The Invisible Man always struck me as the scariest of the Universal monsters, because he's basically like the Joker from Batman, only invisible. Sure, he has that fun side of him and he's a walking power fantasy, but he also has a dark side, willing to kill innocent people just for fun. I think the original movie would have been scarier if it had implied that maybe the formula hadn't made Griffin insane - that maybe just being invisible and being able to do anything he wanted was enough to corrupt him by itself...
That would ruin the mad science gone wrong angle though. The experiment probably unleashed his dark side and caused him to become more of a monster. You could suggest that the dark side was always there, but making him an irredeemable monster would ruin the idea of an experiment going wrong.
In the H.G. Wells story Griffin actually was a sociopath before becoming invisible, vivisecting a cat while it was alive at one point. Though becoming invisible definitely didn't help his mental state.
I feel it's symbolically appropriate that someone who becomes invisible becomes maniacal, because they can no longer see themselves or appreciate the results of their actions. If people think they're being observed, they tend to behave more in line with society, and someone who's invisible is one who literally can't be observed, so to me it makes sense that he'd lose touch with his humanity and become a maniac.
Camille Dinesen My bad it's been a while since I've read the book, Griffin still wasn't exactly a poster boy for mental health. The guy stole from his father, eventually driving him to suicide, and then admits that he feels no remorse.
I have so admired the acting brilliance of Claude Raines. His voice and range are unmatched and equaled only by his immense talent. I do a loving impression of Raines in this role making a lot of my fellow old timers laugh . I apply his manic behavior to everyday situations with great effect. .
That would have been an intriguing prospect. As it is, I love the Dracula film we have now, for the most part. Yes, parts of the cinemaphotography are weak, Lucy's staking is not shown, and a couple of the supporting characters like Harker are weak. But somehow, the film still creeps me out due to its lack of music, fantastic performances by Lugosi and Dwight Frye, brilliant atmosphere, and stillness of some shots allowing the viewer to see the horror play out.
@@connorbrennan4233 Also, seeing how Lugosi was booted from Frankenstein at Whale’s request, we may never have had his great performance. Although, he was Dracula in the stage version, so, he may still have played him.
That is a very cool idea, Whale would have demanded a better-edited film, and the shot selection would have been far superior. Whale's strong personality would have pushed Bela much more. I think Browning was too "wowed" by Lugosi's presence to direct him well, and was too hampered by the specter of the stage play on blocking.
@@superfit60 also, according to an interview with Manners, Tod Browning was "rarely" on set during filming. Now that's a problem that wouldn't occur with J. whale.
Am I the only one who thinks that Margaret Hamilton should have been the invisible woman? After playing the Wicked Witch of the West, it would have been perfect. Besides she would have looked good being invisible.
I love Claude Rains as Prince John in Errol Flynn's Robin Hood. The clear joy in his eyes that he's giving his older brother a hard time, rather than really being in charge.....it's perfect.
I love Griffin's dialogue to Kemp before he described what is about to happen... "I hope your insurance is paid up, Because you're about to have a nasty accident!!!!".
Along with Whales' direction, I think Rains' performance is why the original "Invisible Man" holds up so well, even more than the amazing special effects. But the thought of Colin Clive as Griffin almost makes me wish he'd taken the role...almost. This is probably my favorite Raines performance of all I've seen so far.
This first time I saw this movie I was shocked with how well it had aged, the dialogue, the special effects, the acting, The Story. I was truly compelled by Claude rains voice and the presence he gave the invincible man, this still remains my favorite version of the character.
While the Invisible Man was Claude Raines' breakout role, it's also unlike any other performance he ever gave, so unhinged. I never understood why until I got the detail that he was a claustrophobe. A claustrophobe in bandages and that suffocating suit for the SFX...yeah, I get it now.
How's that for a Hairbrush George Henry? Here's Ya Bloomin' bicycle! You can do what what you like with it! We do our part! How can I arrest a Blooming Shirt? My absolute favourite of the universal horror series. James Whales best picture by far! A classic and groundbreaking at the time with a wonderful performance by Claude Rains as the ghastly Griffin!
Glad to see you covering this. This is, by far, my favorite of the Universal horrors. Like The Bride of Frankenstein it's a perfect display of Whale's penchant for wicked, subversive and barely veiled subtextual humor. Rains' megalomaniacal giddy glee at his free rampage almost feels liberating to watch. I adore it. Thanks for the fine video.
Griffin belongs to the same school as of Dr. Frankenstein and Dr. Moreau: doing the worst things with the best of intentions and the results backfires.
I hate to be contrarian, but I don't think Dr. Moreau had good intentions. He seems totally selfish and doesn't even have an end goal for his research. He seems to just want to see how far he can go. Frankenstein isn't an altruist either. He wants to create artificial life just to prove that he can.
I was glad that this years Universal remake, was at least an actual genre film. So many of the previous attempts at relaunching the universal horror films- ended up being generic Michael Bay like action nonsense. The Invisible Man 2020 is if nothing else, a completely new story, that's actually rooted in suspense.
100% agree! I absolutely LOVED the new 2020 version for a number of reasons, but the fact that it was actually a horror movie, rather than a wannabe superhero action vehicle, is a major one. I loved how it figured out EXACTLY what makes the titular character so scary and threatening and applied it to a very real, and topical, scenario (domestic abuse and gaslighting).
