3. The Politics Of Left Versus Right
Politics are always a nice tool in movies. Feuds and campaigns, debates over dinner and worldview affirmation. Its a good device for conflict and resolution. As mentioned previously, one element of The Hunters story is the feud between the loggers and greenies. This is a very popular relationship in movies, but movie treats it more objectively than usual, much as a true documentary. The politics at the heart of the town are complex. The only reason most people are there is to log, but if they log there wont be any trees left to sustain the logging or anything else. Both sides have their points and pitfalls. But as much as Martin tries to remain aloof, both he and the audience cant help but repeatedly face the claustrophobia of these emotionally-charged points of view, because they are right in the line of sight, whether far or close, with angry eyes, piercing headlights, blocking the way with makeshift gates, or standing ground as cold and stormy silhouettes. Like anywhere else in the world, one could argue that the people in the movies town are victims of political circumstance. They take the sides they were raised on and argue about what is directly in front of them without thinking about the facts of the bigger picture we as the audience know exists in the movie. The loggers in the movie may not be as educated as the greenies, but both parties are guilty of debating in their small worlds without taking the time to step back and think outside of the diorama. More specifically, Lucy, Sass, and Bike have lost Jarrah and dont even know the full how or why. They have their immediate world and the concerns that go with it, but are completely unprotected from the real machinations underneath, like Eloi from the Morlocks in H.G. Wellss The Time Machine. There are the things we as commoners talk about, like politics, and the reality fueling everything. Martin knows this, but he cant bring himself to intervene in Lucys familys world on a larger level. He can help them in their immediate needs to get them to function within societys structure, but he cant tell them the truth, because theres no point. It wouldnt change anything and other than shattering their fragile little corner of things. Even the small amount Lucy does know drives her into despair. This use of politics adds to the previous genre conventions of the movie and helps set up the films final truth. The lines of these politics blur and question the notions of heroes and villains, but the politics also highlight the overwhelming chill, the uncertain facts, and the reality of the wider, unanswerable questions which permeate this world, steadily preparing the audience for the core message.