Kraven the Hunter

A long, icy road is the first shot of Kraven the Hunter, the sixth film in the infamous Sony’s Spider-Man Universe (SSU). Given how all the other films, except the Venom movies, turned out to be fiascos, the very first shot of Kraven felt like a metaphor for the studio’s long and trying journey with Marvel’s IPs. After all, it’s not a lot to work with when you only have characters commonly associated with Spider-Man and you cannot even use the friendly neighbourhood superhero. Despite being far better than Morbius and Madame Web, Sony’s latest and possibly final superhero outing, Kraven the Hunter, still misses its mark by miles.

Kraven the Hunter finally saw its release in Indian theaters but despite the delays and built-up anticipation this film has turned out to be another disappointment like Madam Web. The film explores the story of Spiderman Universe villain Kraven the Hunter. The titular role of the film is played by Aaron Taylor Johnson, who is known for his looks physique and charm but none of it transfers to his on-screen character Kraven the Hunter. The film begins with Kraven’s latest task at a Russian prison. The man of honour and code walks into the jail to kill his target but on his way out does not hesitate to take a few guards down. Kraven isn’t a hero, he isn’t good but the film works on proving that he is with his every decision until it serves right for the plot. After a quick introduction, much of the film takes place in the past as Sergei and Dimitri’s toxic childhood is explored — more like explained. We also get a montage of how he trains in the jungle as a child while honing his powers, super strength and other abilities. He also takes down many animal poachers but it doesn’t really add any dept to his role in the film. It could serve as his connection to the animal world, but it isn’t as effective due to a lack of authentic interaction.