HOLLOW MAN test print Review

There are somethings that a man wants to do alone and without the company of a 229 year old evil genius.

Shower. Take a shit. Sleep. And time travel to a secret screening of HOLLOW MAN, the latest Paul Verhoeven film.

Now I know some people have felt that Paul Verhoeven has been in a slump. Hell, Moriarty isn’t a huge fan of TOTAL RECALL, BASIC INSTINCT, STARSHIP TROOPERS and SHOWGIRLS. As a matter of fact, he dislikes vehemently the majority of those films. While he does love ROBOCOP and his work prior to that film.

While I... Well, I’m an unabashed lover of Paul Verhoeven’s films. TOTAL RECALL and STARSHIP TROOPERS are just plain visual splendor, fun and adventure. BASIC INSTINCT... sure feel free to take pot shots at it if you want, but well... I dig it.

As for SHOWGIRLS, well... It’s a Golden Raspberry winner and deserves it. However, if you get the right group of friends and ROCKY HORROR the film to death while ingesting excesses of alcohol and a Purina Dog Chow... well... The Vodka Nipple Shot game by itself is worth slipping the tape in. It’s a MST3K movie that earns every MST3K line uttered... and traditionally, I dislike MST3K, but at home with friends... that’s where it belongs. I just hate it in a theater.

Well, I had a really tough mission this time out. First, I had to break into Moriarty Labs, steal his time machine, somehow circumvent Sony Security and watch an extremely rough print of THE HOLLOW MAN.

Why use the Time Machine and not just go forward to the date of release? Because I wanted to see the pre-MPAA edit of the film. The pre-tested HOLLOW MAN. The print that was pure Verhoeven, untouched and untampered with.

Sure the effects would be temporary. The Jerry Goldsmith score would most likely not be in place. But dammit... This would be raw untreated Verhoeven.

As I approached the lab’s sewer level entrance, I started chanting, “Jonathan, Jonathan, Jonathan, Jonathan, etc” Over and over again... In a hushed low intensity. Soon I heard slobbering on the otherside of the immense doorway. From the response I knew this to be the drool of Mongo. I began to hear the latches pulling free, and the squeaking of the iron hinges as the hermetically sealed door swung forward.

Mongo looked like a little monkey wanting his banana. It was sad and tragic... touching the way his simian brow arched at the sight of me. He began leaping to his toes and doing highhat kicks as he wandered down a narrow hallway too slim for me to follow.

I progressed to the Time Machine, and set it for the morning of Tuesday May 9th. Pressing on the purple and the paisley flowers on this Bean Bag Machine. I didn’t swallow any jelly beans this trip, and a moment later I had arrived. Everything fine... and no painful pissing out of the Jellybeans. Apparently, Moriarty does this... because he gets a thoroughly strange amount of glee in inflicting pain on others and himself. Odd fella... eccentric.

Next I needed to get to Culver City. Culver City, across from the Sony Lot I had heard. So, at 2pm on Tuesday I arrived at this older theater, opened the door and went in.

The manager stopped me and said, “What can I do for you sir?”

I responded with, “I’m hear to see THE HOLLOW MAN.”

He said, “That screening isn’t till 7pm”

Being the wily boy of wit that I am, I said, “Very true, I’m hear to test the print to make sure everything is tip top.”

Then I heard him say, “Oh, you are with the production?”

Ahhh, a Ghostbusters moment. Taking Winston Zeddemore’s advice I responded with, “Yesssssss”

“Well, we were wondering if they were going to send anyone over here. Will anyone be joining you?”

“No.”

“Very well, let me take you right on up, Mr....”

“Farrell”

“Right Mr Farrell.”

We went up a flight of stairs surrounded with imagery from FOOTLIGHT PARADE... An instant smile lept to my face. I love that movie.

I was dressed in my best suit, hair back in a ponytail... and as I entered the theater, I thought... “Heh... this is going to work.”

I sat down and awaited the dimming of the lights. A goofy smile crossed my face. Then I heard an unmistakable voice. It was the voice of Paul Verhoeven.

Shit. I’m busted. I decided in a desperate attempt to hide my identity to REMOVE MY GLASSES and straighten my tie.

I stood, and walked to meet Verhoeven. I was going through my rolodex of Sony officials and executives that I could attempt to pass myself off as. John Calley and Amy Pascal would probably not work. So I went further down into their roster.

“Good Afternoon Mr Verhoeven, very nice to meet you, I’m Jacobi, Ronny Jacobi. Just call me Ronny tho.”

“Ahlo Mr Knowles.”

FUCK, he’s good.

“Heh, I get that alot. You wouldn’t believe how often.”

“Harry, you can not fool me. It does not matter. You will watch my film now.”

Whoa. Hmmm, perhaps this is a trap. So I decided to distract him. “So you still working on those Jesus and Hitler movies?”

