Her-Excellency
I normally don't review films, but I felt that I just had to say something in the case of this movie because like one of the posters above, I too feel that that "good" reviews are from people associated with the film hoping to ensnare any other gullible soul into paying to watch it. This movie is a complete waste of film and time, and I am saying that with the utmost sincerity. In my history of watching film (and no, I am not some pretentious film buff, I'm just a person that likes movies), I don't think I have seen another film that is so boring, monotonous, unimaginative and droll with boring, monotonous, unimaginative, droll characters who you really don't care about in any way. In fact, you kind of hope that a hurricane blows through or that an alien abduction happens and that in one fell swoop every character is erased or blown / flown away. Not because you care enough to hate them, but because they bring less than nothing to the screen and they are irritating and jaw- droppingly badly written and acted.The first two minutes of the film seem okay and then you get the bad country cop, the poor hooker, the cop's idiot partner, the druggie black guy ... and it does not get any better, with the drawling rich bad guy and the faith-spouting Christian woman among others. It is SO bad you sit there and wonder how something this bad could have been green-lit for the big screen. Really, it is very difficult to watch a film where every scene just seems to be far worse than the one before, and yet you don't want to stop watching for the simple fact that you think a film cannot, just cannot, be this bad, and you continue to wait for any kind of moment or scene that will make it worthwhile. Trust me when I tell you however, it is this bad, and nowhere within the running time does it have even one redeemable moment.It is a depressing film, not only in that it feels cheap and as if no one involved with it actually cared to make it, but in that you wonder what you have going in your life that you opted to watch it. It is bad enough to where if it were to come on television, I'd advise you to do yourself a favor and skip it.
kennedya-73401
The Hollow represents the messiness and complexities of life. Miles Doleac, again at the helm of a film with an outstanding ensemble cast – William Sadler, William Forsythe, James Callis, Christiane Seidel, Jeff Fahey, and Doleac himself – has a touch with sub-plots and side stories that breaks the predictability of the usual story lines offered in most commercial movies now. Original stories are rare nowadays, particularly with the plethora of remakes and reboots. Humanity, in all its glory and tragedy, is often lacking, but not in The Hollow. The very characters you think are the villains, will wring your heart. Flawed, rotten, and often making wrong choices, but in the end, doing what humans do – what they think they have to do in the midst of their own misery. This film portrays the very basest of human nature, while set in a beautiful setting with beautiful people, much like life itself. It's dirty in the way that coffee stains your cup. It's compelling in the way the few people who seem to be on the right side of things (Joseph VanZandt, Lindsay Anne Williams – keep an eye out for her – natural and organic acting abilities are rare, too) can make a difference. It mimics the state of current affairs in the way that we must rely on the strength of the few to overthrow the oppressiveness of greed and tyranny. The cinematography and edits are pristine, seamless. The talent involved in The Hollow works well together. Doleac has a knack for choosing the right people for the right roles, many of whom he has worked with in the past. William Sadler (President Ellis in the Marvel Universe, Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile, Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey, The Historian) never disappoints. His acting chops are stellar. You believe him in every role he plays. I could listen to him talk all day. James Callis (Battlestar Galactica, the Bridget Jones movies) emotes such pain in his eyes, and at the beginning, you'd think he was the strong male lead. Not so… he is damaged and it takes the entire film to realize that he is not saved by his own actions, but by the people he trusts, and his love. Christiane Seidel (Boardwalk Empire, Law & Order: SVU) is magic on the screen. Admittedly, I've seen very little from her, but we will be seeing her more and more. She is special. William Forsythe (Boardwalk Empire, Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo, The Untouchables) plays crazy and mean so well. Big John Dawson would not have been right in anyone else's hands. Forsythe is amazing. And Jeff Fahey (Lost, The Lawnmower Man, Machete). Fahey as Darryl Everett in this film is perfection. I only wish he'd been in more of the movie. He moves me in everything he does. Then, Doleac as Ray Everett – the bad guy, the tortured, wrong-choice-making, kind of douche-y guy that makes you want to hit him… until the layers of the onion peel back and he's just as human and messed up as the rest of us. He made me care about him, and I don't know how I feel about that. That's one thing about Doleac's writing… what sometimes seems to be a cast of extremely complex characters just adds to the big picture, and it makes you want more after the credits roll. What happens to Cutler County after the big finale? I think the answer is that life goes on: good, bad, messy, and ultimately worth the fight.
