5. The Hunted
The Hunted was a mostly ignored effort from director William Friedkin (The Exorcist). Over time it has come to develop a small following for its realistic fight scenes and rather abnormal tone. But, did you know The Hunted had a blatant political commentary about the government and our military? Allow me to explain. The Hunted is about a soldier (Benicio Del Toro) that is turned into a cold blooded killer by his own government. He is told to kill, kill, kill all in the name of good until finally they turn against him and blame him for war crimes he never committed. They bring in the very man that trained him (Tommy Lee Jones) in order to take him out. But, we learn that he is not what they say he is so is he truly a killer? Well, yes he is but only because the government made him that way. The Hunted presents a government that has become too powerful especially in its militarism. It is a military that is playing God. Benicio Del Toro's character is never the villain. In fact, there is one scene where he climbs to the top of a bridge while helicopters and police surround him. It's a clear homage to King Kong. Society is turning on something that is all too real and misunderstood. Something we created. The political message of the government playing God through its militarism and a society blindly following is run home in the final brilliant moments of The Hunted. After Tommy Lee Jones' character has been forced to kill a man he treated like his own son at the orders of the government, we hear Johhny Cash chime in with the story of God telling Abraham to kill his son. The metaphor is clear. The government has become God telling the father (Tommy Lee Jones) to kill his son (Benicio Del Toro). The part that should scare us is that he does it.