Hollow Man (2000)

the audience applauded

Thanks for the memories!

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

Sort of an odd approach for director Paul Vehoeven. It acts as more a normal every day trendy ass Hollywood movie than his unusual approach with left field provocation and ultra violence. Well at least the ultra violence is intact. A little better if viewed in directors cut. But anyways, I liked it. I like the flow of the movie with Bacons character on how he goes from being a normal narcissistic retard to a narcissistic psychopath with a God complex. The effects are cool giving us a sort of accurate vision of the human anatomy and all that $#!+. The only disappointment was that Bacons character didn't kill everyone in this movie because everyone was ****ing annoying. Eh! Can't win them all.

Besides the bad acting and corny dialogue, what gets me is that Sebastian went into the last day at the lab with the plan to pick them all off one by one. His first victim was one of the women because she forgot her heat-seeking goggles as the group headed out of the room. Sebastian came in right on queue with the perfect weapon for the isolated situation. First of all, what garbage, of course. He couldn't have PLANNED that... Secondly, what would've been his plan to start his killing spree if she HADN'T forgotten her goggles?

the idea is well known. from H.G.Wells . or from Plato. the character of Sebastian reminds an if who is present in many occasions in our lives. and Verhoever film is inspired development of a premise who is far to not be tempting. in fact, the film is an old fashion story. about love, jealousy and the absolute freedom. and its great virtue is the duel between the characters of Josh Brolin and Kevin Bacon. result - a thriller who propose the hypothesis of escape from the rules and the desire as the only law.

The opening credits feature pictures of molecules and scrambled letters. This is another movie where someone tests some ridiculous experiment on himself and thing go awry. These guys never seem to understand that they will become entrapped inside their new character. To make my point, refer to the following stories: "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hide," "The Invisible Man," and "The Fly." In "Hollow Man" Kevin Bacon stars as Sebastian Caine, who is an egocentric and unethical scientist. He heads a six-unit research and development team whose purpose is to make living things invisible, and vice versa (reversion). The crew, entirely financed under the auspices of the Pentagon, includes ex-girlfriend Linda McKay (Elizabeth Shue) and her current suitor Matthew Kensington (Josh Brolin). Ignoring procedures and rules, Sebastian decides to initiate human testing – on himself. On making history he tells his staff, "You make it by seizing the moment!" So he is the first human guinea pig. He does no real good in his new situation. One of his first acts as an invisible man is to unbutton the blouse of the dozing, high strung co-worker Bianca (Kim Dickens) and squeeze a boob. Ten days into the experiment, he cannot get back to his original self and his behavior becomes depraved with violent streaks. At least a latex skin is poured over him to give him a humanoid look. He has been enamored with a well-endowed, attractive single woman (Rhona Mitra) who lives just across from him in another unit of his apartment building. Debauched, and as he cannot be seen, he decides to force his way onto her. How she inadvertently admits him in the first place is totally ridiculous: She sees no one through the door peephole and ventures outside her apartment while dank and wearing just a housecoat, and while wondering who rang the doorbell. Of course he easily sleazes in and rapes her. Sebastian's mind continues to degenerate. He becomes murderous and begins to stalk his own team after they decide to turn him over to their superiors. Now the movie morphs into a slasher flick as team members are picked off one by one in the expected order. Will the madman be stopped before they are all dead? Who cares? Special effects are the real stars here. There is a nice opening sequence with a visible rat: it slinks along to a water dish before being quickly snatched and killed by an invisible predator. Early on an invisible gorilla becomes visible after an irradiated serum injection. As the injected chemical fans out throughout the bloodstream, body parts gradually become visible, revealing layers of tissue, muscle, fat, bone, organs, and skin. But filmmakers like Paul Verhoeven must realize that great visual effects do not by themselves equate to an enjoyable motion picture experience. Thus, on the negative side the acting is so-so, and there is little, if any, chemistry between the two protagonist leads, Shue and Brolin. Worse, the characters are not especially likable. Then there is the story-line that deteriorates into absurdity.