Sometimes even the biggest names are not a guarantee that a film in the cinema goes through the ceiling. The action-packed sci-fi thriller Hypnotic had one of the best known Hollywood stars in the leading role with Ben Affleck. In the cinema, however, the film staged by Robert Rodriguez experienced a crash landing.
A budget of just 16 million came to a budget of $ 65 million (without marketing costs). Hypnotic is thus a flop across the board. However, Netflix cannot be put off by this and absorbs the film in its streaming offer. Here the shadows of a film noir meet the Mindfuck from Inception.
Hypnotic at Netflix: Ben Affleck immerses in a labyrinth of manipulation and secrets as a police officer
The police officer Danny Rourke (Affleck) is amazed when he is called to a bank robbery by the headquarters and attested a strange spectacle there. The mysterious criminal Dellrayne (William Fichtner) has caused completely uninvolved people to help him with his robbery – and without great gun power.
Here you can watch the trailer for Hypnotic:
Hypnotic – trailer (German) HD
The situation becomes even stranger: Rourke finds a photo of his disappeared daughter in the cleared vault. In search of answers, he meets the fortune teller Diana Cruz (Alice Braga), who inaugurates him in a secret: there are people who can manipulate the perception of reality.
Rodriguez wanted to implement this story as early as 2002. In the end, however, he had to be patient for two decades until he had a developed production plan and green light from the studio. In September 2021 the first flap finally fell. In March 2023, Hypnotic celebrated its premiere at the SXSW Film Festival.
The result is a film that often feels like a fever dream, which fits quite well with the topic. Affleck’s figure by a labyrinth, while only lies and claims are stacked around him, or does he actually put a step closer to the solution of the case? You can never be sure.
Sci-fi thriller: When does Hypnotic start at Netflix?
Hypnotic appears tomorrow, on March 15, 2025at Netflix in streaming subscription. In addition to Ben Affleck, Alice Brage and William Fichtner, JD Pardo, Hala Finley, Dayo Okeniyi, Jeff Fahey and Watchmen star Jackie Earle Haley belong to the cast. Rodriguez made film and also wrote the script.