The Hunter
by Donald E. Westlakeliterary work· published 1962
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The Hunter is a 1962 crime thriller novel by American writer Donald E. Westlake under the pseudonym Richard Stark. It is the first of the novels featuring career criminal Parker. Parker—penniless, shabbily dressed—walks across the George Washington Bridge into Manhattan, single-mindedly bent on payback. A quick series of cons and identity theft allows him to acquire a false name, a change of clothes, and a small amount of money. He first tracks down his wife Lynn, unsure if he'll kill her for betraying him during a caper gone sour. She tells him that Mal, one of the caper's participants, now pays her rent. She says that he moved out after becoming frustrated with his inability to rouse her passion the same way Parker did.
Adaptations (3)
The Hunter has been adapted into 3 films, from 1967 to 1999. The most recent is Payback (1999).
Point Blank1967 · film · 92 min · dir. John Boorman · IMDb ↗After being double-crossed and left for dead, a mysterious man named Walker single-mindedly tries to retrieve the rather inconsequential sum of money that was stolen from him.
Payback1999 · film · 100 min · dir. Brian Helgeland · IMDb ↗With friends like these, who needs enemies? That's the question bad guy Porter is left asking after his wife and partner steal his heist money and leave him for dead -- or so they think. Five months and an endless reservoir of bitterness later, Porter's partners and the crooked cops on his tail learn how bad payback can be.