This isn't a horror movie.....it's more of a drama-suspense-dark comedy. Great classic....and how can anyone watch this film and not be rooting for the guy? It was so funny how he went after the people he did not like....
The Invisible Man is one of the very first examples of a dark comedy in cinema. It’s laughs come from what Jack does in his acts of insanity, and while the film is still a horror story and has dark moments like the train crash, the film is also home to comedy, such as when the man steals a pair of trousers and starts singing, and when he steals the banks money and throws it in the street.
If more monster reboots from Universal will mean more excellent videos like this from Dark Corners, I say, "Bring it on Universal! Churn out as much half-cooked tripe as you like!"
Thank you for making this! The Invisible Man is my favorite Universial monster and my favourite film from that line up. It's funny and scary all at once, and the special effects are just MIND BLOWING considering it was made in 1933!
'The Murderer Invisible' is available on Amazon. This was Claude Rains's film debut. He'd been a stage actor, and Whale had to remind him that the blocking was different in movies.
I think the 2020 version is the freshest remake. They don't try to pander the original theory. It's fully updated for people to understand in our time. And honestly for anyone to feel creeped out in their home alone. Also for those who have been mentally or emotionally abused by anyone, it's a very real atmosphere. I think it was a good re make. There are extremely extremely few good remakes now a days.
This was great. Watching the first two films with my girlfriend this weekend. Showing this first for context as this covers all the information I'd probably want to proffer before screening time usually and this way no one has to hear my big mouth and watch me take up precious time holding the floor. Perfect for getting settled and properly inebriated. This is of some service and proportionally appreciated. Thanks from America.
As always, these deep dives are just the best! They are well made, well researched, informative, and hugely entertaining.Thank you for this close look at the Invisible Man. He may be my favorite Universal monster because he has so much personality. I never thought about it this way before, but you are right, you like him because you kind of want to be him. Keep up the good work!
I am 58 years old when I was a kid in the mid to late 60s and early 70s living in California they would play this movie and a number of other movies on Saturdays and Sundays , pretty much all day and myself and my brother were just so scared of this movie because if you couldn’t see him ! but we still kept watching (we loved it) these are classic movies universal really hard the pulse on horror movies in the day thank you for posting this I love this! Thanks for taking me back😎
A wonderful look at the entire series and while a couple of the Invisible Man sequels were not up to par with the original, you were still kind enough to point out their positives as well (i.e. Invisible Agent). Film-making is truly a team effort and The Invisible Man remains iconic through the acting, artistry and technical efforts of those involved. Thank you for putting together another entertaining look at a Universal Horror classic.
Another excellent Dark Corners Classics retrospective. Quite interesting that the Invisible Man franchise had quite a few reasonably budgeted sequels. If only the Frankenstein and Mummy franchises had been as lucky. I appreciate how you highlight that Virginia Bruce is the saving grace of The Invisible Woman. She does her best to bring personality to the character and it seemed like her actions against her boss would be part of a commentary on sexism in the workplace. But it was 1940, so of course that wasn't going to stick throughout the film. It's also too bad that she ends up with the jerk millionaire at the end. Edit: I just watched the 2020 film, and I loved it. Elisabeth Moss was brilliant and the scene where she says how her abusive ex has taken everything from her left me in tears. The film had no cheap jump scares and instead relied on quiet moments and patient cinematography to bring in the fright before the finale.
Probably because HG Wells was alive when they made it and had final approval. With Dracula and Frankenstein they didn't have to worry about the authors involvement. Although it is funny how many classic elements from those movies are remembered even if they aren't from the books
@@kyleriches157 That drives me nuts sometimes. Especially when the movie changes eclipse the books and people assume that must be how the story goes. Dracula gets to me, particularly Mina. The book version is a more inspiring female character than pretty much any woman on screen I've seen in a long time using her wits and compassion to track down a literal monster, but most people I know see her as the chick who wants to get with Dracula. I know some alterations are needed to fit the limitations of a new medium but entire character personalities and motivations seems like a pointless move to me. it makes me wish more authors could be involved in their big screen debuts so even if it doesn't do that well at the box office we could get at least one fully accurate version for nitpicky whiners like me.
@@NegaHumanX I've never really understood it either because they usually choose to film these books and stories BECAUSE they are popular..... If they are already popular why change them and if they aren't why film them. I'm all for reinventing for modern audiences but you can still stay true to the original characters and story. The Sherlock series was great for updating everything for a modern audience but still staying true to the characters (most of the time)
@@kyleriches157 Exactly. The characters are the most important thing (in my opinion) to any adaption. But they seem like the first thing a Hollywood studio decides to throw out. I don't care if they reimagine Frankenstein as an anime style rom-com as long as the characters are who they where in their stories. Like how DBZ Abridged keeps all the personalities and attitudes of the characters but frames them in a comedic light. They could also run with new ideas based on the old. Like a continuation of the Daughter of Dracula since she is their own character they can twist however they like. Or just make anyone a werewolf.
