copyrightThe Invisible Man Movie Review
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Leigh Whannell and Jason Blum successfully update one of the classic myths of horror movies.
The myth of The Invisible Man is one of the most used resources of horror and suspense movies. From the classic 1933 film directly inspired by the HG Wells novel to more recent incarnations such as The Shadowless Man by Paul Verhoeven (2000) and other more current versions such as 2017. So, when we began to know that Blumhouse would make a remake didn't pay much attention, but when the first trailer starring Elisabeth Moss arrived, things changed.
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More than a remake to use, this Invisible Man (2020) is a reinvention of that myth. The plot revolves around the toxic relationship of Cecilia (Moss) with her husband Adrian (Oliver Jackson-Cohen of The Curse of Hill House), dealing with a subject unfortunately as current as the macho abuse. Cecilia will manage to run away from Adrian and believe she will find some relief in the news that she apparently has committed suicide, but nothing is further from reality.
What Adrian has really achieved is to discover a way to become invisible, so he will continue to torment and scare Cecilia without her sister (Harriet Dyer), James, a childhood friend cop (Aldis Hodge) and her teenage daughter Sydney ( Storm Reid) can really help her in the face of a threat that nobody else sees.
The film is very effective in its central section, precisely in which the invisible figure torments Cecilia because Moss's performance and the succession of representations of this presence manage to capture in a very murky way the psychological effects of harassment, persecution and the gaslight. In fact, Gaslight (1944), starring Charles Boyer and Ingrid Bergman, is an inspiration for this next step in a relationship that seemed to be no more toxic than in its claustrophobic and tense initial escape scene. The outcome will make more than one frown, trying a plot twist that will not quite fit.
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Without pretending to be too deep, and letting on many occasions it is the action itself that speaks for itself, the spectator will attend the descent to the hells of Cecilia, constantly questioning to what extent he is really feeling this presence and what is fruit from his imagination, getting us to empathically put ourselves in the skin of Cecilia's character and live her drama.
We talk all the time about Moss because, in a movie where we really can't see his abuser, the screen quota takes him from the street. It is Elizabeth Moss unleashed, demonstrating her wide variety of records with all kinds of nuances except for comedy as her role as Kitty / Dahlia in Us (Us) (2019). Director Leigh Whannell said in an interview that "Elisabeth Moss has an almost supernatural ability to always be authentic" and she is right. It is very complex to go crazy and return to sanity in less than two hours and the actress of The Tale of the Maid and Mad Men nails it.
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The secondary cast, precisely because of this, is not allowed to shine anymore. It emphasizes above all the dynamics between James and his daughter Syd. If Aldis Hodge (Hidden Figures, Straight Outta Compton) is your protector and even he can't help you, you're really screwed up and helps make the threat even more fearsome.
The young Storm Reid (A fold in time, The Suicide Squad and who is rumored that Marvel wants for Iron Heart) returns to show the talent that it has inside but will have to continue waiting for that role that allows it to mark a before and after in his career. The presence of Oliver Jackson-Cohen is so testimonial and invisible, that you can't even comment.
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He directs (in a script written by himself) Leigh Whannell, the mythical Adam, the protagonist of the first Saw, who now as the director has already made his first steps in the genre with Insidious 3. If he was accused of stretching a formula every again worn out (and the comparative grievance to be the first without James Wan), in this, he manages to compensate and demonstrate what he can contribute in a genre that he is passionate about. In addition, as it happened precisely in the first of Saw, he manages to make interesting a film totally overturned in a single protagonist and a threat that is felt, but not usually seen.
Pros
Good update of the myth to the new times.
Elisabeth Moss is amazing (not surprising at this point).
Unfortunately, real issues such as abuse and gaslight are treated respectfully and empathically.
Cons
The outcome can dislodge the viewer and break some narrative coherence.
The verdict
The 2020 version of The Invisible Man manages to be effective thanks to his reinvention of the classic horror movie myth from a current, settled and realistic approach as far as it goes. unfortunately, real emas such as abuse and gaslight is treated in a respectful and empathetic way, getting to connect much better with the viewer. Of course, much of the charm of the film has to do with the great performance of Elisabeth Moss, who manages to descend to the hell of madness and return to the skies of sanity in just 2 hours of footage.