Happy Halloween or Dia de los Muertos when this gets posted. You may have noticed that my output has been significantly less compared to last year. To briefly talk about it, I’ve been working as a substitute teacher and some days is when I’m just drained. I know it’s not a good excuse but I still try to put out a good review on some great films. Or probably get my lazy keister to schedule things accordingly and have things prepared so that it doesn’t feel that I’m rushing at the last minute. Well, take it however way you want it. I’ve been wanting to see this film for awhile and it basically kicked off the decade as the continuation of quality horror.
1. Update
It’s been five years since I’ve talked about Leigh Whannel’s Upgrade. I just adored that film since it was something unique as an action film and utilizing the idea of someone’s humanity being lost to technology. So it seemed that while the movie didn’t do well financially, Universal decided to do another film where he has total control. And the thing I’ve noticed is that he never shies away from the potential of technology being abused and used in the wrong hands. Especially if it means updating a classic story to fit in the 21st Century.
Before I talk about the film, I want to at least give some context. The Invisible Man was written by the forerunner of sci-fi H.G. Wells. Universal adapted the story to be a part of their Monster franchise in the 30s. The success of that film spawned sequels that were loosely connected but never as good as the original. Due to the success of The Mummy films of the late 90s and early 2000s, Universal tried multiple times to adapt their Monster films for the new generation of filmgoers.
Ironically, it was Tom Cruise’s The Mummy that was supposed to kick off the Dark Universe. An experiment that would mirror the Marvel Cinematic Universe but infusing the classic Universal Monsters in a contemporary setting. Cruise’s film was so bad that it wiped out any potential of the universe growing. All the potential follow ups were cancelled by the waste side, as Johnny Depp was originally supposed to star in the hypothetical film. To salvage the slate, the studio decided to do a stand-alone film.
With the reset in place, it makes sense to do update the premise as the book was about the scientist Griffin who decides to use his experiment to rob but slowly grows isolated and insane. You simply can’t just do potions but imbue technology that seems practical to anyone nowadays. With the way the film works is simply lightning in a bottle, due to the execution in both the acting and in the greater context of the film. While I’ll talk about the big idea of the film, let’s talk about the many positives.
What’s funny is that this isn’t Elizabeth Moss’s first rodeo involving invisible people. As a child actress, she lends her voice in an episode of Batman: The Animated Series. Titled "See No Evil", Moss’s character has an “imaginary” friend that robs the bank that gets Batman’s attention. To the point that Batman defeats him by having water rain down on him. I just think it’s an interesting trivia and maybe the circumstances were too convenient that perhaps Moss wasn’t aware of it.
Anyways, we follow Moss’s character Cecilia, as she escapes from her abusive relationship in which her ex is a brilliant scientist. After being told that her ex committed suicide, odd things start to occur around her where she feels like she is being watched. To the point where she’s paranoid and inevitably realizes that her ex is physically abusing her through intangibility. I’ll talk about that aspect in the next tab. I will say that Elizabeth Moss just steals the show.
Playing Cecilia, Moss just shows just how much of a wreck she is as she’s slowly recovering from her abusive relationship. One would think that she would be in one place, but as soon as any progress to have her be better is when the terror sets in. The way it’s shot is just perfect since we get a lot of camera pans of where the character is and can only imagine where the threat is. The execution is on par with Jaws. I’ll continue to harp on this but the best part in any great horror film is not seeing where the threat is and what’s going to happen.
Following the template where he can be anywhere near Cecilia, and us just dreading what he’ll do when he’s alone with her. The way the terror is used is amplified by having it be cruel mind games then it gradually becoming physical where we see Griffin drag the abused. It’s the best executed horror when it’s becoming terrifying since we can only imagine what their relationship was prior to the film starting. While we do hear what their past was like, this was inevitable a toxic relationship.
I should at least talk about the special effects. As I mentioned earlier, there was no way to have it be where a potion is created and to have us believe it. The original worked since it took place where it was plausible in the context of the story. In this one, a suit is built where the body has a hexagonal honeycomb look to it with tiny cameras that reflect the setting. It’s great but an audio flaw where we can hear where he is when Cecilia is attempting to find him.
2. Domestic Abuse
I can imagine that some die-hard of the story was disappointed with the angle that was being used. If we’re being honest, this is Invisible Man in name only. The best thing though is that given the I.P. that we have, there’s ample opportunity to expand the core concepts and introduce the terror in unique ways that can still be terrifying to today’s audience. Having it be where an abuser wears a suit of invisibility and just making life to his ex a living hell is just brutal.
I didn’t touch on Moss’s character but I will now. As I mentioned earlier, she just nails the movie with her performance. She easily sells being terrified and paranoid with how much abuse she gets put through. I think it’s her face where she’s being questioned with no makeup and just having the eyes where she hasn’t gotten a good sleep. We got a good idea of what she wants, but just getting herself acclimated is ruined when her ex slowly dials up the abuse.
Most of the execution is treated like a psychological horror film. This one makes it work by having it intersect with technology and nobody believing her one bit. To the point that the authorities and her ex’s brother not believing what she’s going through. In some way, I feel that this is a successor to Leigh Whannel’s prior work Saw. He wrote that one, but while that one feels exploitive with the torture aspect. This one is for a lack of a better word better since Cecilia is being tortured by her ex and there’s nothing she can do about it.
3. Overall
The Invisible Man is one of the best horror films of this decade.
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