You could say that like in so many things Plato started it all, in his legend of the ring of Gyges in his greatest dialogue "The Republic". The ring gives the wearer the power to turn invisible and so the question arises as to whether that person would commit unjust acts for pleasure or personal advantage if they could avoid detection in doing so. The teller of the legend, Plato's brother Glaucon, argues that they would.
I just watched this movie this weekend (along with Horror of Dracula, Corpse Bride, and Last Man on earth), and it was great! I was quite impressed with the special effects too. I probably saw this as a kid but forgot most of it as it's been a long time since I watched 'Shock Theater' on Saturdays in the 70s and early 80s, I'm playing catch up these days!
For those that don't know it, I'll mention the superb spoof "Son of the Invisible Man" which forms part of the John Landis comedy sketch anthology movie "Amazon Women on the Moon". The pastiche makes many careful and respectful nods towards the original movie (it is also a Universal production) and is LOL funny. The clip can be found easily on RUclips.
I laughed so hard in places here, the film is a master piece and a classic, I can't see a remake being as good or as entertaining as this, Claude Rains and the other actors were what made this film so good, the best being you never saw Griffin until the end when he died. Thank you for a great review and historical background as well. Keep these classics coming.
I am a minor fan of the Universal horror movies but never considered The Invisible Man to be a part of that "club"....yet it does fit. BTW, there was an Invisible Woman movie, and the British had an Invisible Man tv series. In the tv series The Invisible Man was a true hero, often going places that the police or security services couldn't go and it was almost like he had a Yellow Pages listing the way folks called him for his special help in every episode.
I always wondered how they managed that effect. Steve Martin once walked on stage at the Oscars without a head to present an award. If he were simply wearing the velvet hood it would have been up to the entire live audience to play along with the gimmick. It was an auditorium full of actors after all. It must have been PR for his new film at the time where he played a man possessed by the spirit of Lilly Tomlin, "How dare you say _penis_ to a dead woman!" ...thats the only thing I remember from the film.
Thanks -- another brilliant, informed and informative retrospective. A couple of things, though: wasn't Peter Lorre actually Hungarian? Also -- hey, that's Charles Lane in Invisible Woman! He was still working into his 90s, quite recently. Surely worth a shout out?
24:18 I hear the voice and accent of the fellow who just spoke and I immediately think of Arte Johnson doing his "It Is Written...." skit on Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In.
P.S.- I seriously can't say enough how much I love this character; The Invisible Man is the definitely my favorite out of the Universal Horror Monsters.
Since you've now covered the Invisible Man, Frankenstein, and The Mummy oh, I hope that you have plans to cover Dracula, the Wolfman, and Creature from the Black Lagoon as well
The 1989 film Santa Sangre also features a pretty prominent Invisible Man reference, so I would've included that one among those mentioned between 36:30 to 37:26.
For me in childhood the invisible man was very much a hero, with a David McCallum show of the name and another called “Gemini Man”. It was only later watching Friday late night horrors on BBC2 I saw this and it completely changed my perception. Terrifying, mainly down to Claude Rains performance. To this day I’ve only seen 2 follow ups that come close to matching it, an 80s BBC series adaptation of Wells’ book which had a similarly scary performance from the lead actor and the 2020 film which was quite a good take on the concept but missed a trick by not really having the invisible man as a proper character, casting an actor with a great voice is definitely the key for good “Invisible Man”. The 1933 film is still my favourite version of “The Invisible Man” and my favourite of the classic Universal monster flicks.
Correct...letting the light rays pass through you would give your eyes nothing to reflect and thus deprive you of sight. Warren Ellis actually referenced this in his glorious pop culture mashup comic Planetary.
I first encountered this medical dilemma years and years ago in a humor magazine featuring a drawing of the gloved and facially-wrapped Invisible Man standing on a street corner and bellowing how he was on the verge of taking over American society with his awesome powers of transparency . . . before holding out a tin cup and asking for handouts from passersby because he couldn't make a living any other way as a blind person. CuffColl.
My expectations were low for Whannell's THE INVISIBLE MAN - the surprise, then, for me, was just how well and how far he surpassed them. If you're going to abandon Wells's source material, you'd better come up with something spectacular - and he did! Splendidly!
I use Jack Griffin as a stage name in a few play groups I am in. This is a spectacular movie, and Raines is one of the finest most versatile and actors to ever walk the earth.
Funny thing about the Mexican Invisible Man film: it's an unofficial remake of The Invisible Man Returns, only the Mexican version doesn't cop out at the end; that Invisible Man DOES go insane at the end, preparing to drop deadly bacillus into the local reservoir. Admittedly, the special effects can in no way be compared to the unique work of John P Fulton, but it satisfied.
I saw the original Invisable Man when I was about 10 years old on Shock Theatre WPTA Channel 21 in Fort Wayne, Indiana about 1957. It scared the hell out of me.
2:32 Dear Robin Bailes, HG Wells: THE INVISIBLE MAN, was not satire at all. I read the book The new INVISIBLE MAN has nothing to do with such, it is a MeeToo Movement film, and no fun at all
If you've never seen it, you have to check out "Secret Agent"~~~ A 1936 British film by another director who impressed audiences with taut thrillers injected with humor -- Alfred Hitchcock -- it stars John Gielgud, Madeleine Carroll, Robert Young, and Peter Lorre as "The General." ("Oh, he isn't really a general, he just likes to be called that...")
