With “Hypnotic” Robert Rodriguez finally provides a powerful hail of bullets in the cinema again, as the first trailer with Ben Affleck and William Fichtner proves.
Hypnosis refers to either a state of altered attention brought about by oneself or by others. Hypnotized persons are particularly receptive to suggestions.
That is, what they think, feel, and/or even see can be influenced in the state of hypnosis. Of course, this carries the potential danger of having the will of others imposed on them.
It is precisely this danger of hypnosis that is the focus – in typical exaggerated Hollywood fashion – of the action thriller “Hypnotic” by “Desperado” and “Alita: Battle Angel” director Robert Rodriguez, who wrote the screenplay together with Max Borenstein (“Kong: Skull Island”).
But exaggerated or not, the result is definitely worth seeing, as the first trailer impressively and rapidly indicates:
If you had to sum up the action thriller/mystery mix in one sentence based on the trailer, it could be: “Inception” meets “Trance: Dangerous Memory”.
Indeed, the visuals look like something out of a Christopher Nolan film, while the action hints at the typical Robert Rodriguez thrills.
The film just celebrated its world premiere at South by Southwest (SWSX) and has already garnered some good reviews.
Produced on a moderate budget of around 70 million US dollars and shot in anamorphic widescreen format, the film can rely on a truly impressive cast to convey the usually difficult-to-access subject matter in the most cinematic way possible:
In the leading role, the audience can look forward to ex-Batman Ben Affleck. To call the 50-year-old an action star would not do justice to his CV. But whenever he’s been able to show off his impressive presence and physicality, Affleck has always shone, for example in “The Town,” “The Accountant” or as Batman in Zack Snyder’s short-lived DC universe.
No less brilliant is the chronically underrated William Fichtner as the antagonist. Anyone who remembers his congenial role as the supercooled accountant from hell in “Drive Angry” knows how convincing the 66-year-old can be. In addition, Alice Braga (“Elysium”), Jeff Fahey (“Planet Terror”) and Kelly Frye (“Criminal Minds”) can be seen in other roles.
“Hypnotic”: Ben Affleck desperately searches for his daughter
Detective Danny Rourke (Ben Affleck) is on a desperate search for his missing daughter. But instead of finding more leads, he’s in danger of losing his mind when a series of mysterious bank robberies puts the Austin Police Department in a stranglehold.
The only lead is an obscure man (William Fichtner) connected to the cases. Detective Rourke also suspects him behind the disappearance of his daughter. He receives help in his investigation from Diana Cruz, who warns him not to underestimate the mysterious man.
Because the deeper he goes down the rabbit hole, the more Rourke doubts his state of mind. There should be some crazy twists included.
Ketchup Entertainment has recently taken up the reins as the U.S. distributor for Hypnotic, an action-thriller film that was originally set to be released by Solstice Studios.
Following the unfortunate closure of Solstice Studios in late 2022, Ketchup Entertainment stepped in to ensure that the film would still make its way to American audiences.
As a preview of what’s to come, a work-in-progress cut of Hypnotic was shown at South by Southwest on March 12, 2023, and early buzz surrounding the film has been positive.
This month, it was officially announced that the movie will be released theatrically in the United States on May 12, 2023. Fans of action-packed cinema can now mark their calendars in anticipation of what is sure to be an adrenaline-fueled ride.