Hollow Man

I like Verhoeven and his certain level of perversity and lack of inhibitions, but this film is definitely not up to his previous works. It did have potential, there are great visual effects, a promising start and actually the whole first half is interesting. But then the plot starts grinding, the script goes off the rails and Verhoeven tries to entertain the viewer with a killing spree. I could accept seeing Kevin Bacon covered in blood from head to toe only to be squeaky clean a minute later, but what he survives afterwards is something that not even Superman would be able to. There's no logic, plus a bunch of clichés and an ending that's set up several times and built up to extremes – everything I don't like in movies. You can forgive that in a B-movie, but not with a director of Verhoeven’s calibre. (2004-05-23)

Paul Verhoeven has made a surprisingly uncontroversial and rather mediocre film that is at least well-crafted. It had the potential to be better — even the screenplay initially remains in quality waters. But the closer it gets to the end, the more it sinks into B-movie blandness. It's saved only by the charismatic Kevin Bacon and solid visual effects. (2007-06-25)

Whenever I think about how I would use the power of becoming invisible, I scare myself and feel grateful that nobody has “invented” it yet. The premise is great, but they didn’t quite manage to fully exploit it. For instance, it would have been better if Bacon didn’t look like a dangerous maniac already from the beginning. By the end, the film totally forgets about a deeper message, the villain, in addition to invisibility, gets more superpowers that make him immortal, and the A becomes a B. A very decent B, but the squandered potential is still a shame. (2011-01-31)

A film that relies on a strong cast and a decent budget, allowing for a variety of complex special effects. However, in terms of content, it's desperately clichéd and executed without any spark. By the end, I felt quite disenchanted. With this team, the premise undoubtedly had more potential. Overall impression: 40%. (2007-08-11)

I'm sorry that the film was not better received by the critics, and it was Paul Verhoeven's last film he directed in American production. It's not a bad movie. It had a high budget, but it shows in how well the visual effects turned out. There are shots that are simply excellent. I am thrilled about this movie, and sometimes I wouldn't mind watching it again. I really had nothing to fear. (2015-06-05)