The funny thing about saying the character in the first film was a good man before he took the invisibility concoction is how his book counterpart was anything but good before or after invisibility.
Peter Lorre was a Hungarian Jew. Whether he became a German national is kind of moot. He left German well before the War (WWII) broke out (he saw the warning and an apocryphal story says he was warned out of Germany by Joseph Goebbels, an admirer of his movies!) and was in the US by 1935. He was a naturalized US citizen by 1941. He's one of my favorite character actors on the basis of Casablanca, 20k Under the Sea, and just about every film I've seen him in. The accent and sad facial expression work for me! For years, I thought he was French!
Thank you. We a great success last year with our video on the Hammer Dracula series that more than doubled our subscriber count in a couple of months, it does feel like we are finally on the rise.
@@DarkCornersReviews Hope so! I was just watching Top Ten Lost Films yesterday and was thinking to myself "This is awesome, I wish he did more of these specials". Can't wait for the next one.
Love your longer , documentary-like videos: they are chock full of interesting observations and facts .. your channel at his best... Keep the good work coming , personally I always pay a visit to Dark Corners whenever I log into YT...
The original film will always be a landmark for the performance of Claude Rains, Whale’s direction, the brilliant source material and it’s translation to screen & yeah the effects can be dated if you look closely but they’re still impressive for a nearly 90 year old film
I am a collector of scifi and horror. I have several Universal Silver Screen collectables. I finally found a seller who was selling his action figure of The Invisible Man and I jumped at the opportunity for the purchase. My package arrived in a few days and I opened up the box... and it was empty. OR was it? Bwaaahaahaaa!
A lot of people would want invisibility because you can steal things or spy on people. But really, the best use would be to turn to somebody at random and say, "This is where I died ten years ago" before vanishing.
I'm buying up the Universal multi-movie sets of the old horror movies. I've got all but Dracula. The Invisible Man's Revenge is what I'm currently watching. I'm laughing every five minutes.
The Invisible Man always struck me as the scariest of the Universal monsters, because he's basically like the Joker from Batman, only invisible. Sure, he has that fun side of him and he's a walking power fantasy, but he also has a dark side, willing to kill innocent people just for fun. I think the original movie would have been scarier if it had implied that maybe the formula hadn't made Griffin insane - that maybe just being invisible and being able to do anything he wanted was enough to corrupt him by itself...
That would ruin the mad science gone wrong angle though. The experiment probably unleashed his dark side and caused him to become more of a monster. You could suggest that the dark side was always there, but making him an irredeemable monster would ruin the idea of an experiment going wrong.
In the H.G. Wells story Griffin actually was a sociopath before becoming invisible, vivisecting a cat while it was alive at one point. Though becoming invisible definitely didn't help his mental state.
I feel it's symbolically appropriate that someone who becomes invisible becomes maniacal, because they can no longer see themselves or appreciate the results of their actions. If people think they're being observed, they tend to behave more in line with society, and someone who's invisible is one who literally can't be observed, so to me it makes sense that he'd lose touch with his humanity and become a maniac.
@@robertwoodson3859 He didn't vivisect a cat. He was accused of vivisecting a cat. What he did was turn a cat invisible.
Camille Dinesen My bad it's been a while since I've read the book, Griffin still wasn't exactly a poster boy for mental health. The guy stole from his father, eventually driving him to suicide, and then admits that he feels no remorse.
'I'm the Invisible man,
I'm the Invisible man,
Incredible how you can,
See right through me!'
@randall2020
Teal'c: I can see right through you O'neill
O'neill: Not fooling you am I?
Teal'c: You are very transparent
O'neill: Now hold on Teal'c
Queeenn 😂😂
But you won’t see me.....(you won’t see me)
@Hash Lee nnooooo
@Hash Lee that's fine, everyone has their own opinion 😂😂
I have so admired the acting brilliance of Claude Raines. His voice and range are unmatched and equaled only by his immense talent. I do a loving impression of Raines in this role making a lot of my fellow old timers laugh . I apply his manic behavior to everyday situations with great effect. .
Would you record some audios with Claude's voice for my short film? Lol
@@fernandomaron87 Absolutely, if I pass an audition. I do Griffin in his madness but can also do him as the scientist with less vigor.
He was a great actor!
Claude Rains had a voice like honey on sandpaper. One of the greats.
And great hair. More importantly, talent.
Mark hamills joker was inspired by him
Who could not like Claude Raines. He was excellent in every role he played. Truly one of the all time greats.
I can't express how much I love Universal horrors of this era. If only James Whale did Dracula...
That would have been an intriguing prospect. As it is, I love the Dracula film we have now, for the most part. Yes, parts of the cinemaphotography are weak, Lucy's staking is not shown, and a couple of the supporting characters like Harker are weak. But somehow, the film still creeps me out due to its lack of music, fantastic performances by Lugosi and Dwight Frye, brilliant atmosphere, and stillness of some shots allowing the viewer to see the horror play out.
@@connorbrennan4233 Also, seeing how Lugosi was booted from Frankenstein at Whale’s request, we may never have had his great performance. Although, he was Dracula in the stage version, so, he may still have played him.
