Hollow Man

Year of release : 2000

Run time : 1h59min

Genre : Thriller / Sci Fi / Horror

Cast : Kevin Bacon, Elisabeth Shue, Josh Brolin

Director : Paul Verhoeven

 

 

Scientist Sebastian Caine,discovered the serum to render animals invisible,problem is,he can't make them visible again,and the longer they remain in that state,the more aggressive they get.

One late night,he finally comes up with the reversion code. He calls his ex girlfriend,who's also one of his team mates,and tells her to get to the lab as soon as possible.

Making the gorilla visible again they talk to their bosses,at the Pentagon,but Sebastian doesn't tell them about their achievements,lying to them they are not there yet.

His ex,Linda, and her new flame, Matt,who also works with them,go along with it,trying to figure out what's his game. They find out,immediately,as they walk out,as Sebastian fears once the Pentagon hears they did their job,they're gonna take the project from them,and he wants to get to the next level,human testing,offering himself as a test subject.

Once invisible, Sebastian can't sleep,as his eyelids are invisible,and the light bothers him. Staying invisible for more than three days,which was as long as the gorilla was,as they can't bring him back to visibility, he decides to walk out of the lab.

At home,he sees the neighbor who's apartment is right in front of his and decides to pay her a visit. I didn't quite get this scene,as in, I didn't understand how does one open the door half naked,after they just came out of the shower,holding loosely the robe around her,not even tying it around her. She then slams the door without locking it,and goes back into the bathroom,after opening the door to see if there really is someone at the door!! People do this in real life?! Needless to say what he does to her.

 

The more he stays invisible the more unhinged he gets,as he already had a God complex,and he starts to prove himself to be quite the psychopath.

Finding out Linda is dating Matt is making him even more angry for some reason,and as Linda and Matt threaten to expose what they've done,to their detriment,as Sebastian keeps on leaving the lab at night,in his invisible state,and they don't know what he's doing,Sebastian starts to take drastic measures.

Sebastian is a man who already has a God complex,who,for some unknown reason can't let go of Linda. Having the God complex I couldn't really tell if he went psycho due to the invisibility or due to him just being him. He was already kinda perving on the neighbor,watching her as she got home,and started undressing,while she pulled the curtains,so him going to her place as the invisible man,doesn't seem out of character. He is also perving on one of his colleagues on the first night he is invisible,thing which makes me believe it wasn't the serum or the invisibility which made him insane. I think he always had it in him,he just didn't do it due to consequences.

Linda is afraid to tell him she dates Matt,as she knows him well,and knows he's not gonna take this well. When Matt asks her about Sebastian,she tells Matt the idea of Sebastian is better than Sebastian himself. And she tells Sebastian as he tries to get her back,he was always more interested in his job,and when they were together,it was like he was never there.

Sebastian seems to lash out at Matt,blaming him for his failures,or more like,for his failed relationship with Linda.

 

The actors each hold their own.

The soundtrack was ok.

The visual effects are still amazing,23 years later ! Most of the movie Kevin Bacon is invisible,so we either don't see him,or he's wearing a mask.

The movie received mixed reviews, as the critics loved the CGI, but complained about the story and the acting. The movie was nominated for an Oscar for Best Visual Effects, losing to "Gladiator".

The movie grossed 190 million dollars at the box office,debuting at number one in the charts, against a budget of 95 million,being the director's biggest hit since Basic Instinct,although he wasn't happy with the movie!

CinemaScore audience gave the movie a C on an A+ to F scale.

The movie is for rent / sale on Amazon, AppleTv, Fandango at Home.

 

Rating : It's so money !