The Invisible Man is probably the most devilish, and darkly funny film in the Universal pantheon of classic monsters. It’s a film where you can sense the main character is in fact mad, and is not apologetic about it. He wrecks havoc wherever he goes, and doesn’t seem to care who he hurts or what gets in his way.
In one scene we see him knock over a baby carriage, and killing a policeman by smashing his face in with a chair. The horror of the film comes in the idea just how much power being invisible could weld, and how that could easily corrupt an individual to act on their most primal instincts.
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Based on H.G. Wells’ classic novel of the same name, The Invisible Man tells the story of Jack Griffin (Claude Rains), a scientist who has stumbled upon a formula that has made him invisible. Desperate to find a way to regain his full body again, Griffin holds up in a country inn, hiding his affliction with the use of bandages, goggles and a puddy nose. The local residents grow suspicious of his appearance and figure he might have been in some accident. Griffin becomes reclusive and demands to be left alone which doesn’t help his case with the Inn keepers growing a resentment.
After a sudden outburst with the landlady, which causes Griffin to injure her husband, he is confronted by a few citizens including a police officer. After which, he decides to reveal himself, stripping away his bandages, and even his clothes so he becomes absolutely undetectable. Griffin then escapes and causes chaos among the town, stemming from some harmless practical joking, to more severe violence.
Meanwhile, we learn a bit of Griffin’s backstory, when we are introduced to his mentor Dr. Cranley (Henry Travers). Cranley is concerned that Griffin has disappeared not knowing the reason as to why yet. Also distraught is Cranley’s daughter Flora (Gloria Stuart), who is in love with Griffin and is genuinely concerned for his well-being. Cranley and his assistant Kemp (William Harrigan), investigate Griffin’s abandoned labratory, to discover a chemical which he used in his experiments is a highly dangerous substance with with a side effect that causes madness (ain’t that always the case?). Now racing against the clock, everyone is on the hunt for the invisible man before things get worse, and more people get hurt.
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The Invisible Man is a rather delightfully cynical piece courtesy of director James Whale, who had a wicked sense of humour when it came to his horror films. With this, Whale has concocted a tale without a moral centre, something that was very uncommon in those days.
Rather, the film revels in the misdeeds of Jack Griffin, a man who has lost all sense of his humanity when he becomes invisible. There is a sense of freedom in Griffin when he is able throw off the shackles of everyday society by no longer being a slave to its rules. This leads to his most primal instincts and its there he becomes a monster to be feared.
The film is helped tremendously by state of the art special effects which bring the idea of an invisible man alive. The process included having Rains wear a velvet suit, while shooting him in a black velvet background; then combining that footage with a shot of the location the scene was taking place. It was no doubt an arduous process, but the effects look so remarkably spectacular it’s difficult to think any modern use of CGI would make it any better.
Although he is never shown, except for a brief few moments at the end of the film, Claude Rains seems to be having a field day. His voice and actions speak volumes to portray Griffin’s pure lunacy, add to that some much needed wit and humour which makes for a rather charming mad man. Rains, who would take on such iconic roles in films like Casablanca, Now Voyager, and Notorious, was one of the great character actors in Hollywood’s golden age, even getting Bette Davis to declare him one of her favorite acting partners.
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It’s rather ironic that The Invisible Man was one of the few films Rains had the lead in, being that he is hardly seen. Despite that, it’s an iconic performance which is part of why the film is so memorable.
All this being said, there is something that is rather tantalizing and envious in Griffin’s predicament, which someone could almost find irresistable. No doubt Wells touched on this in his original novel about how once you are no longer seen, the social norms no longer apply. The fun of the film is how Griffin’s crime spree turns into a sort of social commentary, one with an anarchic spirit.
We may not sympathize with him, and we may even be horrified by him; however the dirty little secret this film suggests is that there is a part of us which may want to be him, if only for the chance to be free of consequence. It begs the question how far might one go if given the chance. Luckily this film exists to keep such thoughts at bay.
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