The Hunt is not a film about paedophilia; it is a film about the tragic swiftness in which a life can be ruined by a single accusation (innocent or otherwise), and the reprehensible willingness with which people will believe the worst of others. Mikkelsen, who won the Best Actor Award for his performance as Lukas at Cannes last May, is outstanding as a man who is helpless to defend himself and heartbroken that all but one of his close friends won’t give him any benefit of the doubt. His long, angled face and piercing eyes, which can effortlessly move from melancholy to bewilderment or fury with very little in the way of strenuous change(s) of expression, is always a marvel to behold, and he remains my favourite contemporary European actor.
When I saw The Hunt at TIFF in September, the last moments of the film elicited gasps from several people in the audience. Vinterberg brilliantly sets up what feels like partial, slow redemption for Lucas, or a return to a semblance of sanity within and mercy from the community, only to rock us back in our seats with a final, haunting scene, seemingly saying in closing that while people are quick to condemn they are far, far slower to forgive.
[Rating:4/5]