After the commercial failure of Madam Web and Venom 3, Sony’s next Spider-Manless Spider-Man film Kraven the Hunter was doomed from the start.
Being delayed for over a year, Kraven was the subject of multiple reshoots on the part of Sony, leaving the film almost completely different than what was shown in the first trailer that was released in June 2023.
Kraven the Hunter follows the story of Sergi Kravinoff, a “hunter” that hunts down the worlds worst criminals using the skills and powers he gained after being bitten by a lion in his youth. Throughout the film he learns what it means to be a “hunter” and goes on a journey that takes him across the globe.
The plot is as bare bones as it sounds, very little time is given to fleshing out Kraven and his family instead most of the run time is spent on overly long flash backs and unnecessary sequel set up.
Not even Aaron Taylor Johnson’s shining abs could save Kraven the Hunter from being just another Sony flop.
“My Son, we are Hunters”
Coming in at two hours long, Kraven the Hunter does very little to justify its long run time. A good chunk of the first half an hour of the film is dedicated to explaining Kraven’s backstory and how he got the powers he has. However, the film doesn’t open with him as a child, instead it begins with a genuinely entertaining action sequence in a Siberian prison.
The pace and action of the opener is immediately undercut as the film shifts focus to Kraven’s youth and his relationship to his family becomes a major plot point. Since Kraven the Hunter is based on the Spider-Man comics, a couple of familiar faces pop up throughout the film, most notably the characters of The Rhino, Chameleon and Calypso all play key roles throughout the film.
Changes were clearly made to the film during the year long delay, with the biggest coming in the form of Kraven’s superpowers. In the first trailer it was shown after he survived a fight with a lion, he gained superpowers. Whereas in the film he obtains his strength through a magical potion given to him by his love interest Calypso. The change falls more in line with his comic book origin story, but it isn’t a one-for-one retelling.
Aaron Taylor Johnson does the best with what he’s given as Kraven, and sadly, he’s given very little. He cycles through the same two stern faces for most of the film or says a catchy one liner that works well for the trailers.
The most notable actor attached to Kraven the Hunter is defiantly Russel Crowe. He is the best actor amongst the lot and his character is the most interesting. He plays Kraven’s father and his relationship to his son drives the story forward.
His time on screen is fairly limited, but his presence is felt throughout the entire run time. The most bizarre part of his character is that he acts more like the typical comic-book Kraven than Aaron Taylor Johnson does.
“Are you like your father? A gangster? A killer?”
The technical errors that are to be expected with all of the SSU’s(Sony’s Spider-Man Universe) films are present in Kraven the Hunter. Poor editing, dubbed voices and cheap CGI really bring down the experience of watching the film, the dubbing in particular is hard not to see.
All the problems add up dramatically when the film starts to come to a close. In the final fight of the film Kraven faces off against The Rhino in a CGI filled mess that is hard to watch. The effects for The Rhino are incredibly poor for a film that was given a budget of £110- 130 million.
The huge budget is not likely to be made back if Sony’s previous flops are anything to judge by, the only successes to come out of the SSU are the Venom films, with the first film grossing over £1 billion in worldwide revenue and the rest of the trilogy grossing just under that each time.
Kraven the Hunter is likely Sony’s last attempt at making a Spider-Man film without the titular hero, as if the film doesn’t break even or make profit, it’s unlikely we’ll see ATJ back as Kraven anytime soon.
If you’re a fan of the comics and the character of Kraven, you should skip Kraven the Hunter. It’s an underwhelming super hero film that barely delivers on its promise of fun and entertaining action.
Featured image credit: Sony Pictures
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