamper the overall experience. Heck, by the time the film arrives at the inevitable showdown, the acting approaches pure camp. If the picture didn't have such a nifty plot, it would likely prove unwatchable. "Hunting Humans" IS watchable, however, because it occasionally throws out some cool stuff. The competition between Aric and his pursuer chills the blood when Blue decides to go to a movie theater for a killing spree. He moves through a sparsely attended screening methodically and silently murdering a person in the theater, slipping their body to the floor, and then moves on to the next victim. Believe me, you'll think about this film the next time you head over to the multiplex. I also enjoyed the voiceover narration; his voice is so deadpan, so monotone, that you could easily imagine he's really a serial killer. Moreover, listening to this guy is like taking a class in how to commit crimes. He talks about picking locks, disarming security devices, and figuring out how to hack into people's computers. Imagine James Bond as a total sociopath, and you'll have some idea of how Aric Blue sounds as he goes about his grim missions.

Extras on the disc include a commentary with Kangas, outtakes, a photo gallery, trailers, cast and crew biographies, and a behind the scenes featurette that runs about an hour. I'm in a bit of a dilemma deciding how many stars to give the movie. "Hunting Humans" fails on nearly every technical level, but the plot is a worthwhile idea that's occasionally well executed. I think I'll go with three stars because I ultimately did enjoy the film. In a zero budget horror film world populated with dreck like "Shatter Dead" and "Peter Rottentail," it's nice to know a few worthy efforts do exist.

Brought to you by Redrum Entertainment. Marauder Productions Presents. A Kevin Kangas Film. A serial killer, Aric (played by Rick Ganz in his first starring role) has killed 107 people so far and considers himself an expert at not leaving any evidence. He is the narrator of this film and he tells you his thoughts with attitude about every person he comes in contact with and who he is about to kill. He even gives you a little background of his next victim. One night, he takes you on his next hunt. He's going to kill the head movie projector man, but when he arrives, he sees blood on the walls and finds the bloody body of who he was going to kill first. A note is on the body, "I've got your pattern". There is another serial killer out there. But now he is after this serial kiler, Aric. This is a good one. Will hold your attention. What a great idea for a movie. Some male and female nudity. Lots of gore and violence. Produced by Rick Ganz and Kevin Kangas. Written and Directed by Kevin Kangas. DVD includes in Bonus Materials, Out-Takes, Photo Gallery, Biographies, and The Making Of... Director's Commentary also available.

ok....this movie was kind of a good idea....but not quite.
The movie is about a serial killer who we get to follow along his route of killing and he narrarates as he goes along; -not an original idea. Not that every movie I see has to be an original idea to entertain me.....but the script and dialogue this guy goes through in his narraration is just plain retarded...and he speaks with this attitude an way of talking that is retarded....this quote just kills me "i watch people patterns...everybodys got them...its patterns that get people killed....everybodys got them....." ok, why waste a whole 5 minutes of the movie saying this crap?? If you want this character to come across as a pretty wise serial killer, then why is his inner dialogue so friggin stupid?

ok, thats the whole movie right there, this guy goes around killing people while you have to listen to this barrage of stupidity spew from his narraration.....couple that with horrendously bad acting...and i am surpirised this video made it to the shelf of my video store....

the only redeming thing about the movie is the twist they threw in.....
another serial killer learns Aric's pattern and starts stalking him, throw in another twist or two as to who pulls the better tricks....and what would otherwise be a complete peice of trash becomes crappy at best

i loved this movie. kevin kangras is a new young director that is going to go far. It has one of my friends in the movie director
joe Ripple who directded the dondohler produced, STAKES WHICH I ALSO LOVE. BUT HUNTING HUMANS SURPRIZED ME ITS GREAT!!!iF youLIKE ANY TYPE HORROR MOVIE YOU'LL LOVE THIS!!!