Hypnotic
Ketchup Entertainment | Release Date: May 12, 2023 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
53
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 31 Critic Reviews
Positive:
11
Mixed:
16
Negative:
4

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
60
Total FilmLeila LatifMay 25, 2023
Rodriguez doesn’t take his foot off the gas for the entire 94-minute run time. There’s an action sequence about every four minutes and a plot twist every 10. In a world where so many films feel bloated and overextended, the frantic pace is highly refreshing. Read full review
60
The New York TimesGlenn KennyMay 15, 2023
The movie is, if nothing else, ruthlessly efficient enough in delivering its crowd-pleasing bits that truly starving suspense genre hounds, at least, won’t necessarily mind. Read full review
60
The GuardianBenjamin LeeMay 11, 2023
The goofier it all gets, the more one starts to warm to it, leaning further away from its initial A-trappings and nestling into a far more likable B-movie mode. Read full review
58
ConsequenceJonah KruegerMay 15, 2023
Every time you think Hypnotic has fully lost you, it’ll do something just interesting enough to pull you back in. Read full review
50
ReelViewsJames BerardinelliMay 16, 2023
Affleck is at his best playing wisecracking supporting roles (like in the recent Air, which Affleck also directed) and at his worst as an action hero. He sleepwalks his way through Hypnotic, doing little to rouse the audience from its own slumber while failing to generate any sparks with his co-star, Alice Braga. Read full review
50
Screen DailyTim GriersonMay 13, 2023
Hypnotic’s funhouse spirit eventually dissipates as it becomes clear that Rodriguez is mostly stealing from better pictures, never fusing them into a captivating new whole. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleBob StraussMay 12, 2023
There is a great deal of movie-backlot sleight of hand that looks fine while you’re watching, but when you think about it comes off as mostly façade. In that way, at least, Rodriguez successfully links form to content. Read full review
50
Los Angeles TimesKatie WalshMay 11, 2023
It’s fun to see [Rodriguez] color in new shades of film genre, but the script and performances in “Hypnotic” are too laughably absurd to take seriously. Read full review
50
The Hollywood ReporterDavid RooneyMay 10, 2023
It’s watchable enough, but ultimately has the counterfeit feel of a filmmaker dabbling in a genre that’s not a natural fit and finding little joy in it. Read full review
50
SlashfilmChris EvangelistaMay 10, 2023
All of this is very silly, but there's nothing wrong with that! In fact, Hypnotic would be a lot better off if it learned to lean into that silliness. Instead, Rodriguez keeps everything very dour, and while he injects some life here and there via action beats (the bank robbery scene is quite well-staged, as are several chase sequences), the filmmaker can never really get "Hypnotic" working. Read full review
50
The PlaylistRodrigo PerezMay 1, 2023
Hypnotic features a well-crafted suspense sequence or two, a couple of clever twists – but also some wildly stupid ones, and a bone-headed over-explainer ending that treats the entire audience like dopes. [Work in Progress SXSW 2023] Read full review
40
Screen RantPatrice WitherspoonJun 9, 2023
Rodriguez as a filmmaker has a history of implementing creativity and inspiration in his works. But with Hypnotic, the end result is a dull feature that doesn’t come close to its potential. Read full review
40
We Got This CoveredMatt WaytMay 15, 2023
You can only chip away at reality so far until everything in 'Hypnotic' starts to feel sketched and feckless. Any type of resolution reads as either disingenuous or completely unearned, as viewers were never invested in the characters' emotional journeys in the first place. Read full review
40
IGNSiddhant AdlakhaMay 12, 2023
Hypnotic, starring Ben Affleck, is a sci-fi thriller by Robert Rodriguez with few hints of sci-fi, thrills, or Robert Rodriguez. Read full review
40
EmpireKevin EG PerryMay 12, 2023
A grumpy Ben Affleck can’t save this confused thriller that has as many twists as a trepanning drill, and is about as likely to leave you feeling lobotomised. Read full review
40
Rolling StoneDavid FearMay 11, 2023
One of the movie’s major plot points hinges on the ability of some especially gifted psychics being able to erase their own memories. What we would not give for that particular power right about now. Read full review
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