That is a very cool idea, Whale would have demanded a better-edited film, and the shot selection would have been far superior. Whale's strong personality would have pushed Bela much more. I think Browning was too "wowed" by Lugosi's presence to direct him well, and was too hampered by the specter of the stage play on blocking.
@@superfit60
also, according to an interview with Manners, Tod Browning was "rarely" on set during filming. Now that's a problem that wouldn't occur with J. whale.
"The Invisible Man Appears"?
There's a joke here somewhere but I just can't see it.
Tskmaster
Ouch... and lol 😅
Am I the only one who thinks that Margaret Hamilton should have been the invisible woman? After playing the Wicked Witch of the West, it would have been perfect. Besides she would have looked good being invisible.
I can see right through your lame attempt at humor.
I can see what you did there
Nice
I love Claude Rains as Prince John in Errol Flynn's Robin Hood. The clear joy in his eyes that he's giving his older brother a hard time, rather than really being in charge.....it's perfect.
I love Griffin's dialogue to Kemp before he described what is about to happen...
"I hope your insurance is paid up, Because you're about to have a nasty accident!!!!".
Along with Whales' direction, I think Rains' performance is why the original "Invisible Man" holds up so well, even more than the amazing special effects. But the thought of Colin Clive as Griffin almost makes me wish he'd taken the role...almost. This is probably my favorite Raines performance of all I've seen so far.
This first time I saw this movie I was shocked with how well it had aged, the dialogue, the special effects, the acting, The Story. I was truly compelled by Claude rains voice and the presence he gave the invincible man, this still remains my favorite version of the character.
While the Invisible Man was Claude Raines' breakout role, it's also unlike any other performance he ever gave, so unhinged. I never understood why until I got the detail that he was a claustrophobe. A claustrophobe in bandages and that suffocating suit for the SFX...yeah, I get it now.
How's that for a Hairbrush George Henry?
Here's Ya Bloomin' bicycle! You can do what what you like with it!
We do our part!
How can I arrest a Blooming Shirt?
My absolute favourite of the universal horror series. James Whales best picture by far!
A classic and groundbreaking at the time with a wonderful performance by Claude Rains as the ghastly Griffin!
Glad to see you covering this. This is, by far, my favorite of the Universal horrors. Like The Bride of Frankenstein it's a perfect display of Whale's penchant for wicked, subversive and barely veiled subtextual humor. Rains' megalomaniacal giddy glee at his free rampage almost feels liberating to watch. I adore it. Thanks for the fine video.
Griffin belongs to the same school as of Dr. Frankenstein and Dr. Moreau: doing the worst things with the best of intentions and the results backfires.
One critical difference: Griffin did his experiment on himself. Frankenstein and Moreau inflicted theirs on others.
Johnathon Haney Yes, but in the end the results were the same: disgrace and terror.
I hate to be contrarian, but I don't think Dr. Moreau had good intentions. He seems totally selfish and doesn't even have an end goal for his research. He seems to just want to see how far he can go. Frankenstein isn't an altruist either. He wants to create artificial life just to prove that he can.
@@7superdaimajin The problem is that they became obsessed with their power and the worst part of them gets the better.
I’d also add Herbert west
These retrospectives are fantastic. I've loved every single one you all have done. I look forward to seeing even more of them.
I know right!! I don't understand how 29 people hit Dislike.
What is there to Dislike!?
I was glad that this years Universal remake, was at least an actual genre film. So many of the previous attempts at relaunching the universal horror films- ended up being generic Michael Bay like action nonsense. The Invisible Man 2020 is if nothing else, a completely new story, that's actually rooted in suspense.
100% agree! I absolutely LOVED the new 2020 version for a number of reasons, but the fact that it was actually a horror movie, rather than a wannabe superhero action vehicle, is a major one. I loved how it figured out EXACTLY what makes the titular character so scary and threatening and applied it to a very real, and topical, scenario (domestic abuse and gaslighting).
🤣
The 2020 remake
She's running away
Looking behind her to see an
INVISIBLE MAN chasing after her
So damn bad
@@ComicBookGuy420 Wasn't there a scene where she throws a can of paint on him and then it suddenly disappears a few seconds later?
"Invisible Man can rrrrule the worrrld! He can hear everrry secrrrrret! He can RRRRROB, RRRRAPE AND KILL!!"
This isn't a horror movie.....it's more of a drama-suspense-dark comedy. Great classic....and how can anyone watch this film and not be rooting for the guy? It was so funny how he went after the people he did not like....
🎼Claude Rains was the invisible Man!🎼
Very good Review , as usual.
It's amazing what they were able to do in 1933. A great film.
The Invisible Man is one of the very first examples of a dark comedy in cinema. It’s laughs come from what Jack does in his acts of insanity, and while the film is still a horror story and has dark moments like the train crash, the film is also home to comedy, such as when the man steals a pair of trousers and starts singing, and when he steals the banks money and throws it in the street.
If more monster reboots from Universal will mean more excellent videos like this from Dark Corners, I say, "Bring it on Universal! Churn out as much half-cooked tripe as you like!"
It's the laugh that sells him as a madman.
Yeah, the sheer manic glee mixed with the hatred tells you everything you need to know.
Thank you for making this! The Invisible Man is my favorite Universial monster and my favourite film from that line up. It's funny and scary all at once, and the special effects are just MIND BLOWING considering it was made in 1933!
