Hollow Man (2000)

In Paul Verhoeven's appropriately shallow Hollow Man, Kevin Bacon plays a bad-boy egotistical scientist who heads up a double-secret government team experimenting with turning life-forms invisible. How do we know he's a bad boy? Because he (a) wears a leather overcoat, (b) compares himself to God, (c) drives a sports car, and (d) spies on his comely next-door neighbor while eating Twinkies. Sadly, this is the most character development anyone gets in this undernourished action/sci-fi thriller, which boasts some amazing special effects and some amazingly ridiculous plot twists. After experimenting rather ruthlessly on a menagerie of lab animals, Bacon finally cracks the code that will turn the invisible gorillas, dogs, and so on, back into their visible forms. Does it work on humans? Faster than you can say "six degrees," Mr. Bacon appoints himself human guinea pig, strapping down for an injection of fluorescent-colored serum. Thanks to some phenomenal, seamless and Oscar-worthy computer effects, Bacon is indeed rendered invisible, organ by organ, vein by vein. And what's the first thing you'd do if you were invisible? Why, spy on your female coworkers in the bathroom and molest your comely next-door neighbor, of course! Soon, Bacon is thoroughly psychotic, and it's up to Elisabeth Shue (Bacon's coworker and ex-girlfriend) and hunky Josh Brolin (her current snuggle bunny) to defeat the invisible man, who's picking off the science team one by one. You'd think this would be a prime opportunity for copious amounts of cheesy sex and aggressive violence--which Verhoeven served up so well and so exuberantly in Starship Troopers and Basic Instinct--but if anything, the director seems to tone down the proceedings, and really, who wants a muted Paul Verhoeven movie? Shue (who got top billing and a bad haircut to boot) and Brolin (who, yes, does take off his shirt at least once) generate little heat, and while Bacon does give an effective, primarily voice-oriented performance, his character is so underdeveloped that, well, you can see right through him. --Mark Englehart Amazon.com

Voyeurism

So, I usually don't do this, but seeing all of the negative criticism directed at this film bothers me. Here goes. THIS IS A GOOD FILM. On the surface it is a somewhat cheesy scifi thriller about an invisible man tormenting people, but when you stop and think about it, this film is about voyeurism. Not just voyeurism, but the relationship between audience and events that take place in the film. It degrading into a simple horror film is actually exactly what the audience wants to see: sex and gore. Not only do we get to see it, but it could be argued that our desires for it are actually translating into the film. There is no invisible man and it is us who all are performing these depraved acts. This is much more disturbing to me than seeing some masked killer watch and then violently murder a victim. This is why this film is good. December 4, 2008

GGO DEAL

Great movie and great price fast service movie was used but in great shape played fine. October 31, 2008

Movie: 2.5~4/5 Picture Quality: 4~4.5/5 Sound Quality: 4~4.5/5 Extras: 2.5/5

Title: Hollow Man - Director's Cut
Version: U.S.A / Sony Pictures / Region A, B, C
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
MPEG-4 AVC BD-50
Running time: 1:59:15
Movie size: 28,93 GB
Disc size: 33,34 GB
Average Video Bit Rate: 25.47 Mbps
Number of chapters: 16
LPCM 5.1 4608Kbps 16-bit English
DD AC3 5.1 640Kbps English
Subtitles: English SDH / English / Korean / French / Spanish / Arabic / Portuguese

#Featurette
--HBO First Look Special - Hollow Man: Anatomy of a Thrille (15 min)
--15 Fleshing Out the Hollow Man
#VFX Picture In Picture - comparisons
#HD Trailers October 29, 2008

An Egotistical Scientist and An Experimental Drug Is A Deadly Combination

"Hollow Man" is a masterpiece of science fiction horror. A modern remake of "The Invisible Man," it is a slasher film that is primarily set in the claustrophobic environs of a high tech underground laboratory. It has the age old theme that was present in such horror classics as "Frankenstein": A mad scientist believes he is God.

Egotistical play boy researcher Dr. Sabastain Caine (Kevin Bacon of "Friday the 13th") has invented a drug capable of turning animals invisible. (The potential medical and military applications are mind boggling.) Only problem is that it is nearly impossible to reverse the procedure. The longer an animal remains invisible, the more psychotic it becomes.

Determined to make history, Caine injects himself with the drug. He experiences a personality transformation similar to that in "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde." Unable to become visible again, his evil personality takes over. He traps his colleagues inside the laboratory and murders them in gruesome fashion. He was a victim in "Friday the 13th"; now he is the serial killer.

Gorgeous Elizabeth Shue ("Link") oozes sex appeal (doesn't she always?) as fellow researcher, Linda McKay. While battling the invisible maniac, she reminded me of Sigourney Weaver's outstanding performance in "Alien."

"Hollow Man's is a must see for fans of modern science fiction horror such as "Resident Evil," "The Fly," "Alien," and "Mimic." Fans of slasher fare will also enjoy this one because some of the death scenes are gruesome. The ending is quite explosive.
October 18, 2008

Another movie ruined by the trailer

The producers of Hollow Man made a mistake that many films of this nature do, they showed all the good parts in the trailer. The writers could have taken this to many levels but do not. Don't get me wrong I like the film because of the eye candy but the trailer ruined all the good parts. September 14, 2008

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