The Invisible Man Legacy Set Review by Cameron McCasland

The power and curse of Invisibilty has never been so well documented on film
than with the release of Universal Studio's "The Monster Legacy: The
Invisible Man collection".

James Whale's Invisible man has never met the notoriety of his Frankenstein
films, though Claude Rains in his first talking picture rivals the likes of
Boris Karloff in onscreen presence. Raines face is seen only once, and the
actor's greatest feature, his eyes are taken away from him for the entire
film. Behind gauze bandage and goggles his body motion gives off the
eagerness to find a cure, and the decent to madness (courtesy of the
monocaine) can be heard in the Grizzled voice of an actor better known for
his roles in Casablanca, and Mr. Smith goes to Washington. Visually
stunning after it's initial release over 70 years ago the film can leave one
wondering, How did they do that? Which film historian Rudy Behlmar provides
answers to in an insightful commentary that provides an incredible dossier
on character actors and visual effects.

The sequels hold up surprisingly well, and you can see the special effects
mature over the course of these movies. Universal's trick department goes
from chairs on wires to a more creative half transparent face in the later
films. The Invisible man returns finds H.G. Wells creation taking on a
familiar feel to the last. Madness takes shape in the mind of an Invisible
man on the run for a crime he didn't commit. The struggle between trying to
clear his name and taking his revenge on the people who would let him hang.
A good story though not the strongest of the series. The Invisible Woman
seems somewhat out of place in the set outside of the obvious now you see me
now you don't visuals. It is a screwball comedy that has not held up well.
John Barrymore is wasted in a role that makes him more of a quack doctor
than a mad scientist.

The Invisible Agent brings new to life to a series with Wartime espianoge,
and Nazi madmen in search of the formula for Invisiblity. Peter Lorre is
simply brilliant as a Japanese torture specialist. He brings the eeriness
back to a franchise that had been lost since Raines initial film. Slight
comedy ensues with a somewhat doofy Nazi (a staple character in films of the
time) connecting the characters to one and other. It is not to be missed.
The Revenge of the Invisible man brings back the madness and internal
torture of the leading man. Stumbling into the home of a mad doctor after
recovering from amnesia and finding out his fortune has been lost by his
friends who had left him for dead, the now invisible man uses blackmail and
murder to get what he feels he deserves.

The set is rounded off by the one hour documentary Now you see him: The
Invisible man revealed. Rudy Behlmar is insightful and the visual effects
are explained in great detail. It pertains mostly to the Whale/Raines
collaberation, and has a wealth of knowledge. The transfers are bright and
clean, and the MSRP under thirty dollars makes this set a must own for fans
of classic monster movies.