You missed mentioning perhaps the best take on the character outside of the original - Ed Begley Jr in Amazon Women on the Moon
There's so much I still don't know about Vincent Price. Could I love him more?
'The Murderer Invisible' is available on Amazon.
This was Claude Rains's film debut. He'd been a stage actor, and Whale had to remind him that the blocking was different in movies.
It's actually his second movie. He was in a 1920 silent called Build Thy House, which is now lost.
Has anyone ever thought that 'The Invisible Man' could make an amazing stealth-centered video game?
I think the 2020 version is the freshest remake. They don't try to pander the original theory. It's fully updated for people to understand in our time. And honestly for anyone to feel creeped out in their home alone. Also for those who have been mentally or emotionally abused by anyone, it's a very real atmosphere. I think it was a good re make. There are extremely extremely few good remakes now a days.
I mean like updated for the masses. Because the average Joe would never bother with cinema history. Cause those folks are boring 👍🏻
"A wish fulfillment horror" - that's a GREAT way of summing up this classic ;)
This was amazing. Thank you so very much. It is one of my favourite movies of James Whale and the performance that Claude Rains gave was perfection.
This was great.
Watching the first two films with my girlfriend this weekend.
Showing this first for context as this covers all the information I'd probably want to proffer before screening time usually and this way no one has to hear my big mouth and watch me take up precious time holding the floor.
Perfect for getting settled and properly inebriated.
This is of some service and proportionally appreciated.
Thanks from America.
These longer videos, are always documentary level detail. 👍
A comprehensive documentary with great archival footage.
As always, these deep dives are just the best! They are well made, well researched, informative, and hugely entertaining.Thank you for this close look at the Invisible Man. He may be my favorite Universal monster because he has so much personality. I never thought about it this way before, but you are right, you like him because you kind of want to be him. Keep up the good work!
I have just picked the complete legacy collection on Blu ray, looking forward to watch them all.
I am 58 years old when I was a kid in the mid to late 60s and early 70s living in California they would play this movie and a number of other movies on Saturdays and Sundays , pretty much all day and myself and my brother were just so scared of this movie because if you couldn’t see him ! but we still kept watching (we loved it)
these are classic movies universal really hard
the pulse on horror movies in the day thank you for posting this I love this! Thanks for taking me back😎
The Invisible Man's revenge is my favorite sequel in which Griffin is vicious and completely mad.
Love the Claude Rains' version.
Fantastic retrospective of one of my favorite movies / stories / characters ever. Thank you!
A wonderful look at the entire series and while a couple of the Invisible Man sequels were not up to par with the original, you were still kind enough to point out their positives as well (i.e. Invisible Agent). Film-making is truly a team effort and The Invisible Man remains iconic through the acting, artistry and technical efforts of those involved. Thank you for putting together another entertaining look at a Universal Horror classic.
Another excellent Dark Corners Classics retrospective.
Quite interesting that the Invisible Man franchise had quite a few reasonably budgeted sequels. If only the Frankenstein and Mummy franchises had been as lucky.
I appreciate how you highlight that Virginia Bruce is the saving grace of The Invisible Woman. She does her best to bring personality to the character and it seemed like her actions against her boss would be part of a commentary on sexism in the workplace. But it was 1940, so of course that wasn't going to stick throughout the film. It's also too bad that she ends up with the jerk millionaire at the end.
Edit: I just watched the 2020 film, and I loved it. Elisabeth Moss was brilliant and the scene where she says how her abusive ex has taken everything from her left me in tears. The film had no cheap jump scares and instead relied on quiet moments and patient cinematography to bring in the fright before the finale.
I feel the Invisible Man is the closest Universal movie to its book out of the big name monsters.
Probably because HG Wells was alive when they made it and had final approval. With Dracula and Frankenstein they didn't have to worry about the authors involvement. Although it is funny how many classic elements from those movies are remembered even if they aren't from the books
@@kyleriches157 That drives me nuts sometimes. Especially when the movie changes eclipse the books and people assume that must be how the story goes.
Dracula gets to me, particularly Mina. The book version is a more inspiring female character than pretty much any woman on screen I've seen in a long time using her wits and compassion to track down a literal monster, but most people I know see her as the chick who wants to get with Dracula. I know some alterations are needed to fit the limitations of a new medium but entire character personalities and motivations seems like a pointless move to me.
it makes me wish more authors could be involved in their big screen debuts so even if it doesn't do that well at the box office we could get at least one fully accurate version for nitpicky whiners like me.
@@NegaHumanX I've never really understood it either because they usually choose to film these books and stories BECAUSE they are popular..... If they are already popular why change them and if they aren't why film them. I'm all for reinventing for modern audiences but you can still stay true to the original characters and story. The Sherlock series was great for updating everything for a modern audience but still staying true to the characters (most of the time)
@@kyleriches157 Exactly. The characters are the most important thing (in my opinion) to any adaption. But they seem like the first thing a Hollywood studio decides to throw out. I don't care if they reimagine Frankenstein as an anime style rom-com as long as the characters are who they where in their stories. Like how DBZ Abridged keeps all the personalities and attitudes of the characters but frames them in a comedic light.
