Eion Bailey, Clifton Collins Jr., Will Kemp

On a remote island, the FBI has a training program for their psychological profiling division, called "Mindhunters", used to track down serial killers. The training goes horribly wrong, however, when ...( read more  read more... )a group of seven young agents discover that one of them is a serial killer, and is setting about slaying the others. Can the few that are left figure out who the killer is in time?

Flixster Users

64% liked it

29,579 ratings

Critics

26% liked it

112 critics

R, 1 hr. 46 min.

Directed by: Renny Harlin

Release Date: May 13, 2005

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DVD Release Date: September 20, 2005

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Stats: 1,480 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (1,480)


  • September 20, 2009
    Recently added to my collection. Proper review to follow. If you liked Suspect Zero youll like this movie.
  • November 20, 2008
    This is one of my favourite sci-fi movies. The idea it's delivering is original and well-thought-of, the performances are way above your average sci-fi performances and unlike other movies in its category, it keeps you at the edge of your seat and has you wonder who's the villain...( read more) of them all, who's gonna die next and similar questions. It's bold and sharp-sighted and not easily forgotten.
  • November 20, 2008
    This is a very good little know film. It's a mix of cat and mouse thriller with the FBI trying to track a killer at one of their training facilities. It starts as a thriller and soon becomes a horror as puzzles are put in the teams way similar to the traps in the Saw films. Along...( read more) with an impressive cast and great setting this is worth hunting out.
  • July 13, 2008
    "Here we are. Crimetown USA. Where all the residents are dead... or about to be."


    Mindhunters is one of Renny Harlin's newest films. The director is perhaps comprehensively acknowledged for his action movies: in the 1990s, audiences witnessed such films as

    ...( read more)The Long Kiss Goodnight, Cliffhanger and Die Hard 2 (debatably his best film). Unfortunately, the director has seen better days. The director has seen some real stinkers, for example Deep Blue Sea and Cutthroat Island. The remaining fans of the director probably had their hopes set pretty high for this film. In traditional Renny Harlin style the film is exceedingly entertaining, but contains a fairly preposterous set of events.

    Mindhunters achieved poor results at the box office despite a solid cast and its renowned director. This film is a substantially flawed, but reasonably entertaining modern take on Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None (a.k.a. Ten Little Indians). In addition to borrowing elements from Christie's story, there is further evidence of unoriginality: first of all, the film's trite plot is something one would expect to see every night on CSI or something. Secondly, there are also chief elements borrowed from typical slasher films such as Friday the 13th. In other words, this film borrows from everything.

    In any case, the film's story concerns a group of seven FBI agents-in-training. These seven people have potential to reach the status of an FBI psychological profiler, and are being trained by hard-nosed FBI instructor Jake Harris (Kilmer). For their final test, the seven FBI students are transported to an isolated island where they will spend the weekend tracking a mock serial killer: performing as part of a team to solve the simulated murder. Those who manage things capably go onto FBI postings. Those who flunk will be cut from the FBI. For this weekend, an additional "observer" is brought along to report on Harris' training methods (this observer is played by LL Cool J, who's billed as his real name - James Todd Smith - probably to show that he's serious about acting). Once on the island, real murders begin unfolding. It grows obvious that among these agents-in-training there's a serial killer using precise timing techniques to execute each person one by one. The idea is that these FBI students are allegedly learning to profile killers...but the tables are reversed, and it appears the killer is profiling each student according to their psychological profiles. That's the cleverest plot twist in a story that is otherwise fairly mundane.

    There are several key flaws in Mindhunters that unfortunately destroy its major potential. First of all, character development is non-existent. Very soon into the movie we're already on the island and the killer is on the loose. We're expected to attempt to solve things ourselves and sympathise with the characters. But do we care? No! We are never given a reason to care about these characters apart from their looks and absurd behaviour. We're never introduced to the characters sufficiently, and we've never given adequate background on them for us to be interested in their safety. They are purely exchangeable faces.

    The cast are a mixed bag. Val Kilmer is in good form, as are a few other people. Jonny Lee Miller, on the other hand, is embarrassingly bad. His accents change frequently...from American to British to various incoherent accents. Another flaw is the high levels of improbability. These agents are supposedly smart, yet their behaviour is preposterous and laughable. Also, the killer somehow manages to set elaborate traps in just a few minutes. The precise timing of these traps is impossibly accurate and would take hours to set! Are we supposed to believe someone formulates these ideas incredibly quickly? Gimme a break!

    Overall, Mindhunters is a reasonable thriller from Renny Harlin. The murders are usually grisly, gory and violent, with the film containing a few interesting plot twists. Of course the film is competently made with an impressive atmosphere and a moderate entertainment value. However things are just so stupid and it's impossible to suspend your disbelief. Not to mention some shocking acting at times, and zero character development.
  • June 1, 2008
    Not bad, but off base alot...the cast needed to be revised...they didn't complement each other well...
  • November 6, 2009
    I started watching it today and I only realized like in the middle that I've seen it on HBO a couple of years ago. So it's okay but nothing special.
  • October 9, 2009
    This is not a good movie. It's got a good concept and I would have turned this movie off if it didn't have that. Most of the time it's just crap. The acting is bad and the characters aren't very likeable. There are scenes with a lot of violence and gore, but I didn't think they w...( read more)ere done very well. The ending was a bit predictable as it played along and there were a lot of plot holes. The only good thing here was the concept and the mystery. I only watched so I could find out who the killer really was. I think those were the real stars here, but this film doesn't have much to offer and I wouldn't recommend it at all.
  • October 5, 2009
    An overlooked action thriller. FBI procedural meets Saw-lite. Really enjoyed it.
  • September 12, 2009
    story was ok and it was a pretty smart film but the characters wer annoying but its worth one watch
  • September 2, 2009
    Fantastic Film... great yet familiar concept...
    Did not enjoy the ending...

Critic Reviews


May 13, 2005
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle

As effective as a movie can be and yet still be 100 percent forgettable. full review

May 12, 2005
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

The mystery, when it is solved, is both arbitrary and explained at great length. The killer gives a speech justifying his actions, which is scant comfort for those already dead. full review

May 12, 2005
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer

The movie's title, I guess, alludes to the student profilers' ability to put themselves in the mind-set of a murderer. In this witless exercise, however, Mindhunters more accurately suggests that all ... full review

May 6, 2005
Nick Schager, Slant Magazine

Saying super-hack Renny Harlin is no Agatha Christie might be the understatement of the millennium. full review

View more Mindhunters reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

Comments


  • nbhatti3000
    December 6, 2007
    who is the killer in the group of training center. this is suspense movie you will love it.
  • LouiseLesley
    July 14, 2007
    I loved this movie :D

    I couldn't wait to see it when I first heard about it. The actors I all love part from a few. I thought it had an amazing storyline. The murders where amazing.

    And So unpredicatable. You would of never saw the end coming. :-)

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

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Mindhunters Trivia


  • Which actor starred in Very Bad Things, 3000 Miles to Graceland, and Mindhunters?  Answer »
  • Which actor played Jake Harris in the movie Mindhunters?  Answer »
  • In which movie feature all of this actor:LL Cool J,Val Kilmer,Christian Slater,Eion Bailey,Kathryn Morris,Will Kemp and Patricia Velasquez?  Answer »
  • What movie did LL Cool J, Val Kilmer and Christiam Slater all star in?  Answer »

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