The Hidden [Blu-ray]

Back when Siskel & Ebert were with us, they both gave this modest little movie a thumbs up. Arriving at a time of the big space operas and expensive creature effects, THE HIDDEN raised itself up timidly in the midst of all of the cinematic hubbub to declare that just a good, clean, simple story can be equally as engaging. The film seesaws smoothly from scenes of explosive action to quieter moments of expositional dialogue, as we are hooked into the story by the irrational behavior of the protagonist.The action begins immediately. The opening credit sequence is displayed over the scene in a bank, from the black-and-white perspective of a low-resolution security camera. One man is standing with his back to the camera, watching the activities of the bank, against the background of the low murmur of people conducting banking transactions. Then, as the armed security guards escorting sacks of cash are about to leave, the man blasts them with a shotgun, then grabs the money. The perspective shifts to outside the bank, to the sound of alarms, where the robber emerges. Visually, the contrast is startling, transitioning from the monochromatic security footage to this in-color action, and is typical of the deftness of this entire movie. A lot was done with a little.Everything that immediately follows serves as a deep hook, as the bank robber, later identified as Jack DeVries, leaps into a sports car, and leads the police on an adrenaline-infused high-speed chase. The robber is nonplussed by the pursuit, having the time of his life. After a lot of collateral damage, he's eventually blocked by a barricade of cars, gunned down, then hospitalized.In the hospital room is where the story really gets underway. DeVries, until a couple of weeks before, was an ordinary, law-abiding citizen, and nothing in his prior lifestyle suggested he was capable of this kind of unhinged behavior. Now, seemingly on his deathbed, he rises up, disconnects himself from the life support, and walks to the unconscious patient in the next bed. He pries open the sleeping patient's mouth, then bends over the man, opens his own mouth, and out comes an implausibly large, slithering, tentacled parasite, exiting his mouth and entering the other. The sleeping patient wakes and leaves the hospital.The story never loses momentum. The alien moves from body to body, wreaking havoc, listening to heavy metal music, and driving stolen sports cars (Ferrari is his preferred model), until whatever body he's borrowing is damaged so badly it becomes useless to him. Detective Beck (Michael Nouri) is completely in the dark about what it is he's pursuing. He's hooked up with an FBI Agent Lloyd Gallagher (played to scrubbed innocence by Kyle MacLachlan), who seems to be parsing the situation himself as he goes along, but knows a bit more than he's admitting. There's also something not right about him, as he seems totally ignorant of all common courtesies and cordialities, or even how to take an Alka Seltzer. The interplay between the two men--the street-weary Beck and the naive Gallagher--has a familiar buddy-cop feel to it, but the quirkiness of Lloyd prevents a deeper bond. Beck is sometimes frustrated with Lloyd's reticence, and seems almost about to abandon the partnership. Instead, he leans on his own instincts and sticks with the agent. He even invites Gallagher to dinner, during which Gallagher's oddness further tries Beck's patience.Because this movie was driven entirely by the narrative, it stands the test of time. There are only three scenes that required special effects, and those are brief. Effects were added only as a necessity, and weren't meant to dominate the story. It was an attempt to provide a choice to the sci-fi enthusiasts of the era who found the genre hijacked by big budgets and spectacle. Therefore, after all of these years, it still works.I had a DVD edition of this, and decided to upgrade to the higher definition BD. The picture quality is great in that the natural presentation of the original film is preserved. This was back in the day when movies were on FILM, so it has the look of a feature film from that time. The color palette is not exaggerated, but it is typical of the era, and because it's a straightforward tale, on real streets, there's nothing really extraordinary about it. The cinematography didn't try to compete with the narrative. The simplicity of the visual style was the goal, to stay out of the way of the story.For special features, there's a piece on the special effects. Because there weren't that many, it was just a clip. Keep in mind that this was a low-budget film, with a humble aim. This was before DVDs, so there wasn't a lot of people walking around the set, documenting it for a special features reel. The only other extra on the disc is the trailer for the film, which is amusing to watch for how trailers themselves have changed over the years.Overall, if you liked this movie, and you have fond memories of it, this will remind you why.

Imagine if "They Live" started at the bank scene; this movie is awesome. Starts off with the action and doesn't lose momentum throughout the movie.Only gripe is their "creepy tense" music is super discordant.

Not a horror movie. Very good 80's movie with an original story that has been copied several times by newer movies.

This is a good action sci-fi film. A really fun buddy cop movie with a twist.

Great science fiction as outworlder cop and local police chase down a real bad alien. Overlooked gem.

