Review of Hypnotic (2023) by Marty_Mcfly_Am — 11 Jul 2023

Mediocre mystery-movie with oppressive atmospheres that veers into fantasy-thriller, and in whose narrated story the alleged reality questions itself; and everything that is seen with the eyes becomes deceptive, evanescent; nothing and no one can be trusted.

These intriguing premises, combined with some successful sequences of the film, however, are spoiled very soon by an unnecessarily convoluted and tangled script, as well as by a substantially unsurprising, not very incisive and effective realization (even in the action scenes).

Robert Rodriguez looks at a cinema of the past that made history (De Palma, Hitchcock, Siegel, even if the closest model remains "The Alien" by Jack Sholder) and at themes already better treated in ambitious, innovative and complex films (such as those by Nolan), but his direction fails to master form and structure or to make his work more modern and personal.

The final result, even on a narrative level, is unfortunately of an insipid ordinariness that struggles to interest or fully involve the viewer, and above all, to excite him or push him to stimulating reflections.

Among the main defects: a simplistic screenplay, low-level digital effects, too many explanatory monologues, and the action that is scarce in quantity and quality.

Ben Affleck confuses inner torment with inexpressiveness, only partially justified by the role and the mental state in which Inspector Rourke finds himself for a good part of the film. The inevitable counter-finale alludes to a possible sequel, but it is very unlikely that "Hypnotic" leaves anyone with the desire to produce one.