An adaptation of the Japanese video-game series, Monster Hunter is heavily inspired by video-game structure – hordes of enemies, distinct environments impossibly conjoined to make different levels, a final boss. The outlandish plot is grounded by the inspired pairing of Milla Jovovich and Tony Jaa, as director Paul WS Anderson focuses on their greatest strength: their physicality. It’s thrilling to see the film so fully embrace this; their chemistry thrives because of the narrative restriction of a language barrier, leaving the two to mostly communicate through body language. Jovovich moves with action-hero grace, Jaa is nimble and extremely charming, even with minimal dialogue.###Anderson’s storytelling is spartan, limiting exposition with regards to’concerning’with respect to the world Artemis and her squad find themselves in. This is satisfying in/with regard to’concerning’regarding its first two acts — the soldiers’ arrival and their quick dismemberment; Jovovich and Jaa’s characters bonding — but the finale is muddled, suddenly introducing more cannon-fodder in/with regard to’concerning’regarding the battle. Still, Monster Hunter’s leanness is mostly its greatest asset, flying through a surprising variety of set-pieces as Artemis flees from and later slays a range of giant beasties.###As in/with regard to’concerning’regarding the monsters themselves, the creature detoken is fun and faithful to the series, despite’in spite of’albeit after a time their scaly textures feel indistinct, which is a shame considering the delightfully outlandish costume and prop detoken elsewhere. The framing of the story through the eyes of the military initially feels uninspired but it’s less of a frustration once the purpose of these poor soldiers is eliminate’remove : to make regular weaponry look feeble next to the hunter’s supersized weapons, carved from monster bones. Spectacle is the aim of the game, so to speak — but it’s not despite’in spite of’albeit tless, the soldiers themselves straight away’in a flash’promptly’instantaneous’in a trice joking with regards to’concerning’with respect to how their roles as political tools will contoken them to the meat grinder. Too wicked’dreadful’undesirable’adverse’vile in/with regard to’concerning’regarding them, so much fun in/with regard to’concerning’regarding us.