They could also run with new ideas based on the old. Like a continuation of the Daughter of Dracula since she is their own character they can twist however they like. Or just make anyone a werewolf.
39 minute about the Invisible Man?
I didn't see that coming!
This is always been my favorite classic Universal monster movie. Thank you for doing this.
One of my favorite films ever
So love the longer episodes do incite full and packed with real love for the medium and it’s nuances
I do love your deep dives into horror. Like watching a masterclass.
Thank you.
You could say that like in so many things Plato started it all, in his legend of the ring of Gyges in his greatest dialogue "The Republic". The ring gives the wearer the power to turn invisible and so the question arises as to whether that person would commit unjust acts for pleasure or personal advantage if they could avoid detection in doing so. The teller of the legend, Plato's brother Glaucon, argues that they would.
I just watched this movie this weekend (along with Horror of Dracula, Corpse Bride, and Last Man on earth), and it was great! I was quite impressed with the special effects too. I probably saw this as a kid but forgot most of it as it's been a long time since I watched 'Shock Theater' on Saturdays in the 70s and early 80s, I'm playing catch up these days!
Sounds like a great weekend.
My Universal monsters & my Hammer productions. Watched them with my grandma as a kid. Brilliant!
For those that don't know it, I'll mention the superb spoof "Son of the Invisible Man" which forms part of the John Landis comedy sketch anthology movie "Amazon Women on the Moon". The pastiche makes many careful and respectful nods towards the original movie (it is also a Universal production) and is LOL funny. The clip can be found easily on RUclips.
I laughed so hard in places here, the film is a master piece and a classic, I can't see a remake being as good or as entertaining as this, Claude Rains and the other actors were what made this film so good, the best being you never saw Griffin until the end when he died. Thank you for a great review and historical background as well. Keep these classics coming.
I am a minor fan of the Universal horror movies but never considered The Invisible Man to be a part of that "club"....yet it does fit.
BTW, there was an Invisible Woman movie, and the British had an Invisible Man tv series. In the tv series The Invisible Man was a true hero, often going places that the police or security services couldn't go and it was almost like he had a Yellow Pages listing the way folks called him for his special help in every episode.
Henry Travers also garnered an Oscar nom for his supporting role in "Mrs. Miniver".
I always wondered how they managed that effect. Steve Martin once walked on stage at the Oscars without a head to present an award. If he were simply wearing the velvet hood it would have been up to the entire live audience to play along with the gimmick. It was an auditorium full of actors after all. It must have been PR for his new film at the time where he played a man possessed by the spirit of Lilly Tomlin, "How dare you say _penis_ to a dead woman!" ...thats the only thing I remember from the film.
Thanks -- another brilliant, informed and informative retrospective. A couple of things, though: wasn't Peter Lorre actually Hungarian?
Also -- hey, that's Charles Lane in Invisible Woman! He was still working into his 90s, quite recently. Surely worth a shout out?
An excellent, excellent review of the films. Thank you so much for this homage to them.
24:18 I hear the voice and accent of the fellow who just spoke and I immediately think of Arte Johnson doing his "It Is Written...." skit on Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In.
P.S.- I seriously can't say enough how much I love this character; The Invisible Man is the definitely my favorite out of the Universal Horror Monsters.
facts
The original film was the best. Claude Rains made it so. LOVE IT!
Look, 'e's all eaten away in the end! :) Excellent video!
This is the best analyze of this series i have ever seen. Your work is excellent, keep it up.
Can't wait to watch The invisible Man on Svengoolie this Saturday, February 13th, 2021.
Once again, excellent coverage of a popular and well-respected portion of the horror film genre. Your efforts are truly appreciated.
Since you've now covered the Invisible Man, Frankenstein, and The Mummy oh, I hope that you have plans to cover Dracula, the Wolfman, and Creature from the Black Lagoon as well
I have the entire Invisible Man series on DVD and own the Neca figure and let me tell you, they're all so good.
The 1989 film Santa Sangre also features a pretty prominent Invisible Man reference, so I would've included that one among those mentioned between 36:30 to 37:26.
For me in childhood the invisible man was very much a hero, with a David McCallum show of the name and another called “Gemini Man”. It was only later watching Friday late night horrors on BBC2 I saw this and it completely changed my perception. Terrifying, mainly down to Claude Rains performance.
To this day I’ve only seen 2 follow ups that come close to matching it, an 80s BBC series adaptation of Wells’ book which had a similarly scary performance from the lead actor and the 2020 film which was quite a good take on the concept but missed a trick by not really having the invisible man as a proper character, casting an actor with a great voice is definitely the key for good “Invisible Man”.
The 1933 film is still my favourite version of “The Invisible Man” and my favourite of the classic Universal monster flicks.
"Would everyone like to be invisible for a day?" Nope, 'cause you'd also be blind. CuffColl.
Correct...letting the light rays pass through you would give your eyes nothing to reflect and thus deprive you of sight. Warren Ellis actually referenced this in his glorious pop culture mashup comic Planetary.
I first encountered this medical dilemma years and years ago in a humor magazine featuring a drawing of the gloved and facially-wrapped Invisible Man standing on a street corner and bellowing how he was on the verge of taking over American society with his awesome powers of transparency . . . before holding out a tin cup and asking for handouts from passersby because he couldn't make a living any other way as a blind person. CuffColl.
