Charges of child abuse, a crime that once festered in the shadows, have become commonplace. Not just Roman Catholic priests, but Protestant pastors, public school teachers and swimming pool attendants have been implicated. But in the face of the outrage aroused by these crimes come the necessity of proof, due process and a presumption of innocence until guilt is established.
In The Hunt by Danish writer-director Thomas Vinterberg (who filmed The Celebration during his Dogme period), a child makes a vague statement about her kindergarten teacher, Lucas (Mads Mikkelsen). An investigation is warranted, but handled badly. The school’s unctuous staff coaxes the little girl with leading questions—which she answers as if to please them—and level public accusations against Lucas. Before long other children are saying things that couldn’t possibly be true; even after the original accuser admits she made it all up, the adults refuse to accept her retraction. Lucas loses his job, is ostracized in his small town and subjected to violence.
The Hunt is a tense drama on the dangers of making presumptions and of rumors, which spread like an infection carried by conversation. An acute psychological study with carefully drawn characters and situations, The Hunt wonders whether even normally civil people sometimes just need someone else to hate.
The Hunt will be shown at 9 p.m., Oct. 11; 7 p.m., Oct 12; and 5 p.m., Oct. 13 at the UWM Union Theatre.
