The Hunt is a very unique film. It's one that could be perceived as a horror, but only due to its ability to show human cruelty, to show a mob mentality that acts as one, thinks as one, and believes only what they want to believe.
The fact that the film's events are so grounded and possible make it more terrifying than any supernatural narrative. The true horror is that the events show a flaw in human interaction, and it can be seen in many events even in present day, the world's current political climate, for example.
The Hunt, originally known as its Danish title, Jagten, shows the decline of a caring kindergarten teacher named Lucas. Facing a divorce and gaining access to his teenage son, Lucas is already struggling to get by emotionally, but early on it's clear that he's a man of integrity. It's established that he's a loving father, a caring teacher, and an excellent friend; this only makes the film that much more cruel to his character, as he's crafted into this figure of pure kindness to the viewer.
Lucas has a female student that holds a crush on him. As a result of some lewd images her delinquent older brother shows her, Klara makes the accusation that Lucas revealed himself to her within the grounds of the school. With the teacher shocked, she begins to pry and Klara's little lie grows way out of proportion. During this, we've seen Lucas look after the children of the school, going as far as walking them home and letting them walk his dog. From an outsider's perspective, Lucas is as guilty as can be.
As an investigation begins, word of the event begins to spread around the small town, and the result is an entire community turning against Lucas. Utter cruelty ensues, both physically and mentally. He's targeted at his home, and in public. He has been cast out of society almost entirely. As the viewer, you can't help but feel that Lucas is being hunted. That he's just some prey for the others to toy with and let out their true nastiness.
The film's use of colours and night and day begin to shift as things in Lucas' life begin to worsen. The scenes showing Lucas in contain dull lighting, rain, and often total darkness, showing him sitting in the dark illuminated by the moonlight shining through the windows; total despair surrounds him. And he's totally innocent. Mads Mikkelsen's performance as a man that's lost everything is harrowing, and his ability to display the feeling of hopelessness is done with such excellence.
The Hunt, at its core, shows the ways in which we believe the words of children with no evidence to back up their claims; the ways in which society groups together and shows their true ways, refusing to accept anything that doesn't fit their own agendas. It shows how we quite literally will hunt our own.