Fluentiama Perfect cast and a good story

Matrixiole Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

Gutsycurene Fanciful, disturbing, and wildly original, it announces the arrival of a fresh, bold voice in American cinema.

Janae Milner Easily the biggest piece of Right wing non sense propaganda I ever saw.

lathe-of-heaven Well, the above viewer who blasted this film also made the statement 'I haven't seen Robert Patrick in anything else...' Uh huh..., so like have you been a captive on Mars for the last 15 years or what...??? : ) GEEZ, who the hell hasn't heard of T2??!! Anyway, sorry, just had to get that outta the way... Sure, the film has a LOT of ultra-cheeeeeezy clichéd and unnecessary sex scenes; that's a given. So, ignoring those scenes and just taking the movie as a whole as far as atmosphere, acting, suspense, etc. I felt it was quite good; YES, definitely in a low budget B-Movie kinda way, but still well done. And, YES Ms. Hatcher's role was over-the-top as another reviewer mentioned here. I think what I liked primarily was the surreal sense that the film put across quite effectively; there are some scenes where even now (after seeing the film about 3 times) I am not quite sure what is real and what isn't. ****MINOR SPOILER*** Especially the scene where she is making love to the director and Patrick appears to be in the room with them writing on a typewriter asking her enthusiastically what she's gonna do next *****END MINOR SPOILER***** Anything that pulls off a good surreal mood or plays with your mind a little like that is very entertaining to me. So, with all it's many flaws, OVERALL, I honestly feel that the film pulls off a great story with excellent suspense (without having to have people 'SAW' there own foot off, thank you very much : ) and Patrick really does a very effective job in portraying a guy RIGHT on the edge. Good little animal references too and the bit with the wolf and his reaction was a nice touch. Also too, the interesting psychological contrast between how things played out at the director's house, with the way the film ended, was intriguing because your thinking 'Where the heck is this guy really coming from...???' In other words, without getting into an actual 'Spoiler', He appeared to be 'into' what was happening at the director's house, but then at the same time how does that translate into what he does at the end? I think it's just simply that the guy was unraveling from the start, perhaps mentally dislodged from his previous girlfriend's suicide (and then THAT makes you wonder whether her suicide triggered HIS instability OR did his instability trigger her suicide...????!!!) So you see, this movie is not just simply another lousy throw-away; there is a LOT here that really makes you think. Especially if you like films along psychological lines with a touch of the surreal...

abookishboy Such a pity! The Cool Surface is one of those films in which the viewer can tell early on what the filmmaker is trying to do, but it's so clunky it has a paint-by-numbers feel. On any level of honest, objective scrutiny it is uneven and uninteresting. The sum is so much less than the underwhelming parts! Hatcher plays her role as a sultry siren way over the top. Considering her considerable natural talents and attributes, the result is beyond overkill. Robert Patrick alternates between a boring, sulking wimp and an unconvincing psycho. I don't remember seeing Patrick in anything else, but I hope he's better than this. Hatcher sure is. As to Matt McCoy, this is the first role I've seen him in where he isn't downright creepy (also a natural attribute?) - maybe just because he has so little screen time. Oh yeah, there are a few sex scenes, including Hatcher cameoing her bare chest (remember Seinfeld: "Yes, they're real, and they're spectacular!"). Without Hatcher's visibility in these gratuitous sex scenes, this film probably never would have seen the light of day. As it is, The Cool Surface apparently went straight to video and has only resurfaced as Hatcher has recently risen from the ashes like the mythical phoenix. No deep messages here, just glossed-over sleaze - a barely par production to give the otherwise unemployed (and woefully under-utilized) something to do. No great resume builder for anyone involved. A real time waster!

syvell This film is absolutely HOT!! The film is so full of erotic tension, even when there's 'nothing actually happening' (!). For that, the erotic appeal, I give it 5 stars, even though the story gets a bit unsatisfactory towards the end. It feels like it was originally different and some essential scenes were cut. But I can't say much more without giving too much away. I love the very ending, though! Calls for a sequel, really, which unfortunately never happened. I would have loved to see Robert Patrick in more steamy action... So, if you want to see two very good-looking people involved in loads of hot situations and talking - this is a film to get. Might be that the story is a bit confused - but who cares??? It's certainly not boring!

i_love_john_jay_doggett Robert Patrick is very hot in this film. Nice twists of plot but who really cares when you can view for eye candy. He is as always a superb actor, but baby, he sets the screen on fire in this one with his sexuality alone!