August 8, 2000 -- "Hollow Man" is an updating of the old classic story, "The Invisible Man," with healthy doses of modern horror film clichés thrown in to make the story even more familiar than it otherwise might have been had there been even the slightest hint of originality in the film.

Kevin Bacon, the man seemingly linked to everyone, stars as mad scientist Sebastian Caine (he's not mad at first, just obnoxious). We enter the movie as Caine is working on a formula to make invisible animals visible again, some kind of quantum phase shifting process involving both chemicals and radiation. We find out it is "easy" to make people invisible. The hard part is making them visible again. Caine finds the formula.

We also find out that animals who have been made invisible tend to become more aggressive. I think you can already see where this is headed. The audience gets pounded with very unsubtle messages like scientific experimentation on animals is very, very, very bad (Caine is in favor of this). Caine also calls himself God several times, just in case you didn't catch the Frankenstein references that fooling around with nature, not to mention hurting furry animals, is very bad.

Not content to kill rats and other animals, Caine decides to inject himself with the invisibility serum after testing the reversal drug successfully on several animals. Caine soon becomes a crazed killer, stalking a lab full of scientists in full Alien monster mode. The results of this are as predictable and as unsatisfying as you might suspect. Among those being stalked are Matt Kensington (played by Josh Brolin), Dr. Howard Kramer (William Devane) and Linda McKay (Elisabeth Shue).

Since Paul Verhoeven ("Showgirls," "Starship Troopers") is directing this film, there are a number of bare breasts revealed, not to mention sex scenes and wet shirts. There are also plenty of "F" words thrown around, hence the "R" rating of the film. Like "Starship Troopers," this film is really aimed at a younger audience with its special effects and bare skin and even simpler messages. Although it does generate some real suspense, in the end it is just another depressing slasher movie. The special effects are pretty good, though. This film rates a C.

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