Hypnotic

Hypnotic
Starring Ben Affleck, Alice Braga, William Fichner, J.D. Pardo
Directed by Robert Rodriguez

When Dr. Frankenstein made his iconic monster named after himself, he took bits and pieces from different body parts to create it, making it come alive even though it had the mindset of a child. The film equivalent of this is Robert Rodriguez's "Hypnotic," taking bits and pieces from other films (like "Inception," "Chinatown," "Shutter Island," "The Bourne Identity," etc.) and mashing them together to form an entirely new entity, one that's still unsure of its own existence and operates like a child - a film so filled with nonsensical twists and turns it pretty much unravels itself into a heaping mess by the end of it all.

Detective Danny Rourke (Ben Affleck) has been investigating the kidnapping of his young daughter for a few years now, and even though her kidnapper was found, her body never was - and the kidnapper claims he doesn't remember anything. Meanwhile he's investigating a bank robbery where a mysterious man (William Fichtner) seemingly has the ability to implant thoughts into other people and making them do his bidding. Rourke's investigation leads him to psychic Diana Cruz (Alice Braga), who explains to Rourke that the man is a powerful hypnotic: a person who can influence people by a simple word. She also has this ability, but not to the strength of the man's, and the two go on the lamb as they're being hunted by the man as they try to uncover the truth behind everything.

The Good:
"Hypnotic" is a film that starts off with gripping action and really doesn't relent, moving from one action-packed set piece to another with breakneck speed so you're not really bored even during the exposition-filled dialogues.

The film is also a stylistic mystery, as you - along with Rourke - have absolutely no clue what's going on, but you know it's nothing good. Rourke is trying to find his missing daughter, but as the film progresses you think to yourself that there might not be a daughter at all, since hypnotics can influence the mind into thinking things happened that never did, leaving you wondering throughout the whole film what twist will come next.

Ben Affleck is a decent actor who works well with the role, giving a character that people can root for as well as one who serves as the perfect guide for the audience, and Alice Braga also performs admirably as the mysterious Diana Cruz, while William Fichtner is the epitome of villainous in whatever role he does, giving an unnerving, creepy performance that he's best known for.

The action is fast-paced and exciting, with great visuals that blur the reality from the mind, giving "Inception"-like feels.

The Bad:
The script is often a jumbled mess, getting lost in the steam of the twists the film provides. One moment we hear that someone can't do something, then the next they're doing that same thing in order to salvage the plotline in some small way. It goes against its own rules time and again until you're sure no one really knows what they're talking about.

There's several twists that the film introduces, and each one becomes more outlandish than the last, until the final twist is revealed and you're left scratching your head wondering how the heck the story came to that point, because it literally makes no sense.

The whole premise of the film centers around not believing what you see, so while you're drawn into the story from the start, the twists pretty much eliminate any good will the film had up to that point, and you think what you just saw really never happened in the first place - or it did happen, but not like how it was told. For an audience member that's highly irritating, as you're trying to piece together what's happening but not able to because, unlike an unreliable narrator that you know is unreliable, the whole film is an unreliable film - but you don't know that until at least midway through.

The Verdict:
Proving more style than substance, "Hypnotic" could've been a highly cerebral story with logical twists and turns that takes the audience along for the ride, but instead they're so convoluted they leave the audience in the dust, wiping the dust from their eyes wondering what the heck they spent the last 90-plus minutes watching.

The Score: C-