It worked. For the next 15 minutes Verhoeven was completely distracted, talking about both films. Basically talking about how Hitler will probably never be made, but that there is a screenplay being written for the JESUS project even now. He mentioned an early 17th century project he was working on about an early American feminist, a film Sony’s involved in. CRUSADE is still in the distance somewhere. Nothing really happening with the big man from Austria real soon. He went into his and Muren and Tippett’s DINOSAUR that will now never be made, but I’ll go further into that in my DINOSAUR review, I’m seeing it in the morning. About 6 hours from now. (HARRY NOTE: I wrote this Friday Morning... I have now seen DINOSAUR... review pending)

Verhoeven then left, the lights went down... and the film started. It was off of video, projected on the big screen... Pretty sharp looking actually. The film began with temp titles and credits... but the Goldsmith music was original. And from the sound of it, the score is complete throughout the film. I was shocked. That was very unusual for a film this early ahead of the gate.

Now... before I get into the review I have to say... I was both highly anticipating this film and was quite afraid of the movie.

I had read an early draft of Andrew Marlowe’s screenplay. And when Verhoeven became attached, I instantly began wincing in anticipation of the brutality that Verhoeven would inevitably bring to THE RAPE scene.

As the trailer insinuates, there is a rape scene that... well, I was scared that Paul would make the center piece of his film. That he would use that moment. A terrifying sequence to ‘let it all hang out’.

He didn’t. For the first time in Verhoeven’s entire career, I feel he made an incredibly restrained cinematic choice that worked to perfection. Going in, I thought... N.O.W. is going to protest this film. Women’s Groups would call for him to be kicked out of the country. NOPE!

Now don’t get me wrong, Verhoeven isn’t soft pedaling with this movie. What he’s doing is making a very taut action/thriller that, well... I’d love to see with an audience.

Let’s go through the film a bit. There will be some spoilers, so if you want to pull away from the review... and I would recommend it, you should know that at this advance stage of the game, Verhoeven has made a wonderfully entertaining film that raised my pulse for the last 30 minutes, and had me amazed by the effects work within. BANNED FROM THE RANCH, TIPPETT and IMAGEWORKS have done some really creepy work. From what I know, it seems that what I saw will basically be the film that SONY will let Verhoeven have, his contract stipulates that this film will be R-rated, so the speculation online that SONY was going to squeeze him and force a PG-13... is pure bullshit. Kevin Bacon is excellent, Josh Brolin and Joey Slotnik... especially Joey Slotnik, I liked alot. Elizabeth Shue? Well, typically I have felt she is as stiff as they come. She didn’t work at all for me in THE SAINT, but here... for reasons I’ll go into further down, I did accept her in this film... and actually believe she was the right choice for the film, and completely understand why they wanted her even after she hurt her ankle.

Now... There might be some spoilers coming up that you do not want to know, so go away, and come back some day when you’ve seen the movie.

Ok...

Now...

That...

You’ve...

Seen....

The....

Movie....

and it is the second week of August, you can read this. Unless you are one of those Christmas Present Peekers, in which case... preserve the secrecy for the rest of the film fans out there. Don’t discuss this stuff except with fellow spoiler lovers, and always give them this same warning and conditions... Ok? Thanks.

The film opens with a mouse being placed in a large cage. It wanders like Mr Jingles across ‘the cell’ floor... approaching a water dish. The mouse puts it’s front paws on the edge of the dish, when suddenly you see these invisible indentations squeeze into the rodent. It’s jerked violently up, and suddenly you see the head bit off into these invisible teeth which quickly begin to be coated in rat blood...

Cut to Kevin Bacon at work at home. Working on a scientific formula, trying to find the right combination of molecules to stabilize something we guess. It fails, he gets pissed and exclaims some obscenity, gets up from the computer. Looks out his window to see lights coming on in a neighbor’s window. A beautiful woman is returning home. She’s clicking on lights, and beginning to get comfortable, unaware to the window into the outside world looking in. She’s walking around in a bra, goes to the bedroom, reaches up to undo her bra, then before taking it off... she pulls the blinds. Again, a look of frustration on Bacon’s face. He sits, Looks up at a sign on his ceiling reading, “YOU SHOULD BE WORKING.” and sets back to work.

This is the opening of Paul Verhoeven’s latest film. And for me, it perfectly sets the groundwork for a character that.... to a degree was a moral man. I mean, if a neighbor was going to perform a strip show with an open window... he’d look, but he wouldn’t break down the door and rape her.

Why?

Well, because for this particular person, his cock’s urges are less important than his own personal safety.

Now what happens if you take away all chances of being caught? What happens if suddenly you are invisible to the outside eyes. If your semen leaves no trace. If your blood becomes untraceable. If the skin she scrapes under her fingernails can’t be seen.

Is being caught all that stands between an average man and a rapist and a murderer?

In the first time in the evil invisible man genre, the injection or vial of consumed chemicals does not drive the man insane. Instead, a sane man grapples with the options and abilities that invisibility brings.

If invisible, would you walk into the cheerleaders’ locker room after a game? Or would you just watch the game and go home?

