What classics did you see last week ? (23 Feb - 29 Feb 2020)

“The Invisible Man”   Distributed by Universal Pictures, 124 Minutes, Rated R, Released February 28, 2020:

Those movie fans among us who grew up watching television reruns of the Universal library of classic horror movies from the 1930s and 1940s might remember “The Invisible Man” as one of the lesser monsters in the series.  

With little of the sheer nightmare quality of, say, Dracula, Frankenstein, or the Creature from the Black Lagoon and below even the dusty, slow-moving Mummy in basic costume and makeup appeal, the Invisible Man was on an approximate level with, say, any of a half-dozen other crazy scientists...even though his voice characterization was supplied by superstars of the genre like Claude Rains and, later, Vincent Price.

That all might be about the change with Universal’s new reboot of the original James Whale horror picture from 1933.  Released on February 28, “The Invisible Man” turns out to be a first-rate, new age horror masterpiece that transitions the hoary old monster into a genuinely horrific walking nightmare, with an emotional resonance relevant to the era of #MeToo and filled with chills and suspense worthy of a latter-day Hitchcock classic. 

In ”The Invisible Man,” after enduring for too long a dangerously abusive relationship with a brilliant research scientist conducting experiments in optics, a young architect manages one night to flee her controlling spouse.  But when he commits suicide shortly after her escape, a series of small occurances gradually cause her to suspect her former spouse is not dead, but disappeared.

Written and directed by Leigh Whannell, the Australian screenwriter behind 2004’s “Saw” and the first two “Insidious” movies (as well as the writer/director of “Insidious: Chapter 3”), “The Invisible Man” has little more than a nodding relationship with either the original classic 1933 picture from Universal or the 1897 science fiction novel by H.G. Wells on which it’s based.  Instead, the new movie uses the conceit of the title character’s invisibility to recreate in the viewer’s mind a little of the genuine, powerless terror of anyone who’s ever experienced a controlling and abusive spouse, or a stalker.

A very unique type of horror picture, “The Invisible Man” is very aware of its incredible nature, and plays on the audience’s sense of disbelief to craft an airtight second reality, with the result of instilling in the mind of the viewer a very real feeling of dread, helplessness, and paranoia.  The horror elements are there, but during the movie’s first half they’re so unexpected, and delivered so swiftly, that they’re gone before you’re even sure you saw them. The second half of the movie transitions into more traditional horror--the picture is a co-production of the Black Crypt of Blumhouse after all.  But it’s all so expertly devised, and executed so breathlessly, that you likely won’t notice any difference until it’s all over.

“The Invisible Man” is anchored by Elisabeth Moss--the heroine from TV’s “The Handmaid’s Tale”--in a harrowing, heartbreaking, and surprisingly strenuous performance as the hapless young architect.  This is not a glamorous role or a movie star turn--Moss throughout the course of the picture is chased, terrorized, drugged, jailed, beaten up, and pretty much everything else you might expect from the writer of “Saw.”  But in a horror picture which in lesser hands might’ve used a second-string Scream Queen to provide gradually diminishing jump scares, Moss contributes an elusive element indeed--she’s a superbly talented actress, and invests her every scene with both empathy and dignity.  Alfred Hitchcock would’ve been proud.

“The Invisible Man” also contains strong supporting performances from Aldis Hodge and Storm Reid as supportive friends, Harriet Dyer as Moss’ protective sister, Michael Dorman as the smarmy and manipulative brother of the disappeared scientist, and Oliver Jackson-Cohen of the web-based television series “The Haunting of Hill House” in a fairly brief characterization as the terrifying now-you-see-him, now-you-don’t title character.

“The Invisible Man” was originally planned as a project for actor Johnny Depp in Universal Pictures’ “Dark Universe” series of motion picture reboots of its classic horror films from the 1930s and 1940s.  But when the premier film in the franchise (the 2017 reimagining of “The Mummy” starring Tom Cruise) bombed at the box office and lost some $95 million of the studio’s investment, plans for the Dark Universe series were scrapped in favor of individual remakes of selected titles from the Universal library.

Incidentally, the to-die-for clifftop dwelling of the title character in “The Invisible Man” is Headland House, an actual holiday rental in Mt. Pleasant, Gerringong, New South Wales, Australia.  With eight rooms, four bedrooms, 4.5 baths, a kitchen, gymnasium, pool, and spectacular ocean view, the rental rates are around $2246 per night. Just thought you’d like to know. 

Set in San Francisco but actually filmed in New South Wales, Australia, “The Invisible Man” is rated R for strong, bloody violence, and language concerns.