“Hypnotic” Review
Ben Affleck plays a mentally torn police detective searching for his missing daughter in Robert Rodriguez’s “Hypnotic.”
The tragedy of “Hypnotic” is that it’s not only a terribly dull film, but that it was made by a director who I heavily admire. Robert Rodriguez is well-known as one of the biggest filmmakers of the 1990s indie boom and has managed to keep the mindset of a down-and-dirty indie brat despite his incredible success. Not only does Rodriguez direct films, but he often serves as the chief cinematographer, editor and composer of his work. His style has often resulted in exciting films with strong visuals and a dedication towards showing the audience a good time. “Hypnotic” has none of that and I still have to remind myself that this film was even directed by such an exciting man.
Detective Danny Rourke (Ben Affleck) of the Austin Police Department has just been cleared for duty following the abduction of his young daughter Minnie (Hala Finley) and is currently investigating mysterious bank robberies. After encountering Dellrayne (William Fichtner), the mastermind behind these crimes, Rourke discovers that Dellrayne has the ability to manipulate people’s minds in order to help him with his crimes. When Dellrayne lets on that he may know about Minnie’s whereabouts, Rourke goes on a mind bending journey with a fellow hypnotic (Alice Braga) to stop Dellrayne’s evil plots, find Minnie and discover the true mystery of these hypnotics.
Now this idea could work really well, especially in the hands of a thrilling director like Rodriguez. Think “Inception” meets a stylized detective story like Rodriguez’s “Sin City.” That kind of energy is nowhere to be found in “Hypnotic” because the interesting concepts never land with a story that matches their intrigue.
Watching “Hypnotic” was particularly painful because you could tell that Rodrgieuz’s direction felt restrained. With an idea like bank robbers using hypnosis to manipulate people, you’d think that this could materialize into some stellar sequences, both from the point-of-view of people being controlled and onlookers wondering what is going on. But none of the brilliant visuals and frantic energy of Rodriguez’s previous work can be found in this film.
I just don’t know what happened. Whether you enjoy Rodriguez’s work or not, there’s no denying that he knows how to make a film look interesting with films like “Sin City” and its sequel, “Planet Terror,” the “Spy Kids” films, “Alita: Battle Angel” and the Mexico trilogy all being marvelous to watch. Everything about “Hypnotic” feels so lifeless and underwhelming.
Even the film’s action is dull. During scenes where Affleck is supposed to be running to or from something, it feels like he’s lightly jogging so he can catch a train. But Affleck’s running is nothing compared to his acting which is as blank and expressionless as the paper on which the script was written. Affleck is a fantastic actor in both drama and action and neither one of those talents are utilized here. When he’s supposed to be looking at something incredible, it feels like he’s just staring at an empty screen praying to God that Rodriguez will yell “cut” and explain the scene to him again.
It’s not just Affleck either. Everyone in this cast is underutilized despite the involvement of people like Alice Barga and Jackie Earle Haley. Even William Fichtner, who’s able to come across as intimidating for most of the film, is blindsided by plot twists that feel two decades old and completely undermine his presence.
Despite this film being a major disappointment, I still love and admire the approach Robert Rodriguez takes with film. “Hypnotic” is a lackluster effort, but I know that he’ll bounce back and continue to do great work because he loves to stay busy. After all, when you’re a director who takes a look at a guitar case and thinks “that thing needs to have some guns in it,” you’re going to make some incredible entertainment.
