The Invisible Man (B+ or 3/4 stars)
'The Invisible Man' (directed by Australian Leigh Whannell of the Saw & Insidious franchises) is a chilling, modern-day remake of the classic 1933 Universal monster movie by James Whale, & is based on the 1897 H.G. Wells sci-fi novel. Aspiring architect Cecilia Kass (Elisabeth Moss) is terrified of her abusive, controlling, narcissistic optics scientist boyfriend, Adrian (Oliver Jackson-Cohen). To that, she drugs him, sneaks out of his high-tech seaside mansion in the dead of night, & gets a ride to San Fran safety from her sister (Harriet Dyer) -- this opening sequence is killer! She ends up staying with her cop friend, James (Aldis Hodge, great in 2019's Clemency), a single father to college-bound Sydney (Storm Reid, of 2018's A Wrinkle in Time).
Suffering from intense PTSD, agoraphobia, & fretting that Adrian will find her, Cecilia is stunned to learn that he committed suicide. Not only that, she also learns from Adrian's brother, Tom (Michael Dorman), that Adrian left her $5 mill in his will to be paid in monthly installments; something she can use to help James' daughter continue her education. Though she is relieved, Cecilia still can't shake the sensation that Adrian is somehow ... around. Increasingly distraught, she starts experiencing bizarrities, bumps in the night & coincidences that not only make her question her sanity, but also whether he still might be alive using one of his inventions to make him appear invisible. As Cecilia's paranoia worsens, everyone close to her thinks she might be 'losing it', all while she tries to prove her innocence in a brutal murder, and that Adrian is haunting her - not from the grave - but as an invisible entity.
With exception to some plot holes & a couple of sluggish spurts, Leigh Whannell's updated take on the H.G. Wells tale does just about everything right; delivering an atmospheric, dread-inducing, clever thriller with touches of horror & sci-fi. This 2020 version retains the idea of the invisible person being psychotic, but smartly combines it with Hitchcockian "falsely accused" paranoia touches, as well as a female empowerment angle. The way this film looks is paramount to its success. Most horror flicks keep their villains in the shadows to evoke maximum scares. But for this story, due to the invisibility, the villain can hide in plain, brightly lit sight and, using camera tricks & static shots, our eyes can never know where the title character might be lurking on the screen -- genius! This prevents the viewer from knowing just when & where - onscreen - a startling jump scare may take place.
Right from the opening credits - with the title cards forming from the ocean swelling against some rocks - I was hooked. The set design {that state of the art mansion} is a wower. The Invisible Man's use {or non-use} of sound is great. Benjamin Wallfisch's edgy music score amplifies the suspenseful proceedings throughout. The visual effects are inspired, too; sometimes it's not about the quantity of CGI, but how they are utilized for maximum effect. And 2 fantastic visual sequences stick out in my mind: 1) involving an attic and the dumping of white paint. And 2) a certain restaurant scene; what happens will leave your mouth agape. For a film that cost a mere $7 million, I am mightily impressed by how handsome the production was.
Though her resume is accomplished {The West Wing, Mad Men, The Handmaid's Tale, et al}, Elisabeth Moss hasn't always clicked with me; but boy does she carry this film brilliantly. Moss transforms from portraying a fragile, suffering woman who is being gaslighted into an appealingly tough woman who decides that enough is enough. It's a nerve-shattering performance that combines the subtlety of characterization with some magnificent physicality.
Now, the suspense-laden 1st hour gives way to a 2nd hour narrative that relies too much on head-tilting twists, cookie-cutter horror/thriller tropes, & a few too many plot holes that rear their heads {regarding the lack of a coroner's exam, something involving Adrian's brother, & why exactly would Adrian spend so much energy tormenting Cecilia in the 1st place?}. Too many small details become less than air-tight. But that is also to be expected in movies of this ilk. And the ending satisfies on an elemental level. 'The Invisible Man' is, by far, the strongest film of the dreary 1st 2 months of 2020. The craft on display is stellar. And despite story flaws, Moss's performance + the updated female empowerment spin invigorates this tried-&-true tale.
Suffering from intense PTSD, agoraphobia, & fretting that Adrian will find her, Cecilia is stunned to learn that he committed suicide. Not only that, she also learns from Adrian's brother, Tom (Michael Dorman), that Adrian left her $5 mill in his will to be paid in monthly installments; something she can use to help James' daughter continue her education. Though she is relieved, Cecilia still can't shake the sensation that Adrian is somehow ... around. Increasingly distraught, she starts experiencing bizarrities, bumps in the night & coincidences that not only make her question her sanity, but also whether he still might be alive using one of his inventions to make him appear invisible. As Cecilia's paranoia worsens, everyone close to her thinks she might be 'losing it', all while she tries to prove her innocence in a brutal murder, and that Adrian is haunting her - not from the grave - but as an invisible entity.
With exception to some plot holes & a couple of sluggish spurts, Leigh Whannell's updated take on the H.G. Wells tale does just about everything right; delivering an atmospheric, dread-inducing, clever thriller with touches of horror & sci-fi. This 2020 version retains the idea of the invisible person being psychotic, but smartly combines it with Hitchcockian "falsely accused" paranoia touches, as well as a female empowerment angle. The way this film looks is paramount to its success. Most horror flicks keep their villains in the shadows to evoke maximum scares. But for this story, due to the invisibility, the villain can hide in plain, brightly lit sight and, using camera tricks & static shots, our eyes can never know where the title character might be lurking on the screen -- genius! This prevents the viewer from knowing just when & where - onscreen - a startling jump scare may take place.
Right from the opening credits - with the title cards forming from the ocean swelling against some rocks - I was hooked. The set design {that state of the art mansion} is a wower. The Invisible Man's use {or non-use} of sound is great. Benjamin Wallfisch's edgy music score amplifies the suspenseful proceedings throughout. The visual effects are inspired, too; sometimes it's not about the quantity of CGI, but how they are utilized for maximum effect. And 2 fantastic visual sequences stick out in my mind: 1) involving an attic and the dumping of white paint. And 2) a certain restaurant scene; what happens will leave your mouth agape. For a film that cost a mere $7 million, I am mightily impressed by how handsome the production was.
Though her resume is accomplished {The West Wing, Mad Men, The Handmaid's Tale, et al}, Elisabeth Moss hasn't always clicked with me; but boy does she carry this film brilliantly. Moss transforms from portraying a fragile, suffering woman who is being gaslighted into an appealingly tough woman who decides that enough is enough. It's a nerve-shattering performance that combines the subtlety of characterization with some magnificent physicality.
Now, the suspense-laden 1st hour gives way to a 2nd hour narrative that relies too much on head-tilting twists, cookie-cutter horror/thriller tropes, & a few too many plot holes that rear their heads {regarding the lack of a coroner's exam, something involving Adrian's brother, & why exactly would Adrian spend so much energy tormenting Cecilia in the 1st place?}. Too many small details become less than air-tight. But that is also to be expected in movies of this ilk. And the ending satisfies on an elemental level. 'The Invisible Man' is, by far, the strongest film of the dreary 1st 2 months of 2020. The craft on display is stellar. And despite story flaws, Moss's performance + the updated female empowerment spin invigorates this tried-&-true tale.