Check out our review of the new action-packed thriller, “Hunter Killer”!
On October 23, we were invited to see an early screening of the new movie Hunter Killer starring Gerard Butler, Gary Oldman, Common, Linda Cardellini, and Toby Stephens.
Hunter Killer follows Captain Joe Glass (Gerard Butler) who is on a mission to find a U.S. sub that was in distress while tailing a Russian sub in Russian waters. Upon arriving they quickly discover that both the US and Russian subs were destroyed by a third rogue Russian sub. Suddenly, this is a much bigger operation. The U.S. deploys a specialized ground unit of 4 Navy SEALS lead by Bill Beaman (Toby Stephens) to Russia where they find out that a secret coup has captured the Russian president and is preparing to destroy the world order. With the Navy SEALS on land and the USS Arkansas undersea, they have to rescue the Russian president and take down the coup d’état before the world is thrown into chaos.
Through nail-biting tension and action-packed encounters, Hunter Killer takes the classic submarine thriller genre to new heights in a modern setting. They do a great job of displaying submarine life accurately by using actual submariner slang and recreating a multi-leveled yet claustrophobic set. One scene that was particularly cool was when the submarine was descending and they all stood still and straight as the entire sub tilted forward. These little touches to the movie allows adds a lot of believability.
Gerard Butler as Captain Joe Glass feels at home in this role. After acting in Olympus Has Fallen and 300 he’s become known for his hard and commanding warrior-type roles. But, we also see another side to this type character here as he has to struggle with not only leading a crew in a completely uncertain, life-or-death situation but also going against his own foundation of rules in combat in order to protect his crew and his country. His dynamic with rescued Russian submarine captain Andropov (Michael Nyqvist) adds a lot of tension and yet, a lot of humanity to the war zone. Their respect as sailors and as servicemen transcends their views of being enemies, which allows them to cooperate for a common cause. Through navigating difficult underwater terrain and surviving against a barrage of torpedoes and missiles. They evade detection and survive through expertly timed maneuvers and a lot of close calls.
On land, Toby Stephens and his crew are on foot, trying to sneak into the Russian naval base to assess the situation and be ready to rescue the Russian president. These moments with the team range from tactical and sneaky to intense with gunfights and chase scenes. One thing that I noticed was that the “good guys never lose” troupe to be absent in the action. The team is thrown against impossible odds and there are points where I genuinely didn’t know if they were going to succeed. Back in D.C., RA John Fisk (Common) and Jayne Norquist (Linda Cardellini) lead both teams from the command station as they play the politics game with CJCS Charles Donnegan (Gary Oldman) as they try to determine the best course of action the US should take. This political discourse between them adds even more tension and uncertainty to the mix, as Donnegan’s impatience and need for dominance stands in the way of Fisk and Norquist’s plan with Captain Glass and Beaman. Donnegan believes they should respond by asserting their strength as he tries to convince the president to go to DEFCON 1, while Fisk and Norquist believe that Captain Glass and Beaman can get the job done without starting an international crisis.
Hunter Killer is a tense, deliberate, and action-packed thriller that delivers nail-biting entertainment. If you enjoy classic submarine movies or just want to watch a great thriller with a lot on the line, check out Hunter Killer in theaters October 26!
