The Hunting Party is Richard Shepard’s follow-up to the magnificent 2005 film The Matador. You certainly wouldn’t have a hard time realizing both films were directed by the same man upon viewing them, as they have a number of things in common. Both feature instantly likable characters, a distinct dialogue style, and a dazzling use of primary colors. Though this new offering isn’t quite up to par with Shepard’s rightfully acclaimed previous piece, it does solidify his unique voice and notable style. Keep your eyes peeled for this guy. He’s got a lot to offer.

Inspired by true events, The Hunting Party follows three vacationing journalists (Richard Gere, Terrence Howard, and Jesse Eisenberg) as they haphazardly decide to track down, interview, and capture Radoslav Bogdanovic (aka The Fox). Bogdanovic, whom the country folk idolize, is a reclusive war criminal with a five million dollar bounty on his head. Hiding out for years, with the people as his protectors, he’s become somewhat of a ghost. Since everyone from NATO to the UN is supposedly looking for this specter, it’s surprising to the fellas when they start making genuine contacts (after being mistaken for a CIA hit squad), and seem to be within reach of The Fox after only forty-eight hours.

Right at the start of the picture, there is a disclaimer stating, “Only the most ridiculous parts of this story are true”. This not only sets up the underlying comedic tone of the film, but also hints Shepard took some liberties when translating the original article into his screenplay. I was surprised to discover which elements were actually fabricated, as I was expecting massive embellishments after viewing the picture. Not so. The bulk of this tale is shockingly accurate. Changes were made in the number of journalists involved, the sex of one character, and the addition of a dramatic back story meant to liven up the relationship between Gere’s character and The Fox. Other than that, this is basically an honest representation of what went down, and it stunned me quite a bit.

The cover art of the DVD is completely misleading and unrepresentative of the actual film, but a few nice bonus features (including the original Esquire article) are integrated to make up for it. Richard Shepard’s feature length commentary is insanely informative. They must’ve been feeding him caffeine intravenously, as the guy rattles off interesting tidbits nonstop. The Real Hunting Party has Shepard interviewing two of the original journalists, as they throw back some beers for a half hour. Their nonchalant banter about the whole incident is entertaining and a nice complement to the dark humor of the film. As always, the usual suspects are also represented in the form of a handful of deleted scenes and a quick making-of featurette. It’ll certainly remedy those left over Christmas gift cards burning a hole in your pocket.