The good news: The Invisible Man – the newly released version gog-only-knows.0 – is a hell of a film, and in spite of the title the hero is a woman played by the wonderful Elizabeth Moss.
The not so good news: In order to get the film made, the filmmakers had to do the “Man” title thing.
Ah well, someday, right?
GONE GUY – THE INVISIBLE MAN REVIEW
by Jonas Schwartz
A vital horror remake needs four components to succeed. A compelling lead, taut direction, smart dialogue, and a purpose for being remade, so that the new version is relevant to the times and not just a cash grab. Leigh Whannell’s new The Invisible Man has all that in spades. Not a perfect film, but there’s enough craft and ingenuity to invade people’s psyches.
Late at night, Cecilia Kass (Elizabeth Moss, Mad Men and Handmaid’s Tale) retrieves her hidden bags and sneaks out of her fortress of a house from her abusive boyfriend Adrian Griffin (Oliver Jackson-Cohen, The Haunting of Hill House). Adrian has treated Cecilia like a possession, and he attacks her for wandering off like a dog. Resourceful and determined, she manages to get away, nonetheless. While recovering with a cop friend, James (Aldis Hodge) and his daughter, Cecilia continues to suffer from battered wife syndrome. Learning that Adrian committed suicide and left her all his money gives Cecilia some solace. However, Cecilia begins to feel stalked even though Adrian has died, and before long, she knows that an unseen presence is putting her back in peril. But everyone else thinks Cecilia has just lost her mind. She becomes isolated by her loved ones and deemed dangerous. While they pity and fear Cecilia, her friends had better watch their backs, because an invisible spector is right behind them.
The Invisible Man would never have worked without an actress of Moss’ caliber. The film is from her perspective and the audience must be fully invested in her nightmares and her ability to fight back. Moss allows herself to play that line between determined and unraveled. Her behavior needs to appear nuts or all her friends who abandon her would just seem like jerks, so the audience wouldn’t care that they too are being menaced…..
Read it all at reflectionsonfilmandtelevision.blogspot.com