“Kraven The Hunter” Needs To Be A Catch And Release

Is this a joke? Seriously, they made this film and expected us to embrace it as if it had any heart or compelling story. Sony seems completely out of touch with their live-action projects, releasing movies riddled with glaring mistakes that are apparent from the very first viewing.

Let’s be real: there was potential for an intriguing film here. Russell Crowe stands out as the only captivating element, and I typically enjoy Aaron Taylor-Johnson in his roles. Honestly, if they had focused on Crowe’s character and the Russian mob, I would have found myself thoroughly entertained.

Now, let’s dive into the nitty-gritty. The Rhino? It looked absolutely ridiculous and lacked any intimidation whatsoever. No offense to Alessandro Nivola, but he’s about as threatening as a newborn kitten. The plot trotted out every cliché in the book, and it felt like every animal was CGI—some didn’t even need to be!

The number of errors in this film is staggering. Take the CGI for Ariana DeBose’s eyes and mouth—they look like something a novice YouTuber would produce for a first-time project. It’s as bad as it sounds. There’s a moment toward the end where you can actually see Russell Crowe’s mole jump from one side of his face to the other because they didn’t plan the shots properly and had to flip the image to make him face Kraven. And in a snowy scene, while the ground is covered in snow, all the surrounding trees are still green. What?

The acting is lackluster, and the kids, who supposedly grew up in Russia, don’t even attempt to have authentic accents—it’s infuriating. Nothing in this film feels earned; nothing makes you care, and nothing excites. Honestly, as I’m writing this, I’m tempted to lower my rating even further. It started as a 2 out of 5, and now it’s a 1 out of 5. If studios and filmmakers aren’t willing to put in the effort, why should we give them any leeway?

At this point, I’m ready to call it quits with Sony and their superhero offerings. I’ll still support the MCU and the new DCU, but films like *Kraven* are exactly why the superhero genre is struggling. Who asked for a movie about this B-tier villain that no one cares about, especially when Kraven doesn’t even interact with Spider-Man? You can avoid this one.