Hunted by Night (Region 1 Edition)   Starring: Jencarlos Canela, Juan C. Bofill, Al Galvez, Sonya Smith and Seth Gordon MTI Home Entertainment RRP: $24.95 Certificate: Not Rated Available 31 January 2012

On a weekend hunting trip, three friends have the dubious fortune to be around when a drugs deal goes wrong, dumping a fortune in gear straight into their laps. Although there is some contention within the group as to the disposal of their new nicked wealth, the group decide to keep it, which leads them into conflict with a vicious gang who will stop at nothing to get their stuff back. Soon the hunters become the hunted...

Hunted by Night (2010 - 1 hr, 55 min, 43 sec) is an independent thriller, written and directed by Juan C. Bofill, who also plays the role of Paco in the film.

Apparently based of real events, the film opens with the three friends Brandon (Jencarlos Canela), Peter (Seth Gordon) and Jose (Al Galvez) getting ready for their trip. This is the worst part of the film; it feels rushed and not particularly well constructed. Get past this and the film improves as soon as the bad guys arrive to get their merchandise back.

From this point Bofill provides a well-constructed, if unoriginal chase thriller. The film does score high on its set action sequences, as it should, given that Bofill has worked as stunt coordinator of diverse projects like Charlie’s Angels and Miami Vice.

The characters are all drawn from recognisable stereotypes, but then the film does not try to be anything other than a straight forward thrill ride, the main object being the action and not the characters.

The disc provided was only a screener, the quality was okay, even for a low budget flick, but the finished disc might look better. There were no extras.

As a no brainer action movie, Hunted by Night is better made than most films in this category, as long as you can get past the first fifteen minutes.

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Charles Packer