HYPNOTIC (2021)

Look before you leap they say. And I dove in after watching only a few seconds of its trailer; Hypnotic promised to be a cheesy thriller/chiller with, most likely, a heavily telegraphed ending. No surprises to be had here and no one made me watch it. Now “Starring Kate Siegel“ is never going to scream exceptional acting, but sometimes a lower-budget, made-for-tv level thriller with an actress that has somewhat delivered, can be fun and entertaining. To give you an idea, Basic Instinct (1992) is among this so bad it’s good crowd. However, Hypnotic is a loser among losers. Its cold open, which should have set the tone for thrills and at least hint at some mild malice, is laughably tame. Don’t get me wrong, as I mentioned, I wasn’t expecting an actual, formidable thriller such as Seven (1995) or We Need To Talk About Kevin (2011), but it should have at the very least respect what is an intriguing premise and concept: mind-control via hypnosis is actually terrifying and reference to the source material, MK Ultra, is regaled to a flippant name drop. The writers missed an obvious opportunity to delve further into the easily accessible un-classified C.I.A. documentation available online, in order to research the necessary combination of forced traumatic events and heroic dosses of psychedelics layered with hypnosis, that was actually attempted to harness the mind. Instead it was as if someone said, “Have you heard of MK Ultra?” And the writers replied, “I think so. Is that like, hypnosis, mind-control stuff?” And from there they immediately wrote this turd. Referencing MK Ultra only disrespects the horrifying premise. Again, I wasn’t watching for real, challenging terror, but hints at it were the expected bare minimum. Hypnotic is just one notch above the scares within a mid-day soap opera. The least soapy performance is delivered by villain Dr. Meade (Jason O’Mara), however the absurdity of his motives douse all suspension of disbelief (see Basic Instinct). The plot holes are colossal and there is no enjoyment taken in the characters’ horrible decision-making/plot advancements towards the silly conclusion.

WATCH OR NOT: NOT

Additional musings: I’ve heard of some actresses, especially beautiful ones, who have reported on-set direction to emote far flung emotions with as little expression as possible in order to remain attractive. Think self-inflicted Botox. Perhaps this is what happened to Siegel’s performance? Or perhaps it was old fashioned Botox? Either way, it’s a shame because this film could have been palatable with a lead that leaped into the camp face first.