Not only blind, but maybe even deaf?
Unless you were made capable of seeing nonvisible light
I first saw this movie 🎥 forty years ago when I was a young teenager. It scared the heck out of me 👍
My expectations were low for Whannell's THE INVISIBLE MAN - the surprise, then, for me, was just how well and how far he surpassed them. If you're going to abandon Wells's source material, you'd better come up with something spectacular - and he did! Splendidly!
I use Jack Griffin as a stage name in a few play groups I am in. This is a spectacular movie, and Raines is one of the finest most versatile and actors to ever walk the earth.
At the end I see a fellow "wrapped up" in his work!😁
Funny thing about the Mexican Invisible Man film: it's an unofficial remake of The Invisible Man Returns, only the Mexican version doesn't cop out at the end; that Invisible Man DOES go insane at the end, preparing to drop deadly bacillus into the local reservoir. Admittedly, the special effects can in no way be compared to the unique work of John P Fulton, but it satisfied.
An excellent and informative video! As a kid I first heard Claude Raines say "Kemp, I'm going to kill you" and I was hooked.
Bette Davis said that Claude Reigns was the best actor she ever worked with.
I saw the original Invisable Man when I was about 10 years old on Shock Theatre WPTA Channel 21 in Fort Wayne, Indiana about 1957. It scared the hell out of me.
Always love your longer video essays - keep up the good work!
Let's not forgot Mad Monster Party.
Congratulations on the research. Loved seeing the Invisible Robin - or should that be 'not seeing him'?
2:32 Dear Robin Bailes, HG Wells: THE INVISIBLE MAN, was not satire at all. I read the book
The new INVISIBLE MAN has nothing to do with such, it is a MeeToo Movement film, and no fun at all
Woah, Peter Lorre was in Invisible Agent? Have to hunt that one up, I thought I'd seen everything he'd made in that era already.
archive.org/details/InvisibleAgent
If you've never seen it, you have to check out "Secret Agent"~~~
A 1936 British film by another director who impressed audiences with taut thrillers injected with humor -- Alfred Hitchcock -- it stars John Gielgud, Madeleine Carroll, Robert Young, and Peter Lorre as "The General." ("Oh, he isn't really a general, he just likes to be called that...")
@@jamespuleo3269 Seen it, a great film.
I did the Invisible Man cistume for Halloween one year. It was warm and I hated not being able to see me. Not to mention the unease it put others in.
The funny thing about saying the character in the first film was a good man before he took the invisibility concoction is how his book counterpart was anything but good before or after invisibility.
Peter Lorre was a Hungarian Jew.
Whether he became a German national is kind of moot.
He left German well before the War (WWII) broke out (he saw the warning and an apocryphal story says he was warned out of Germany by Joseph Goebbels, an admirer of his movies!) and was in the US by 1935. He was a naturalized US citizen by 1941.
He's one of my favorite character actors on the basis of Casablanca, 20k Under the Sea, and just about every film I've seen him in.
The accent and sad facial expression work for me!
For years, I thought he was French!
Another great job with the extended review. So informative.
Eeeee's awl eeetn awaii.Whats not to love about this film? One of everybody's favourites.
I've been binge watching your videos lately and love your essays. You should have about 1 million more subscribers than you do.
Thank you. We a great success last year with our video on the Hammer Dracula series that more than doubled our subscriber count in a couple of months, it does feel like we are finally on the rise.
@@DarkCornersReviews Hope so! I was just watching Top Ten Lost Films yesterday and was thinking to myself "This is awesome, I wish he did more of these specials". Can't wait for the next one.
We do aim for one a month. But time is a factor and we keep trying raise the bar. Great responses like this inspire and motivate us to continue.
Love your longer , documentary-like videos: they are chock full of interesting observations and facts .. your channel at his best... Keep the good work coming , personally I always pay a visit to Dark Corners whenever I log into YT...
The original film will always be a landmark for the performance of Claude Rains, Whale’s direction, the brilliant source material and it’s translation to screen & yeah the effects can be dated if you look closely but they’re still impressive for a nearly 90 year old film
loved this, listed to it with my friend, he always considers it his favoret of the original universal films
This video is marvellous! The Invisible Man is my favourite film of all time I love it so much and this video made me love it more
Philip Wylie also co-wrote with Edwin Balmer the 1932 classic science fiction novel When Worlds Collide which was made into a movie in 1951.
I am a collector of scifi and horror. I have several Universal Silver Screen collectables. I finally found a seller who was selling his action figure of The Invisible Man and I jumped at the opportunity for the purchase. My package arrived in a few days and I opened up the box... and it was empty. OR was it? Bwaaahaahaaa!
This is my favorite of the Monster verse movies.
A lot of people would want invisibility because you can steal things or spy on people. But really, the best use would be to turn to somebody at random and say, "This is where I died ten years ago" before vanishing.
I'm happy I stumbled upon your channel-doing killer work, love this!
I'm buying up the Universal multi-movie sets of the old horror movies. I've got all but Dracula.
The Invisible Man's Revenge is what I'm currently watching. I'm laughing every five minutes.
Excellent documentary -- I really enjoyed it! I love it when you do longer videos.