Paul Verhoeven's thriller tells the tale of arrogant scientist, Dr Sebastian Caine (Bacon) who leads a top-secret government project to experiment with the possibility of invisibility.

The movie opens with heat-sensitive images of an invisible and violent gorilla, and the first scene depicts a successful operation to return her back to her original form.

The team of five, which also includes Caine's ex-love interest Linda (Shue) - who is now sleeping with one of the other members of the team - are desperate to share their success with their bosses at the Pentagon.

The problem is that Caine is determined to become the first invisible human and coerces his team into assisting him in his dangerous pursuit.

The chemicals work and turn him invisible but, once the team have collected enough data to turn him back to normal, they find that the chemical mix is wrong and the reversal is delayed.

At this point, the thriller turns to sci-fi horror and Dr Caine is taken over by his new-found power and embarks on a murderous spree...

This thriller-turned-horror movie by Paul Verhoeven opens with what promises to be a brilliant and exciting premise.

The problem of the transition in genre from horror to thriller comes in a break in the fluidity of the characterisation.

Caine starts out as a power-hungry, arrogant and often aggressive super-intelligent scientist who is bitter about his rejection by Linda, but there is certainly no clue as to the monster that he would become once he is consumed by this new 'gift'.

Ironically, most comic book super-heroes have become what they are due to mutations in an accident and spend their lives trying to save the world.

The Hollow Man is the antithesis to these comic book stories and has a deeper and more sinister undertone. It explores the relationship between power and evil.

With undertones of rape, (Verhoeven's films often feature explicit sexual content, eg Showgirls and Basic Instinct) and a theme of a man overpowered by his ambition and consumed with the jealousy of a spurned lover, this is a movie worth watching on many levels - but not if you're home alone!

Natalie Stone