Heartland International Film Festival Review Of ‘After The Hunt’

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Review by James Lindorf

The famous quote from Oscar Wilde might state, “Life imitates art far more than art imitates life,” but the art being created and, more importantly, released is influenced by the political landscape of the time. After the #MeToo boom of 2017, several films were tackling toxic masculinity and sexual harassment. Now, we live in a world where companies and Universities are being attacked for their DEI programs, and we are creating art that questions who to believe or who we are allowed to challenge. Director Luca Guadagnino (Challengers) latest film, “After the Hunt,” from first-time screenwriter Nora Garrett, finds itself stuck in both worlds. It aspires to be the former but ultimately becomes the latter, and audiences will be able to judge for themselves when it opens wide on October 17th.

I was able to see this movie as part of the terrific lineup at the 34th annual Heartland International Film Festival. The 11-day Indianapolis festival, taking place Oct. 9-19, showcases actors like Brendan Fraser, Sydney Sweeney, Rami Malek, Julia Roberts, Ethan Hawke, and Peyton Manning through 19 world/US premieres, 27 regional premieres, 17 special presentations from major distributors, and nine Indiana Spotlight films. All film selections will have in-person screenings, and many will also be available virtually (US restricted). Tickets and Fest Passes are available at HeartlandFilmFestival.org.

Julia Roberts stars as Alma Olsson, an impeccably dressed and revered philosophy professor at Yale. Julia surrounds herself with a group of devoted colleagues and students, bordering on sycophants. Even her husband Frederik (Michael Stuhlbarg) isn’t immune to succumbing to her charms and living happily in an imbalanced relationship. Alma’s colleague, best friend, and partner in the chase of the ever-elusive tenure is Hank (Andrew Garfield). When Alma’s star pupil, grad student Maggie (Ayo Edibiri), levels an accusation against Hank that hits too close to home, a dark secret from Alma’s own past threatens to come into the light.

Tenure is the mythical status that makes a professor bulletproof if not completely teflon. It is a shared goal bordering on obsession for Alma and Hank. It is finally within reach after years of being their singular focus, and they are not prepared for life beyond the title. They have also ignored the world that wasn’t part of their career path. How to deal with new generations of young people and evolving situations does not come up at their self-indulgent fancy dinner parties or classroom discussions and thought exercises from a thousand years ago. When the modern world smacks them in the face, they crumble on their own time, but they are both broken by the news. In this way, Garrett seems to be emulating Todd Fields’ “Tár,” but thankfully, it is less boring, even if it lacks the same impact.

Garrett clearly has a talent for storytelling, but her first attempt falls short. What it did well was entice a group of fantastic actors to come on board. Julia Roberts is excellent throughout, playing the pain from Alma’s unknown medical ailment as well as she does the egotistical center of attention and the tormented woman who can’t move beyond her childhood trauma. Garfield channels a level of pretension and self-righteousness that is breathtaking in the two scenes he can cut loose. Stuhlbarg has a standout moment as his frustrations with Alma and the superiority of philosophers bubble to the surface. Unlike the rest, Edibiri isn’t given a big moment; she is just solid throughout. It is these four, along with some beautiful staging in cinematography, that keep you interested in the film through its entire 138-minute runtime.

“After the Hunt” is more interested in continuing the fight between the generations, with Alma doing her best to belittle Maggie for not being willing to suffer the same way she has. Then there is Hank, who has fully bought into his own genius and goodness in an attempt to temper his imposter syndrome and fears about growing up poor and working at the elite university. It is not the most comfortable film to watch. Still, Garrett and Guadagnino’s lack of commitment in assigning our support to Hank or Maggie softens the blow. They want to highlight the dangers of sexual assault while giving a solid depiction of the “Liberal Elite” as demonized by Fox News and other conservative outlets, with all its self-importance, grooming, and deflection of responsibility. With mixed messaging, uncertainty, and a coda as tone-deaf as anything could be with this subject matter, “After the Hunt” only manages to scrape by with a 2 out of 5, thanks to outstanding performances across the board.

Rating: R (Language|Some Sexual Content)
Genre: Drama, Mystery & Thriller, Crime
Release Date (Theaters) October 17th, 2025
Runtime:2h 18m
Director: Luca Guadagnino
Screenwriter: Nora Garrett
Producer: Brian Grazer, Luca Guadagnino, Jeb Brody, Allan Mandelbaum
Production Co: Imagine Entertainment, Frenesy Film Company
Distributor: Amazon MGM Studios