There's breathing in my barn!

Claude Rains. The man. The myth. The legend. You cannot talk about this film, whether in conversation or in any review, without placing this actor on the tip of your tongue. He is the epitome of the madness that surrounded the power-hungry Invisible Man. In this day of modern cinematic wonder, most full-fledged actors would want their faces to be in front of the camera, showcasing the entire film. Directors would want this fledgling star to promote their film, get kiddies interested in spending their money, and for financiers to see the profits of their contributions. Let's face it, if Brad Pitt is in a movie, typically most audience members are actually going to "see" Brad Pitt. Thankfully, we have directors like James Whale and his interpretation of H.G.Wells' classic The Invisible Man. Whale took a powerful story, expanded it, breathed life into it, and followed up with quite possibly one of the most sinister villains in movie horror history since Hannibal Lector. He is crude, he is heartless, and he wants nothing more than world domination ... he is Claude Rains ... and yet, until the end of the film, we never see the white's of his eyes.

There are several reasons why I just fell in love with this film, outside of the cataclysmic performance of Claude Rains. Ohhhh, Claude Rains. I loved the way that this movie was filmed. I loved the scope of the Invisible Man's terror. Whale could have kept his antagonist to committing just single murders of friends and family, he could of just kept it confined to just one single town, he could have kept our focus directly on the turmoil of Rains, but instead, he decided (amazingly!) to open the entire can of worms with success. When I first began this film I was expecting the classic images of angry villagers with pitchforks storming the house that the Invisible Man lived within, but instead, Whale gave us this sort of random chaos that truly created fear around this character. Whale is able to give us the true terror of this madman by perhaps expanding his budget and showing us how big the terror of the Invisible Man is. For example, I never foresaw the horrific train accident, nor the random worker push off the mountain, and when Rains explained to Kemp what the human impact of falling down a ravine would be like, it literally sent shivers down my spine. Whale created a madman better than some modern horror films could ever accomplish.

For a film created in the 1930s, the special effects were spectacular. Sure, CGI was just a glimmer in Lucas' mother's eyes, but James Whale did a superb job of giving us these rare glimpses into the future of special effects. The way that he created the Invisible Man surprised me. I did not expect to ever see the creature without his bandages on, but within ten minutes we are shown the full scope of Whale's creativity. I thought the use of snow, dust, and even the early stages of the overused "green screen" was original for its time. To see Rains smoke as the Invisible Man put a smile on my face. This is a perfect example of a film that used just enough special effects, in the right way, to make the audience forget for a brief time that this was in fact a film ... not real life. While the special effects did have one or two flaws (see the Invisible Man riding the stolen bike - were those wires?), I must credit Whale for pushing the envelope for the time. It was surprising to see such quality from such an older film.

If there would be anything that I would change about this film would be the subtext concerning the relationship between Rains and Flora (played by Titanic star Gloria Stuart). I thought this was nearly unnecessary. I understand the value of trying to give a human element to this monster, but I thought that it could have been done without these random scenes. There wasn't really any connection between the two, and we were left with very little information of them prior to the start of the film. Perhaps if there had been a stronger pre-story it would have congealed better. The same can be said for the chemistry and reasonings for the plot points surrounding Rains and Kemp. I could understand why they occurred during the film, but there had to be something more prior to the opening scene. I wanted to know more. I think that is a good sign for a film, when you are left wondering what was the story before this one ... and even what was it afterwards.

Overall, I thought this was an exceptional film. I now have this newfound respect for Claude Rains, a man I knew nothing about prior to watching this film. He carried this film and honestly successfully pulled off one of the most frightening madmen this world has ever seen. I think what scared me the most about him was the fact that he actually, unlike some villains, actually followed through with his vile plans. He was evil, whether the invisibility did it or not, he was pure evil, and I loved every minute of it. The special effects were delightful, with a small subplot that this picture could have gone without. Amazing, and a perfect treat before Halloween!

Grade: ***** out of *****

"There's A Souvenir For You"

Haven't we all fantasized about what it would be like to be invisible? Most of the common perks come to mind: spying, getting into movies and amusement parks free, even the baser peeping tom inclinations come to mind. James Whale would pair his Frankenstein masterpieces with this equally trend-setting film. The film is only loosely based on the popular H.G. Wells novel and is played more for chills. Claude Rains does such a wonderful role when you consider that for most of the film he is denied a physical presence on the screen.

Jack Griffin develops a formula that can render a man invisible. When he experiments on himself he finds that regaining his visibility another matter. Griffin slowly goes insane from the effects of the mixture. His colleague must stop him before he destroys himself and maybe the world.

"Now You See Him: The Invisible Man Revealed" is another grand documentary created for this DVD release. You will be treated to the very birth of modern special effects. The DVD includes trailers, bios, production notes and stills, and web links. Menus remain simple and easy to use.

Boris Karloff turned down the title role in much the same fanfare Lugosi did with Frankenstein. Although not as famous as other monsters, the Invisible Man is not without its influence. This is more the story of having power and being intoxicated and eventually corrupted by that power. Also look for Titanic's Gloria Stewart and the hilarious Una O'Connor who has the unfortunate luck to stumble upon the Invisible Man in all his invisibility. Universal's given us this DVD with the warning: "There's a souvenir for you."

Masterly vintage science fiction movie

I would argue that nowhere in the history of the movies has there been an odder movie debut than that of the great Claude Rains in The Invisible Man .He is seen only briefly in the final scene and the vast majority of his " appearance " in this effective adaptation of Wells is a voice only one .
The movie opens with a scientist , Jim Griffin , ( Rains ) arriving at a remote English village inn ,during a snowstorm .He is heavily swathed in bandages and buried beneath many layers of heavy winter clothing and so we catch not a glimpse of his face or features .He takes a room at the inn ,brusquely demanding privacy .His manner so alienates the landlady that he is asked to leave and the police called in .It is then he reveals his secret -he is invisible when removing his clothing ,and has been frantically but futilely searching for an antidote
He has been experimenting in invisibilty using a drug called "monocaine" which does render him invisible but it also makes him unstable and sends him teetering over the edge into full blown madness .
He returns to London and makes contact with a former colleague Doctor Kemp and terrorises him into compliance with his insane scheme to turn his powers of invisibility into world domination but Kemp advises the police and Griffin flees with the forces of the law hot on his trail
There is some wonderful dialogue here as for example Rains ruminating on carrying out his plans " We'll start with a few murders .Small men .Great men .Just to show we make no distinction " .The inconvenience of invisibility is deftly touched on -its hard to walk downstairs when you cannot see your feet .Indeed ,in its depiction of the pains and perils of being different this is a companion piece to the same director's movie Frankenstein .
Full of memorable scecenes -the first removal of the bandages to reveal nothing lies beneath them ;the final scenes as the police close in on Griffin ,this is a classic that has mostly worn well.The scenes with the villagers - especially the permanently screeching Una O'Connor as the landlady -are tiresome but represent a minor blot on the escutcheon of an exceptional and humane movie