Hollow Man is not the kind of movie that screams "sequel", but six years after it was released, it got one in the direct-to-video Hollow Man II (Roman numeral on screen, Arabic one on cover). In the middle of last decade, during the height of DVD's success, many studios began making these inexpensive follow-ups to well-known, moderately popular films. Sony sequelized the likes of Cruel Intentions, Wild Things, I Know What You Did Last Summer, and Road House. As you would expect, none of the original cast ever returned (Verhoeven took an executive producer credit here). Nor did the characters, for that matter, rendering Hollow Man II somewhat more of a remake than a sequel.

The connection to the first film is slight and more thematic than narrative. Picking up five years later, the film opens with the death of a Seattle medical researcher at the hands of an invisible man. Detectives Frank Turner (Cullen patriarch Peter Facinelli) and Lisa Martinez (Sarah Deakins) have to surrender the crime scene to military higher-ups, but they station themselves at the house of the deceased's endangered colleague, Dr. Maggie Dalton (Laura Regan). Unemployed but bound by a non-disclosure agreement, Maggie can't reveal to the police officers why she is being targeted or by whom. The threat is real, however, and results in another death.

Distrustful, Turner and Maggie go on the run, hoping to shake the invisible madman and well-armed military officials on their trail.

More of a horror film than a science fiction one, Hollow Man II isn't atrocious, but it's also not good, either on its own merits or in comparison to its predecessor. Christian Slater holds the title role, but, unlike Bacon and despite claiming both of the film's rear cover images, he is barely seen (balding and bloated) and heard. A couple of years before landing Twilight, Facinelli is the star of the film, a position in which he is adequate.

Of course, this isn't a movie you watch for great acting. Or storytelling. Or characters. Actually, the only reason you might watch this movie, other than boredom or force, is because the title sounds like Hollow Man, a movie you may have seen, or at least heard of. I hate to write off any movie. But when the most creative aspect is the series of scenarios exploiting the invisibility (wet floor! blind woman on elevator! rain!), you know things are dire.

There is some bloody splatter and perhaps cinema's only death by SIM card. There is a completely random nude scene involving unknown characters, gratuitous save for the curious revelation that camcorder night vision somehow exposes the invisible man. There is a MacGuffin called "The Buffer." And there is random dying light-sensitive individual who inexplicably offers brief help to our heroes out of the blue.

Hollow Man II is definitely not bad enough to be good, but nor is it anywhere near good enough to be good. It's a sequel coasting on a brand name and not even a beloved one. While there are far schlockier productions out there, this one does virtually nothing to distinguish itself and make an impression for good or bad.

Though Hollow Man seems like a high-profile enough film for Sony to hang onto, especially since they released it to Blu-ray back in 2007, the studio has licensed it, its sequel, and over a dozen other catalog movies to Mill Creek Entertainment, which recently gave such films their Blu-ray debuts in low-priced, barebones, single-disc Double Feature releases.

This Blu-ray presents the original film exclusively in its Director's Cut. First released to DVD and Blu-ray in 2007, it runs just under seven full minutes longer than the theatrical cut, a difference made in a number of short extensions to scenes, two of which could be considered slightly graphic and none of them likely to prevent this Unrated edit from earning an R rating.

Blu-ray Disc Details Hollow Man: 1.85:1 Widescreen; Hollow Man 2: 2.40:1 Widescreen 5.1 DTS-HD MA (English); Hollow Man only: 5.1 DTS-HD MA (Spanish) Subtitles: English for Hearing Impaired; Not Closed Captioned Release Date: March 26, 2013 / Suggested Retail Price: $9.98 Single-sided, dual-layered disc (BD-50) / Blue Keepcase with Side Snap Both films also available in 2-Disc 4 Movie Collection DVD with Fortress 2: Re-Entry and The Harvest ($9.98 SRP; October 9, 2012) Also available on Amazon Instant Video: Hollow Man, Hollow Man 2 Hollow Man previously released by Sony as Director's Cut Blu-ray, Director's Cut DVD (October 16, 2007), Special Edition Theatrical Cut DVD (January 2, 2001), Superbit Deluxe DVD (May 28, 2002), Dreadtime Stories DVD with Flatliners (June 1, 2010), and Sci-Fi Double Feature DVD with Hollow Man 2 Hollow Man 2 previously released as Sony DVD (May 23, 2006)

VIDEO and AUDIO

It may not seem old to you, but a 2000 movie is old enough to look different from a new one. Not Hollow Man, however. The Blu-ray's 1.85:1 picture is remarkably clean, sharp, vibrant, and detailed. The satisfying presentation is absolutely comparable to a brand new film and is every bit as good as Sony's own high quality 1080p transfers. The original film's 5.1 DTS-HD master audio soundtrack is also good. The mix stays crisp, directional, and consistent throughout. The only concern is that some of the dialogue has an odd echo to it, as if it weren't recorded in the usual ways. Since I doubt that reflects some unorthodox production method, I wonder what the cause of that is. It's just barely noticeable to me, while listening critically (yet rarely hearing anything unusual), so I don't expect it to bother the typical viewer.

Hollow Man II features a wider frame (2.40:1) and a darker palette. The latter makes it difficult to even notice if the picture is as sharp as it should be. There doesn't seem to be any troubles, but it's not a handsome production and at times resembles standard definition. Its 5.1 DTS-HD master audio didn't have any of that reverb, but the mix is crisp, clear, and heavy on bass. English SDH subtitles are kindly provided for each film.

BONUS FEATURES, MENUS, PACKAGING and DESIGN

While there is some room for them, this Blu-ray does not include a single bonus feature, not even the original trailers that Mill Creek is good about including on other catalog titles they license. That's unfortunate both because these movies actually lend themselves to making-of content and because they got that kind of content on their previous releases. On both DVD and Blu-ray, the original movie's director's cut has been joined by the HBO making-of special "Anatomy of a Thriller", 15 behind-the-scenes featurettes, and VFX picture-in-picture comparisons. The film's original 2001 theatrical cut DVD also included an audio commentary, an isolated score with Jerry Goldsmith commentary, three deleted scenes with commentary, and Sony's standard millennial smattering of production notes, trailers, talent files, and DVD-ROM links. New to Blu-ray, Hollow Man 2 loses three featurettes (a general making-of, a visual effects piece, and a storyboard-to-scene comparison) as well as a storyboard gallery.

Each film gets its own animated menu screen utilizing clips, stills, and score excerpts. Though the disc does not support bookmarks, it does resume unfinished playback of the films. No inserts, slipcover, or reverse artwork livens up the standard side-snapped blue keepcase.

CLOSING THOUGHTS

Mill Creek's Double Feature Blu-ray is a good deal if you like either of the Hollow Man movies and do not mind missing out on bonus features. If you'd prefer the original film's bonus features instead of the sequel, Sony's own Blu-ray can be found for a comparable price, but it seems like it might be going out of print now. I would argue that neither film deserves a spot in your collection, but it's nice that Mill Creek has made them available with high quality presentations and a low price. Too bad they couldn't include the extras too.

Buy Hollow Man & Hollow Man 2: Double Feature Blu-ray at Amazon.com