The Invisible Man Returns

The Invisible Man Returns (1940)

Runtime: 81 minutes

Directed by: Joe May

Starring: Sir Cedric Hardwicke, Vincent Price, Nan Grey, John Sutton, Cecil Kellaway

From: Universal

Not only is classic Universal Horror great for this time of year, so is Vincent Price. For awhile now, I’ve heard several different sources praise this first sequel to The Invisible Man; while this doesn’t have as much gleeful joy from a Claude Rains that went bonkers from becoming invisible, this was still pretty good telling a different story that contained many of the same elements.

The younger brother of Rains is a doctor himself; he helped Price become invisible and escape from a hanging. He was falsely accused of murdering his brother. The doctor works on an antidote to make Ol’ Vincent visible again before going bonkers while Ol’ Vincent attempts to locate the real killer. Thankfully, the special effects are great for the time; there are new ways that law enforcement attempt to find an invisible person; likewise, such elements as rain create an obvious outline.

The only other recognizable face for me was Sir Cedric Hardwicke; he was a character that amused me although of course Price was the highlight. Not being able to see Price is irrelevant when he has That Voice; furthermore, it was a fascinating character as he attempts to prove his innocence while his mental health deteriorates. He was more an antihero than Dr. Jack Griffin in the first; this is as Price causes death himself.

There’s a bit of atmosphere in this tale which has a decent score & cast; it also made me realize that Austrian director Joe May is sadly unheralded as a pioneer of German cinema who emigrated to the United States. Probably a reason that he isn’t praised like Lang and Murnau: his work (especially the silent era) is far harder to track down, if it isn’t completely lost. May did a fine job here-in the far-off future I’ll check out more of his work.

While I wasn’t completely sold on the finale, The Invisible Man Returns was still a pretty good time between the revenge plot, some colorful supporting characters, the ticking clock attached to Vincent, the clever attempts to ensnare him. Who knows about the subsequent films in this series-at least the first sequel was solid.