The 1995 sci-fi action flick Hologram has no business being this awesome, but here we are!
Many gems can be found among 90s DTV action flicks, and few radiate a goofy charm such as Hologram Man, which showed the low-tier action flick forge PM Entertainment at their creative peak. The film didn’t reach cult status like other 1990s action cheesefests such as Samurai Cop and Miami Connection, but I think it should be absolutely up there with them, so let’s have a look!
In the near future, terrorist Slash Gallagher (Evan Lurie) is on a rampage against the government and big corporations that control all aspects of public life. He is caught and incarcerated into a hologram but gets hacked out of his virtual prison. Now that he’s become a digital supervillain, Gallagher is up to no good. The only person who can stop him is police investigator Kurt Decoda (Joe Lara).
I’ll Feed You to the Rats in Byte-Sized Pieces!
Welcome to Cyberpunk PM style! We start with a classic PM opening sequence featuring perforated bodies and an excess of pyrotechnics, thanks to a silver handgun shooting green projectiles that lets cars explode upon a single hit. Right after we are introduced to Slash Gallagher making love and get to admire his naked body and massive dreadlocks. High on dopamine, he hijacks a bus and attacks a police convoy, which turns into another demolition fest until the lunatic revolutionary is arrested. So far so PM, but then the film leaves familiar territory and enters a world of madness and wonder.
Hologram Man presents many ideas but rips them all from a dozen or so Sci-Fi classics, and you can make a drinking game from guessing which film is referenced in a particular scene.
There’s the cyberpunk version of Demolition Man, a ”holographic prison term with bio-personalized reprogramming” and a parole hearing every couple of years to assess the digital mind of the perpetrator.
Car Carnage Meets Cyberpunk Cheese
Gallagher’s ethereal form can be surrounded by a synthetic skin enabling him to duplicate a human face (as in Darkman). He can also travel through a computer network (see any 90s cyberpunk flick) and kill you with lightning bolts through your computer screen (akin to Wes Craven’s Shocker). And there’s so much more to discover!
The film seems to have been Evan Lurie’s baby, who co-wrote, produced, and starred in it. I wouldn’t refer to his performance as acting in the traditional sense, but it’s radiating so much energy, and he just seems to have a great time being evil. Joe Lara leads the good guy camp and makes a fine B-action hero who is equally adept at shooting, punching, and making love. And we can easily sympathize with Decoda, as he passes through most of the film with an astonished face in disbelief about what is happening around him, just like the viewer.
Get the Hell Outta Here you Gigabyte Chipshit!
The first third of the film is filled with explosions and vehicles wreaking havoc, but the action level is dialed back a bit afterwards. We still get a shootout or car explosion every 10 minutes, and plenty of other stuff such as when a hologram Gallagher and Decoda duke it out wearing digital Spandex suits. There’s just never a dull moment in this film.
Hologram Man’s mix of unrestrained nonsense with a goofy sense of humor and relentless action is an experience that transcends the boundaries of the human mind. This Sci-Fi piñata chock-full of insanity is a film that must become the classic it deserves to be!