BOTTOM LINE: One of the best genre efforts to come out of latter half of that crazy decade of excess, the 1980's. Terrific acting across the broad, superb stunts & practical F/X, and a fast-driving, streamlined plot that keeps things racing right up until the explosive finale. Minimal but nicely remastered upgrade to Blu-ray. Very enjoyable, on so many levels, and highly rewatchable. 5 STARSTHE STORY: L.A. Cop finds his normal world instantly turned upside down when an odd FBI agent shows up and enlists his help in tracking down seemingly average citizens who just go bonkers for no apparent reason, turning into homicidal manics - with a taste for heavy metal & fast Ferrari's. Things progressively go from bad to worse, taking a turn for the bizarre when… well, you’ll just have to tune in and find out for yourself!THOUGHTS: A favorite 80’s film that hits all the right notes. Hard to believe, but THE HIDDEN is basically a remake of the schlocky old John Agar flick, THE BRAIN FROM PLANET AROUS. This update is a stellar example of how to do a remake and do it right. It's also a near-perfect excellent example of how to seamlessly blend multiple genres. For THE HIDDEN is: a crackerjack sci-fi film, a grisly horror flick, an over-the-top action fest and, perhaps most surprisingly of all, a touching drama about love, trust, honor and just what it means to really be human. Kyle MacLachlan is amazing as the slightly out of phase FBI agent who’s hot on the trail of a remorseless, bloodthirsty maniac. Michael Nouri is totally believable as a world-weary L.A. cop who knows his job, but is clueless as to how what’s happening IS happening. The second string players are all excellent. Music score is restrained and still impactful. Impressive stunt work throughout. And overseeing it all, director Jack Shoulder keeps things tightly knit, maintaining a firm grasp on the course of the film, which, in lesser hands, could have become a flashy, heartless, brainless explosion & noise fest. He keeps us sprinting along breathlessly from one wild setpiece to another, all without losing sight of (nor downplaying) the smaller, quieter moments which help give the picture its focus and soul.THE BLU-RAY: Essentially the same release as the old NewLine DVD, only with much-improved sound & picture. Extras are the same stuff, merely ported over, including an excellent full-length audio commentary with the director in which he shares a wealth of insightful and enlightening details behind the making of the film. And even though there’s really nothing new, if you’re a fan of this film (and how could you NOT be?!?), it’s still a no-brainer to double dip if you already own the DVD. If you’ve got a Blu-ray player and have somehow never managed to catch this movie before, then by all means BUY IT! And prepare yourself for an exhausting breakneck thrill ride that’ll leave you breathless… and thoroughly entertained - from the opening credits thru to the final fade-out. In the end, it’s easy to see THE HIDDEN is absolutely one of the best of its kind ever made. Highly, highly recommended.

Good picture quality. It looks like 1080p. The disk has the typical special features that come with a blue ray. It is also in wide screen. It's a good buy because the movie stands the test of time. Younger generations will still like this movie. It's also non-existent on steaming services.

My wife and I loved this movie. We bought it because of Kyle, we are big Twin Peaks fans. Loved the setting, scenery and story. Buy this for a fun date night.

"He sees something he wants, he steals it. If something gets in his way, he kills it. And right now, he's hiding out in your city."The Hidden was one of those terrific little movies that seem to come out of nowhere and seemed destined for cult status it's never quite attained when it came out in 1988. A cops and robbers spin on the body snatchers genre, Michael Nouri's cop finds himself saddled with Kyle MacLachlan's strange FBI man in pursuit of seemingly ordinary law-abiding citizens who suddenly go off on killing rampages in stolen Ferraris and don't go down no matter how many bullets you pump into them. Not surprising considering it's all the same killer, a hedonistic alien who takes what it wants and kills anyone in its way, using human bodies like cars and just getting a new one when they get too damaged to move around in any more. It's an engagingly silly idea that allows for plentiful action scenes and swipes at 80s excess, but it's also played with a commendably straight face and with better lead performances than usual for the genre. Nouri manages to make his in the dark cop convincingly human while the film plays well to MacLachlan's slightly alien 80s screen presence as he goes through the film like a man wearing a mask - which, in a way, he is - without ever being a complete blank.Jack Sholder's direction is extremely good, not just in the excellent action scenes but in small character touches that add a lot and elevate it above the straight-to-video fodder of the day - it's a real movie movie, so much so that it's surprising he never broke into the mainstream. His audio commentary on the DVD is interesting too, dealing with his ongoing problems with Nouri throughout the shoot and original writer Jim Kouf's reasons for taking his name off the picture. Well worth catching up with - but just pretend the astonishingly bad 1993 sequel, made with a completely different cast and crew, never happened.

When Jack DeVries, a previously model citizen suddenly embarks on a spree of bank robberies and murders, the police hunt him down and after a long car chase he is badly burned when his car blows up. Even close to death, DeVries seems of special interest to F.B.I Agent Lloyd Gallagher(Kyle MacLachlan), who joins the cop Harry Beck(Michael Nouri) who is covering the case. When DeVries dies in the hospital, Gallagher's interest shifts to a terminal patient Jonathan Miller, who has seemingly just sat up and walked out of his deathbed.Beck has no idea what on earth is going on. Nothing on earth in fact, as an alien is using human bodies as temporary hosts, for a spot of unique social climbing..... This a great hidden treasure from that great cinematic decade, the 1980's. The film's success is partly due to the great sense of fun it engenders, partly due to the great cast assembled and partly because it just tells a cracking good story.Nouri and MacLachlan certainly work very well together as the odd couple cops, with Beck's no nonsense approach rubbing up against Gallagher's analytical methodology.The concept of the alien is so funny, because it's so human. It likes loud rock music, fast cars and hot women and sulks when it doesn't get it's own way. The actual true alien form is only briefly seen, but is very effective.The film transcends its B-Movie roots with lovely little touches such as quite an emotional closing sequence and the witty, literate script. There's quite a supporting cast to be found here too, ably supporting Nouri and MacLachlan. How about Ed O'Ross, Clu Gulager and William Boyett for starters.An excellent film, at last getting the recognition it deserves. The main attraction amongast the extras on the dvd is an informative commentary by the director Jack Sholder. 5 out of 5.

I remember watching this on video many moons ago. A very good movie. About law abiding citizens who suddenly become killers. What is unknown to the police. It's an alien with a taste for fast cars, heavy metal music and killing. This alien jumps bodies which make it hard to catch or stop. Until the police get help from outer space. Pity the second movie wasn't as good

A blast from the past. I lived this film back in the day and it still as fun as I remember it.The directors commentary seems to be from a slightly different version of the movie.

A cult classic, with Kyle MacLachlan almost typecast as a slightly strange FBI agent. The twists come thick and fast. The dialog will never make it a critics choice, but with Kyle and Claudia Christian in it, fans as well as sci-fi action fans will enjoy the romp.A touching end to the film as well