Renovatio Records proudly presents a new release of Jerry Goldsmith’s electrifying score for Paul Verhoeven’s 2000 sci-fi thriller Hollow Man. Twenty-five years after its theatrical release, this expanded presentation revisits one of the composer’s final large-scale orchestral works: a fascinating blend of psychological horror, cutting-edge electronics, and explosive symphonic action that captures both the scientific ambition and moral decay at the heart of Verhoeven’s vision.
Released in August 2000, Hollow Man marked Verhoeven’s return to science fiction after RoboCop (1987), Total Recall (1990), and Starship Troopers (1997), reuniting him with many of his longtime collaborators for what would become his last major Hollywood studio production. The film stars Kevin Bacon as Sebastian Caine, a brilliant yet dangerously egocentric scientist leading a government research project on molecular invisibility. When he tests the serum on himself, his power (and isolation) soon drive him toward madness, quickly becoming emotionally unstable and going on a killing spree. Elisabeth Shue portrays Linda, his former lover and research partner, while Josh Brolin plays her new companion and fellow scientist, Matt. The supporting cast includes Kim Dickens, Greg Grunberg, Joey Slotnick, and Mary Randle, forming the core research team trapped with Sebastian as the experiment spirals out of control.
Stylistically, Hollow Man bears Verhoeven’s unmistakable touch: the sleek precision of his camera movements, the coldly clinical settings, and the provocative exploration of cynicism, voyeurism and corrupted desire. The film’s visual effects, then at the forefront of digital innovation, were widely praised for their groundbreaking realism, particularly the stunning transformation sequences depicting Sebastian’s gradual disappearance, achieved through meticulous layering of CGI and physical performance. These sequences remain among the most technically impressive of their era, showcasing Verhoeven’s ability to merge spectacle with psychological unease.
Critically, the film divided audiences. While its visual innovation and kinetic direction earned praise, detractors pointed to its descent into slasher territory during the final act, its uneven dialogue, and a lack of emotional depth. Yet despite its mixed reception, Hollow Man proved a financial success, grossing over $190 million worldwide, and has since gained appreciation as a bold, unsettling study of unchecked ego and moral decay.
For a film that straddles the line between cerebral science fiction and visceral horror, Goldsmith’s music provides the essential connective tissue. His score amplifies both the laboratory setting and the psychological descent of its protagonist, charting Sebastian’s transformation with an uncanny balance of intellect and menace. Drawing upon his long experience with the genre (from Alien to Total Recall) Goldsmith approached Hollow Man with masterful restraint and technical daring, crafting a soundscape that is at once sleek, unsettling, and emotionally resonant. The result is one of his final masterpieces: a fusion of orchestral grandeur and electronic experimentation that captures the allure and terror of invisibility.
At the heart of Goldsmith’s score lies a long-lined, moody main theme, first introduced in the opening track “The Hollow Man.” It’s a masterclass in ambiguity: graceful yet ominous, restrained yet emotionally charged. Carried by strings and shadowed by a whispery synthesizer pulse that becomes a recurring element throughout the score, the theme is both appealing and malleable, capable of reflecting the duality of Sebastian himself: a man of brilliance and control whose intellect conceals deep instability. The theme’s fluid contour and unresolved harmonies lend it a deceptive elegance: an almost sympathetic quality that invites the listener into Sebastian’s perspective. Beneath its surface beauty, however, lingers an undercurrent of tragedy and inevitable doom, foreshadowing the moral decay that defines the character’s arc. Like Verhoeven’s camera, which alternates between detachment and intimacy, Goldsmith’s theme captures fascination and fear in equal measure: the invisible man rendered all too human, and all too dangerous.
Complementing the main theme is a “science motif”: a mechanical, rhythm-driven idea that dominates the film’s transformation sequences. First introduced in “Isabelle Comes Back,” as a test gorilla is brought back from invisibility, the motif unfolds through a precise interplay of piano and harp patterns, supported by plucked strings and a steady, procedural pulse. As the experiment intensifies, the writing expands into swelling strings and brass, underscored by an array of thumping electronic effects that gradually build in pace and volume. The result is a dazzling display of musical engineering, mirroring both the meticulousness and the mounting danger of the on-screen process. Goldsmith returns to this motif throughout the score’s key transformation scenes: “This Is Science,” accompanying Sebastian’s initial invisibility test, and “Not Right,” when the reversal attempt nearly kills him. In each instance, the composer reshapes the material to fit the evolving emotional temperature. What begins as curious and almost wondrous becomes increasingly dissonant and agitated, the orchestral textures tightening as the sense of peril escalates. Despite its recurrence, the motif never feels redundant; rather, it provides a structural and emotional thread that evolves with the story, offering a different shade of tension each time. By the film’s climax, as Linda must rely on ingenuity to survive, Goldsmith brings the motif back one more time (“Linda Takes Action”), now transformed into something more assertive and triumphant. Its reappearance, stripped of the earlier scientific detachment, serves as a musical catharsis: the sound of intellect reclaimed from madness, and of human resolve outlasting the chaos it once unleashed.