If invisible and a co-worker fell asleep... would you toy with them? Play with their minds a bit? Or would you be a good little labrat?

The male mind wanders. Considers fantasies.... fantasies that perhaps never get lived. Perhaps you pursue them like Lester Burnham and face ridicule and statutory rape charges. Or perhaps you lock those thoughts in your id or you write about them in the disguise of a horror story or some other form of fiction.

Or you act them out with no conscience and become a monster.

In HOLLOW MAN, we get to watch, listen and observe the paces that Kevin Bacon goes through as directed by Paul Verhoeven. Sebastian Caine is the character. He is an unconventional, instinctive risk taker. He bends rules as he approaches them. He’s a man of convenience. The type of guy that takes shortcuts, leaps of faith, and seems to always land firmly on his feet.

But he is a man with all the paranoia, insecurities and fears that a person can have. He’s filled with ego. And he’s a practical joker... Not exactly the psychological make up of the man you would first make invisible. You would want someone without hangups that was happily married with children most likely... but they didn’t go with that person. Instead the inventor of the formula chooses himself. He wants to be Neil Armstrong, Columbus, Leif Ericson.

The discoverer, the one to plant his foot firmly down and leave his own personal impression in the history books.

Surrounding him is an ex-girlfriend and co-researcher played by Elizabeth Shue.... someone tired of living with someone for whom she took a backseat to discovery. Josh Brolin, the co-researcher, that goes by the book... taking all the steps, who follows the rules only because he can’t see shortcuts and is a bit jealous of Sebastian.

There are the other scientist and researchers in the lab. The people recording the history of the event... monitoring the biofeedback machines and the video units and the infrared and the vet that takes care of the animals... both visible and invisible.

The print I saw was a very very early print, just under 2 hours and the effects were mostly temporary, but of what I saw that was completed. Wow. The visible man, visible ape scenes... are just creepy and disgusting. And I mean disgusting in that, ‘huh huh huh... coollll’ sort of way. The SONY IMAGEWORKS ‘visible man’ process of removing the layers of a man... well... it was just creepy. I mean... dear God... It was just creepy and fascinating looking.

I felt like Spicoli watching Mr Vargas taking the dead heart of a cadaver and holding it up for all to see.

BUT... that is just the ‘freak show’ level of entertainment that the film provides. The more... interesting and provoking level that the film works on for me... is where the character of Kevin Bacon wrestles with morality.

To be good or to be evil. The guilt and uncertainty of living with what you’ve done. Does it get easier the further you push the rules? Does it make the next rule easier to leap over?

This is one entire level of the film that I just adore. Now, the action elements... The point where the film goes into Predator hunting mode... Well, I dug it because it works for me in the same way that a Crichton novel works for me.

I like that the ‘bad guy’ thought out what he was going to do. Taking away all the ‘advantages’ that his co-workers would have. The traps he sets. The fact that he plays games with his invisibility.

Moving about and speaking in different locations to distract and disorientate his foes. I’m sure in a digital sound mix of this film... these scenes will be especially effective if they choose to isolate the sounds to different speakers throughout the auditorium.

Now... to wrap this up, I am going to comment on Elisabeth Shue... she seems to be an actress that... quite honestly I have liked... sporadically. Rarely. I loved her in LEAVING LAS VEGAS, ADVENTURES IN BABYSITTING, THE TRIGGER EFFECT, THE KARATE KID and THE UNDERNEATH. But that’s 5 times in 25 films... which basically means I like her about 20% of the time. Well, now it’s 6 times in 25 films. Don’t get me wrong, she isn’t like a revelation of dramatic performing in this film... but she plays uncomfortable very well.

Have you ever been hugged by an ex-boyfriend/girlfriend/husband/wife before? Did they add an uncomfortably familiar kiss? You know that... “We don’t do this anymore” look you give them? Well, about 80% of her performance is that.

Also, if you are female and live alone... This might be one of those films you might want to skip. It could really get under your skin.

In Verhoeven’s filmography, this film... at the stage it was in when I saw it... which was pre-MPAA and pre-tested... It’s one of his best films. It is Verhoeven pressing buttons and telling a story. But it’s about his main character of Sebastian Caine and isn’t about just getting your goat.

This should be a film you will want to not only see this summer, but own on DVD... I imagine there is going to be some gnarly ass extras on the disc.

The only real element that I would... well, that I would want personally... The arched eyebrow side of my personality wanted to have Bacon win and walk away. Not because I want that type of guy in the world, but it would just be creepy as hell. It’d give it that aspect which no other INVISIBLE MAN movie has, which is to have the evil unseen man... wander the earth... Free to ring your doorbell, free to watch all that goes on. Free to be evil without conscience or consequence.

But that’s the dark side of me talking. The side that delights in the last shot of SILENCE OF THE LAMBS. The part of me that knows that Henry Lee Lucas wasn’t caught after 7 victims... that sometimes evil gets away with it for a long long time. And with a movie as creepy as this... It could have been even more chilling. Of course... that’s just me.