Where would this film be if we were still slated to have it part of a Universal Pictures cinematic monster universe? Originally Dracula Untold was the planned beginning. It was redconed for The Mummy starring Tom Cruise. Johnny Depp was cast to play the invisible man but that was all scrapped after the Mummy did not meet expectations Universal decided to keep all of their monster films separated. Now we have a new version of The Invisible Man starring Elisabeth Moss as Cecilia Kass and Oliver Jackson-Cohen as Adrian Griffin
Trapped in a violent, controlling relationship with a wealthy and brilliant scientist (Oliver Jackson-Cohen), Cecilia Kass (Elisabeth Moss) escapes in the dead of night and disappears into hiding, aided by her sister (Harriet Dyer), their childhood friend (Aldis Hodge) and his teenage daughter (Storm Reid).
But when Cecilia’s abusive ex commits suicide and leaves her a generous portion of his vast fortune, Cecilia suspects his death was a hoax.
As a series of eerie coincidences turn lethal, threatening the lives of those she loves, Cecilia’s sanity begins to unravel as she desperately tries to prove that she is being hunted by someone nobody can see.
Blumhouse has taken over the Dark-Verse for Universal Pictures. After the poor results of Dracula Untold and The Mummy, having these classic stories done without a cinematic universe may have been the best route to go. I can not see house Dracula nor The Mummy, as the supernatural characters would work with an Invisible Man villain. The last movie of its kind that I saw was Hollow Man. Using technology to create an invisible man seems to be the most realistic way of instead of using a chemical plot device or a supernatural power that would feel forced to go along with any of the other monster movies. What I enjoyed about this movie was Blumhouse with Leigh Whannael’s screenplay and direction have given us a thriller that has a spooky haunted house feel.
Elizabeth Moss gives one of her best performances, pulling you in and making the viewer feel her vulnerability and her moments of power. Making each scene believable, working in a room by herself and selling the idea that she is not alone or being tormented by something unseen. Oliver Jackson-Cohen was good at playing a maniacal stalker but there was not a lot of screen time for him which is the curse of being cast as invisible. It was more of a role for a voice actor, so it's really the other actors and the director that is doing most of the work for his character. The father daughter moments between Aldis Hodge and Storm Reid were heartfelt and played very naturally. Aldris has a stage present that feels like gravity is pulling attention to him at all times.
There were some parts of the movie that were predictable but that does not take away from the overall enjoy-ability. There are some things you do not see coming but the majority of its best moments were put in the trailer. That does not take away from the fun factor of this movie. This film exceeds expectations and gives a thrill ride through pure adrenaline.