Among the more human dimensions of Hollow Man lies a small, bittersweet keyboard theme representing the fractured relationship between Sebastian and Linda. Though gentle and lyrical, the melody carries a quiet melancholy; its romantic phrasing undermined by an unmistakable sense of emotional distance. Goldsmith uses it sparingly, allowing the music to comment on the tension between affection and resentment that defines their interactions. Its delicate simplicity offers a rare glimpse of warmth within the otherwise clinical, dangerous world of the film.
Goldsmith also explores Sebastian’s growing moral corruption through a series of motifs rooted in sensuality and perversion. Unlike the sultry eroticism of his music for Basic Instinct (1992), these passages twist desire into something unsettling. In cues like “First Night” and “I Can’t See Him,” insinuating flutes and sliding string glissandos create an atmosphere of predatory intimacy, while the ever-present whispering synthesizer pulse reminds us of Sebastian’s unseen proximity. These textures evoke the invasive, voyeuristic nature of his invisibility, not as seduction, but as violation. Goldsmith’s restraint makes the music even more disturbing: the scenes are underscored not with shock, but with quiet, creeping menace.
As Sebastian’s descent into madness reaches its final stage, Goldsmith unveils a low, rhythmic piano motif representing his homicidal persona, which works as a darker echo of the science motif. Menacing and mechanical, it first emerges during “I Can’t See Him” and "Broken Window", then grows increasingly dominant in “False Image” and “Hi Boss,” where it gains strength through aggressive brass and percussion. By the climactic action cues (“Find Him,” “Bloody Floor,” “The Elevator,” and “The Big Climb”) the motif explodes into full orchestral fury, driving the relentless action forward. Here, Goldsmith propels the orchestra through some of his most ferocious late-period action writing, a testament to his precision and dramatic instinct even in his seventies.
With its intricate blend of orchestral and electronic textures, Hollow Man quickly became a highlight among Jerry Goldsmith’s late-career works: a showcase of his technical and emotional mastery. Yet for many years, the score was only partially available. The original 2000 Varèse Sarabande album offered a 50-minute selection that focused mainly on the film’s central set pieces. Though effective as a listening experience, it inevitably left collectors yearning for the complete picture, especially given how much of Goldsmith’s finest writing remained unreleased. Two decades later, Intrada Records finally delivered the definitive edition. Their comprehensive 2-CD set unveiled the full extent of Goldsmith’s achievement: nearly two and a half hours of music, including alternate takes, previously unheard cues, and restored passages that revealed the score’s meticulous structure.
This new Renovatio Records edition builds upon that foundation, offering a slightly expanded yet thoughtfully assembled presentation, allowing listeners to appreciate the evolution of the film’s musical identity (from scientific curiosity to psychological horror) exactly as Goldsmith intended. While maintaining the chronological flow, the album refines transitions between cues to create a smoother, more immersive experience for home listening. The newly remastered audio highlights the extraordinary clarity of Goldsmith’s orchestration: the shimmer of harps, the sharpness of brass, and the pulsing synth textures that give the music its unsettling edge.
By bringing together every layer of Goldsmith’s design, this release not only celebrates Hollow Man as one of his last great achievements but also reaffirms his unparalleled ability to merge humanity, horror, and high-tech sophistication into a single, cohesive musical vision.
Track listing:
Cover Artwork:
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Track Title |
Slate Number and Cue Title |
|
1. The Hollow Man |
R1P1 The Hollow Man |
|
2. Isabelle Comes Back |
R1P7 Isabelle Comes Back |
|
3. Linda & Sebastian |
R2P1 Linda And Sebastian |
|
4. This Is Science |
R2P3 This Is Science |
|
5. First Night |
R3P1 The Buttons (Edited) R3P2 Coffee Break |
|
6. Not Right |
R3P4 Not Right |
|
7. What Went Wrong? |
R3P5 What Went Wrong? |
|
8. I Can’t See Him |
R4P1R I Can't See Him (Alternate) R4P1A I Can't See Him Part II R4P1B I Can't See Him Part III (Edited) R4P4R Broken Window (Revised #1) (Edited) |
|
9. Broken Window |
R4P4 Broken Window |
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10. False Image |
R4P7 False Image |
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11. Hi Boss |
R5P1 Hi Boss |
|
12. Find Him |
R5P3 Find Him (Edited) |
|
13. Bloody Floor |
R5P4 Bloody Floor |
|
14. Linda Takes Action |
R6P1 Linda Takes Action |
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15. The Elevator |
R6P3 The Elevator |
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16. The Big Climb |
R6P4 The Big Climb |
Motion picture artwork and photography © 2000 Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. This compilation and cover artwork © 2025 Renovatio Records. All rights reserved. Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable laws. For promotional use only.
Renovatio Records [0-01702-19089]
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