Bullet Points: Heart of the Hunter (2024)
It is that time once again for me to break out my Netflix passport as I travel to South Africa for 2024’s Heart of the Hunter…
- Moving On: Bonko Khoza plays former assassin, Zuko Khumalo. Still haunted by his last job as an assassin, Zuko has a new life with his girlfriend, Maline Mambi, and Maline’s young son, Paka. To pay the bills, Zuko works at a motorcycle dealership as he gladly puts his days as a hired gun behind him. But the past comes back to haunt Zuko in the form of Johnny Klein. Klein reaches out to Zuko asking for his help to prevent the murderous, raping, adulterer Daza Mtima, from becoming the President of South Africa. But Zuko is not interested. However the Presidential Intelligence Agency (or PIA for those in the know) is very interested in Johnny Klein’s plans to take down Mtima, thanks to the head of the PIA, Molebogeng Kwena, being in the pocket of Mtima!
- Just When He Thinks He’s Out: The PIA is on the hunt for Johnny Klein, after a failed attempt to take him out, they track him down to the motorcycle dealership, where he makes a last ditch effort to get Zuko on board with his plan… once again Zuko refuses, but now he too is on PIA’s radar and becomes the secondary target of their operation. After his second meeting with Zuko is finished, Johnny Klein hops in his car and he is soon being pursued by the PIA’s hired gun… Tiger de Klerk! The car chase ends when Klein finds himself at a dead end in more ways than one. The chase stopped when Klein reached a portion of the highway that was still under construction… but instead of being taken captive by Tiger and his Alpha team, Klein shoots himself in the head, then takes a header off the edge of the unfinished overpass. Now Zuko goes from secondary target to primary target!
- The Running Man: Zuko has to get out of the country until the heat dies down, which means he also has to say goodbye to Maline. Maline is obviously upset, and Zuko does his best to ease her fears, by promising that he will be back for her and Paka… Zuko arrives at Cape Town International Airport, but before he can board two PIA agents snatch him up, but they soon find out that Zuko is not just some everyday guy as he quickly neutralizes them, then escapes via airport shuttle before they can catch up with him. Later that night, he takes a motorcycle from his employer and hits the road as a wanted man! Zuko does get some help from a hard boiled reporter, Mike Bressler, who has his own personal grudge against Daza Mtima and Klein had a mole inside the PIA, Naledi Gumede.
- When It Rains: As you might expect, the PIA doesn’t hesitate to use Maline and Paka to their advantage. In fact, the big rainy showdown at the end is a result of PIA head honcho, Mo, cutting a deal with Zuko… he gives her the file that would shed light on all of the illegal activities Daza Mtima has been involved in, she’ll give him Paka… but not before we get the final round of Zuko vs. Tiger!
Heart of the Hunter was an average action thriller at best. The movie would have benefited from being a little tighter, as there were points where it really felt like it was dragging, or if it absolutely had to be 1 hour and 45 minutes long, then more of those minutes needed some action. On a positive note, Heart of the Hunter did have a strong finish. Speaking of finishes, here are some Bonus Bullet Points to wrap up this review…
- Bastard Count: There was one “bastard” in Heart of the Hunter.
- Based On: Heart of the Hunter was based on the novel of the same name written by Deon Meyer.
- Exploding Helicopter Count: I was all ready to send a message to Will over at Exploding Helicopter as Heart of the Hunter certainly teased an exploding helicopter, but it turned out to be a false alarm.
