The Hunting Party (2007)

I really liked The Matador, the last movie Richard Shepard wrote and directed before this one, so I had high hopes.

This fact-based story sure starts off strong: Richard Gere is a gritty journalist whose on-air breakdown was so spectacular that, a couple of years afterwards, it's being shown in journalism school. Although his buddy cameraman has moved on to a cushy studio job, he's pulled back into guerilla reporting by Gere. Jesse Eisenberg, all angst and afro, rounds out the group. Basically, Gere's got a lead on tracking down "The Fox" a war criminal who, despite being high on wanted lists everywhere, doesn't seem to have any trouble evading capture.

The action's exciting, the banter's fun (despite Eisenberg's nattering getting old rather quickly). The biggest problem with the film is that I didn't believe it. Even at the end of the film when they say "this part really happened. And that dude actually existed. And this..." Do I believe the endnotes? Sure. Do I believe what really happened looked anything like what was up on screen? Nah.

C+