Hollow Man (DVD)

Dutch director Paul Verhoeven was never known for subtlety and reserve. His CV reads like a history of violence, glamour and sex (Basic Instinct, Robocop, Showgirls – need I go on?). Hollow Man is typical Verhoeven, and contains all these things. But the criticism was too much for the director who subsequently turned his back on Hollywood and returned home to Holland. The concept of the “Invisible Man” idea has been used on and off in cinema films for many decades, but the developments in cinematic special effects of recent years meant that a modern-day remake of the concept seemed rather inevitable. Hollow Man is The 21st Century Invisible Man and in my ...  Read the complete review

A rare miss by the usually reliable director Paul Verhoeven, Hollow Man stars Kevin Bacon as a molecular biologist who develops a serum that can turn him invisible in a plot that is essentially a vacous, modern update of H.G. Wells' classic tale 'The Invisible Man'. Bacon puts in a reasonable if unremarkable performance as the power-mad molecular biologist in question, but the rest of his team are made up of non-descript actors who put in some decidedly unmemorable performaces all round. The plot, though promising, quickly descends into the usual B-movie slasher flcik nonsense, doing away with the interesting psychological question of what one would do if one ...  Read the complete review

Hollow Man is a entertaining that threatens an element of horror without taking it too seriously. With a selection of well-known actors giving good performances, it approaches molecular biology from an experimental and hormonal point of view, and gives what is quite a frenetic and intense hour and a half. Sebastian Caine is an incredibly gifted molecular biologist, obsessed with trying to perfect the development of complete invisibility. When it works on a gorilla, Caine decides the next step is to explore the possibilities of it being used on humans, and puts himself forward as the guinea pig. However, he hasn't banked on the hormonal and behavioural side ...  Read the complete review

Just when you thought it was safe to forget Hollow Man, revere does an op that puts it back in your head. Those of you with sense in your bodies may want to quit reading this. I'm going to use a rude metaphor. I'm going to... stop reading... right. You know that expression 'You can't polish a turd'? This is the highest polished turd I've ever seen. Man, this is a turd you could eat your dinner from. You can see your face in it. Unless you're Kevin Bacon. Or invisible like Kevin Bacon. Studio executives must have thought this was a great idea. Paul Verhoeven, the crown prince of polished turds, wants to direct a movie with a budget the size of ...  Read the complete review

I was not a huge fan of this movie. It was really freaky, I mean a killer that is invisible is a pretty freaky thing. It makes you think about the kind of character you really have. I mean, if you were invisible and couldn't be caught because you couldn't be identified because...well...your invisible, would you obey the law if there was no chance you would get caught?? This is a great question that will truly test the content of your character. That is exactly what this movie deals with. This is a science fiction thriller that stars Kevin Bacon who plays the scientist Sebastian Caine who is working on a super secret military experiment that can make a living ...  Read the complete review