The last manhunt

Original title:	The last manhunt
Director:	Christian Camargo
Release:	Cinema
Running time:	104 minutes
Release date:	18 november 2022
Rating:

In 1909, in the middle of the dying Old West, Willie Boy, a long-distance desert runner in the Chemehuevi tradition, falls in love with the young native beauty, Carlota. Carlota's father, a Chemehuevi shaman and leader of the local tribe, refuses to let the young couple be together. In a fatal confrontation, Carlota's father dies from an accidental gunshot and the young lovers flee into the sun-drenched Mohave Desert. The local sheriff leads a group of armed horsemen and two Native American trackers seeking justice for their murdered tribal chief. Willie Boy and Carlota escape capture by outlasting the men and their horses. However, fake news designed to sell newspapers adds to the growing pressure to capture Willie Boy. In a desert that purifies everything, the search for Willie Boy forces everyone to confront their own demons in this tragic story of love, death, and desert heat.

Mulder's Review

The Last Manhunt is co-written by Jason Mamoa and Thomas Pa'a Sibbett, directed by Christian and will be available in select theaters and on video-on-demand November 18, 2022. The cast includes Mojean Aria, Charlie Brumbly, Christian Camargo, Tantoo Cardinal, Justin Campbell, Lily Gladstone, Mainei Kinimaka, Zahn Mcclarnon, Brandon Oakes, Amy Seimetz, Martin Sensmeier, Jamie Sives, Raoul Max Trujillo, Wade Williams, Jason Momoa.

The film is based on true events from the oral history of the Chemehuevi Indian tribe of California. During the Wild West era, a young Native American man is forbidden the presence of his lover, the daughter of the tribal chief. In a fatal confrontation, the young native accidentally shoots and kills her father. With the sheriff's armed posse and two Native American trackers at their heels, the couple decides to flee into the Mohave Desert and will have to face many dangers and, above all, question themselves. Far from the numerous American westerns featuring American cowboys, the original scenario puts the Amerindians at the center of the story and despite a few weaknesses of rhythm and a lack of visual audacity, The Last Manhunt is watchable but totally lacks the scope to impose itself as one of the must-see films of the year, despite the presence of Jason Momoa here confined to simple appearances in a second role that is too short on the screen

The director Christian Camargo who signs here his second film after Days and nights (2014) seems more concerned by filming the beautiful natural landscapes than by the real plot of the film. The result is a story too linear to be able to create a real oppressive atmosphere nor to give its main characters a real psychological thickness. While there was material to propose a different western and a questioning of the place of the Amerindians in the United States and the fact that they are parked like wild animals, The Last Manhunt is a film that we can never really understand how it could have been made, except for the presence of Jason Momoa in the screenplay and in a short second role.

However, this argument does not justify watching such a film which cruelly lacks the will of a director to bring his contribution to the western genre. While many American series have succeeded in bringing the western back into fashion, notably with the Yellowstone series created by Taylor Sheridan and John Linso, The Last Manhunt proves to be a total disappointment and above all a waste of time for those who are willing to watch it.

The Last manhunt
Directed by Christian Camargo
Produced by Martin Kistler, Eric Laciste
Executive Producers: Jeanie Buss, Dan Clifton, Stacy Kennedy, Jason Momoa, Brian Andrew Mendoza, Michael Acierno, Frank Acierno Sr, John Yannacone, Thomas Pa'a Sibbett
Written by Thomas Pa'a Sibbett and Jason Momoa
Starring Mojean Aria, Charlie Brumbly, Christian Camargo, Tantoo Cardinal, Justin Campbell, Lily Gladstone, Mainei Kinimaka, Zahn Mcclarnon, Brandon Oakes, Amy Seimetz, Martin Sensmeier, Jamie Sives, Raoul Max Trujillo, Wade Williams, Jason Momoa
Edited by Jason Dopko
Distributed by Saban films (United States)
Release date : November 18,2022 (United States)
Running time : 104 minutes

Seen on November 14, 2022 (press screener)

Mulder's Mark: