Hollow Man II (2006) (V)

Director:

Claudio Fäh

Writers (WGA):

Joel Soisson (screenplay)
Gary Scott Thompson (story)

Release Date:

20 June 2006 (Canada)

Genre:

Action | Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

There's more to terror than meets the eye...

Plot:

A Seattle detective and a biologist are on the run from a dangerous invisible assassin gone rogue.

Plot Keywords:

Forced To Strip | Elevator | Night Vision | Car Theft | Villain Played By Lead Actor

Awards:

1 nomination

US TV Schedule:

Wed. July 23	11:45 PM	SHOW
Tue. July 29	8:30 PM	SHOW

Cast

Christian Slater	...	Michael Griffin
Peter Facinelli	...	Det. Frank Turner
Laura Regan	...	Dr. Maggie Dalton
David McIlwraith	...	Dr. William Reisner
William MacDonald	...	Col. Gavin Bishop
Sarah Deakins	...	Det. Lisa Martinez
Jessica Harmon	...	Heather Dalton
Sonya Salomaa	...	Trophy Wife
Terri Anne Welyki	...	Pearl Girl
John Shaw	...	Dr. Devin Villiers
David Abbott	...	Elderly Husband
Hamish Cameron	...	Washroom Man
Colin Lawrence	...	Captain Rollins
Zara Taylor	...	Ashley
Nolan Gerard Funk	...	Josh (as Nolan Funk)

MPAA:

Rated R for violence, some sexuality/nudity and language.

Runtime:

91 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Australia:MA | South Korea:18 | Argentina:16 | USA:R | UK:15 | Sweden:15 | South Korea:15 (video rating, cut) | Singapore:NC-16 | Germany:16

Filming Locations:

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Company:

Frontera Productions

Trivia:

The prescription bottle Frank Turner places on Det Harrison's desk is labeled "Kindasortacyn" and its generic equivalent, "Somethinesleacyn".

Goofs:

Continuity: The creaky first step in Dr. Maggie Dalton's house does not creak when she and Frank Turner walk downstairs together.

Quotes:

Man on the street: Bacon is murder. Bacon kills

Movie Connections:

References 1 Night in Paris (2004) (V)

Surprisingly Effective.....

I thought I would give this a go, after spotting an advert for it in a well-known UK film magazine. I knew Hollow Man 2 was in production, and as a fan of the first movie I was a little non-plussed to find the sequel getting a Direct-to-DVD release.

So I wasn't really expecting much...

I was pleasantly surprised therefore to find an engaging little movie - very much in the spirit of the first (no brain, no logic, full speed ahead with cardboard characters and a plot straight from the back of a 40-year-old comic). It has many faults - Christian Slater just ain't up to the job any more (but seems to be enjoying himself), a long and overly-talky middle act, some extremely ropey visual effects (though it has to be said that there are many good ones despite the obviously low budget), a blatant re-use of a scene from the original Hollow Man not-very-well-disguised, and a conclusion that felt very rushed - dare I suggest the budget ran out?

On the plus side however the 2-dimensional characters are engaging, there are one or two great jump-out-of-seat moments, tips of the hat to not only the original movie but also HG Wells' novel "The Invisible Man", effective use of music (which is all new - not a rehash of Goldsmiths original) and an overall sense of fun (That's Executive Producer Paul Verhoeven shining through, I think) - despite the nasty moments!

To the people that are slating this saying "It's not as good as the first, really disappointed" etc etc, I simply have to wonder exactly what they were expecting! Shakespeare this ain't...

But to the people who are open-minded enough to give this an honest go, you will get out exactly what you put into it. It's not Shakespeare, but it certainly is Hollow Man.

If this is the future for the Hollow Man franchise (there is the obligatory - but well executed - set-up for a Hollow Man 3), it could be an awful, awful lot worse.

Bring 'em on!!