ManiakJiggy This is How Movies Should Be Made

Dartherer I really don't get the hype.

Brendon Jones It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

Frances Chung Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Hakubi This movie is the most fun I've ever had watching a thriller. I had the pleasure of seeing it in its 35MM glory back in 2005 when it finally saw it's US release. It is absolute gold. Every thing is enjoyable, from the ridiculous dialogue and plot to the sometimes outrageous performances. LL Cool J deserved an Oscar for this.

David Roggenkamp In a simulated experiment in a scene that is reminiscent of saw, would be agents prove their worth by trying to solve a murder; they all fail and get shipped to an island for further improvements. This island looks like something out of Hollywood and reminiscent of the old Nevada nuclear test sites featured in so many other movies; but there is a twist – they are to get into the mind of a serial killer here by being in a similar element – lost, isolated, afraid, and alone. Instead, they turn into a series of misfits that pass the time while they test the water and solve the island about them. Things go awry and each one is picked off one by one. Time and time again, they use stereotyping, profiling and getting inside of the killer's head as a means to defeat the culprit. The twists and turns are many and just who is the killer changes from one scene to the next as the would be agents try to save and assist each other.The movie is reminiscent of 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' and many of the personalities seem reminiscent as such; they act like teenagers and otherwise squabble amongst themselves. They either clearly know too much, feel utterly capable and confident in their roles, and still manage to get picked off one by one. In a turn like CSI, many of the story and plot makes sense, but is completely unbelievable from a realistic standpoint. The movie is good for Hollywood and is good for this reason – it creates for mindless entertainment and I recommend this movie for that reason.Originally posted to Orion Age (http://www.orionphysics.com/? p=5201).

Leofwine_draca MINDHUNTERS is a big-profile slasher flick from Finnish director Renny Harlin, a man not known for the quality of his recent work. This one has an elaborate set-up in which a group of trainee FBI criminal profilers are sent to a remote island on a training exercise only to discover that one of their number is a killer hell-bent on destruction.Despite the novelty of that particular premise, MINDHUNTERS turns out to be business as usual as the cast members are bumped off one by one by the devious killer, whose identity is kept hidden until the climax to add some whodunit angles to the storyline. The deaths tend to be fairly elaborate, including one of the most inventive uses of liquid nitrogen since the days of TERMINATOR 2 and JASON X, but Harlin's direction is sub-par and his attempts at atmosphere make the film look dated in the extreme.Still, the producers have done well to assemble a whole slew of familiar faces, although the likes of Christian Slater and Val Kilmer, despite being top-billed, don't have a great deal of screen-time. Instead we're saddled with LL Cool J doing his 'tough survivor' schtick after DEEP BLUE SEA and THE MUMMY's Patricia Velasquez to lend some glamour.Unfortunately, the film's heroine, as played by Kathryn Morris (who she?) is weak and irritating, and Jonny Lee Miller's accent is decidedly dodgy. Clifton Collins Jr. bags the most interesting role as the wheelchair-bound agent. In any case, MINDHUNTERS is standard fare indeed, and doesn't really have much to make it stand out from the crowd.

Nitzan Havoc I'm much more a Horror fan than a Thriller fan, and Mindhubters was more of a Thriller, but definitely my kind of thriller. Think "Saw" meets "The Bone Collector" with a slight "Along Came the Spider" touch in the end.In general, Mindhunters is just another serial killer film, and yet it's so much more. Firstly, if you've ever taken part in a LARP (live action role play), you'd have to appreciate the set-up of the real time simulation on the island. The suddenly - s*it got real! Secondly, this time the victims weren't a bunch of teens of vacation, and the desolate location wasn't a distant foreign country or a summer cabin in the mountains. This time the victims were FBI agents specializing in profiling, and the location was a remote island use for military and police training. So the killer had to be way smarter than in regular serial killer films. Excellent work by screenwriters Wayne Kramer and Kevin Brodbin!The cast of actors featured some nice long-forgotten surprises, like Christian Slater (bringing all his Interview With a Vampire" charisma) and Val Kilmer (who was excellent as the megalomaniac half-deranged agent in charge of the Profiler training program). Also, Kathryn Morris did a superb job playing the "damsel in distress" of the group, and LL Cool J used all his beloved "gangsta" attitude as the surprise addition to the expedition.The story is clever and compelling, and keeps the audience on edge till the last second. The last 20 minutes are filled with twists, just the way I like it! Imperfect twists, mind you, but clever and well done nonetheless.All in all, an excellent thriller, with a small touch of horror. One of the better thrillers I've seen. Definitely worthwhile and recommended!