The Invisible Man (1933)

A scientist finds a way of becoming invisible, but in doing so, he becomes murderously insane.

Director:

James Whale

Writers:

H.G. Wells (novel), R.C. Sherriff (screenplay),

Stars:

Claude Rains, Gloria Stuart, William Harrigan

2 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Claude Rains	...	The Invisible Man
Gloria Stuart	...	Flora Cranley
William Harrigan	...	Dr. Arthur Kemp
Henry Travers	...	Dr. Cranley
Una O'Connor	...	Jenny Hall
Forrester Harvey	...	Herbert Hall
Holmes Herbert	...	Chief of Police
E.E. Clive	...	Const. Jaffers
Dudley Digges	...	Chief Detective
Harry Stubbs	...	Inspector Bird
Donald Stuart	...	Inspector Lane
Merle Tottenham	...	Millie

Storyline

A scientist turns himself invisible. However, the formula slowly drives him insane, causing him to terrorize the countryside as an invisible killer.

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Plot Keywords:

scientist | inn | chemist | invisibility | radio broadcast | 

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Taglines:

Catch me if you can!

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Genres:

Drama | Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 November 1933 (USA)

Also Known As:

Der Unsichtbare

Filming Locations:

Universal Studios - 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

71 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Noiseless Recording Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In order to achieve the effect that Claude Rains wasn't there when his character took off the bandages, the director had Rains dressed completely in black velvet and filmed him in front of a black velvet background.

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Goofs

During the riot at the pub, a technician can be heard yelling, "Stay on camera!"

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Quotes

[first lines]
Man in Pub: Did you hear about Mrs. Mason's little Willy? Sent him to school and found him buried ten-foot deep in a snow drift.
Man in Pub # 2: How did they get him out?
Man in Pub: Brought the fire engine 'round. Put the hose pipe in, pumped it backwards and sucked him out.

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Crazy Credits

The opening credits appear out of thin air.

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Connections

Referenced in Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie (1996)

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Soundtracks

"La Rosita"
(1923) (uncredited)
Music by Gustave Haenschen
(original version only)

User Reviews

Film Still Holds Up, Is Fun Except For Shrieker

This was great the first time I watched it, but slowly declined with multiple viewings over the years.

Why I slowly lost interest in this, I'm not sure, except for perhaps the incredibly annoying hysterical woman character played by Una O'Connor. Her constant screaming and shrieking took away my enjoyment of this film.

This was Claude Rains' first starring role and he did a fine job, even though you never see his face until the final minutes. His voice was good and his character interesting as he slowly went insane. He had this silly, sadistic laugh as he'd kill people. That's one thing that made this movie a bit different. When I watched this on DVD after a long absence, I was shocked to re-discover how violent Rains' character was in this film.

Even though the film is almost 75 years old, it's still fairly entertaining and not dated as much as you might expect. It also brings out a few interesting dilemmas that an invisible human being would have trying to stay undetected.

By the way, I still think this should be classified "science fiction," not horror.