The Hidden

This is a sci-fi flick that borrows its thesis from Hal Clement's NEEDLE; an alien criminal is running around the Earth, symbiotically living in humans, and it is up to an alien cop, played by Kyle McLaughlin to stop him, with the aid of a human detective. Lots of good camerawork, a decent script and performances add up to a good movie.

In the 1987 sci-fi actioner "The Hidden", an evil, body-switching alien with a taste for Ferraris, loud music, and murder is wreaking havoc. Only another alien, impersonating an FBI agent and teamed with an ordinary cop, knows how to stop it. "The Hidden" is an irrepressible, high-spirited genre flick full of screeching car chases, sprays of bullets, and shattering glass that leaves more than a few casualties in its wake. It has alot of fun with the body-switching premise and maintains a strong sense of humor throughout. Kyle MacLachlan's performance as the unearthly FBI agent offers another great reason to watch. This is the perfect film for those in search of a rock 'em, sock 'em good time.

This movie is best seen without knowing much about the plot. It starts off as standard action movie where you follow a policeman who is investigating some strange event of a seemingly normal person kind of going crazy and suddenly committing thefts, violence, escaping the police. As the story develops, the story turns in unexpected but very fascinating directions. The pace is kept high, never does ones attention wander. The acting is good and the story comes over as very real. I won't reveal too much here of what happens later as there are many elements of surprise which adds to the whole experience. This is one of the movies that I have enjoyed watching several times. My vote is a 9.

There's very little I can say about 'The Hidden' which isn't gushing praise. When cult sci-fi films are being discussed, you always hear talk of 'Alien' or 'The Thing,' yet The Hidden never seems to get a mention. I always find that surprising as it's so good and yet so simple. No complex plots here - just an easy-to-follow bad alien being hunted down by a good alien. There's nothing much to say about it because it's just so much fun. If you like horror, action, or sci-fi, then you really should see this film. It has all of those elements, wrapped up in a simple plot with simple special effects and simplistic performances from its actors. Just sit back, grab the popcorn and enjoy. But only if you have a strong stomach, as some of the scenes can be pretty violent. I'm giving it a 9/10 as it's just an absolute retro-fave of mine. In reality, it's probably more of an 8/10 for most people. My guilty pleasure. http://thewrongtreemoviereviews.blogspot.co.uk/

This movie is extremely well-made for what it is. Fascinating, thought-provoking, it surprised the Hell out of me when I first saw it. This could have been a "gimmick" sci-fi movie, but it's handled deftly by the director, who I had never heard of, and by MacLachlan, who gives a terrific, sensitive, multi-layered performance. For that matter, most of characters have real dimension to them. This movie transcends a rather bland, run-of-the-mill science fiction story with the chemistry between its characters and the snappy pacing. I like the way the themes of identity and compassion are actually explored instead of just exploited.