Memoirs of an Invisible Man (1992)

After a freak accident, a company executive turns completely invisible, goes on the run and becomes hunted by a treacherous CIA official, whilst trying to cope with his new reality.

Director:

John Carpenter

Writers:

H.F. Saint (book), Robert Collector (screenplay)

Stars:

Chevy Chase, Daryl Hannah, Sam Neill

5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Chevy Chase	...	Nick Halloway
Daryl Hannah	...	Alice Monroe
Sam Neill	...	David Jenkins
Michael McKean	...	George Talbot
Stephen Tobolowsky	...	Warren Singleton
Jim Norton	...	Dr. Bernard Wachs
Pat Skipper	...	Morrissey
Paul Perri	...	Gomez
Richard Epcar	...	Tyler
Steven Barr	...	Clellan
Gregory Paul Martin	...	Richard
Patricia Heaton	...	Ellen
Barry Kivel	...	Drunk Businessman
Donald Li	...	Cab Driver
Rosalind Chao	...	Cathy DiTolla

Storyline

Nick Halloway is made invisible during an accident. When Jenkins finds out about Nick, he set out to recruit him into the world of espionage, seeing the potential for an invisible CIA agent. When Alice Monroe falls in love with Nick, they are forced to flee the attentions of Jenkins. Nick also has the problem of living invisibly whilst trying to find a cure.

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Plot Keywords:

invisibility | lingerie | sexy woman | blonde | bra | 

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Taglines:

Women want him for his wit. The C.I.A. wants him for his body. All Nick wants is his molecules back.

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Certificate:

PG-13

Did You Know?

Trivia

Composer Jack Nitzsche, who previously worked with Carpenter on Starman (1984), was the first choice of composer, but he was unavailable. Producer Chevy Chase remembered seeing Shirley Walker conducting the orchestra when he was attending the scoring stage to his film National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989), so he suggested that they use Walker to score this film.

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Goofs

Nick is wearing a three piece suit when he goes to the seminar, but when he wakes up after the accident, he is only wearing a two piece suit. Not the vest. Nick tried to put on the vest when he was hurrying to leave his apartment. It was too difficult so he throws it aside.

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Quotes

David Jenkins: You found your calling Nick.

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Crazy Credits

Over the first minute or so of the end credits we see Nick skiing in snowy mountains, his head and face covered with a hat, goggles and scarf. He comes to a stop outside a large cabin. Alice comes out, evidently pregnant. Nick lifts his goggles and pulls the scarf down from around his face, but of course he is still invisible. Alice kisses him, and takes his gloved hand and holds it to her belly, so he can feel the baby kicking...

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Alternate Versions

UK cinema and video versions were edited to remove 'fuck you' in order for the film to receive a PG rating. The 2003 DVD was uncut and upgraded to a 12 certificate.

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Connections

Referenced in Witching and Bitching (2013)

User Reviews

Not prime Carpenter, but decent viewing for what it is.

Eventually there comes a time when actors who usually specialize in comedy decide that, for at least once, they'd like to be taken seriously. And so it goes with this Chevy Chase vehicle in which he largely plays it straight. He's cast as Nick Halloway, a securities analyst who is rendered invisible after a freak accident at a laboratory. This makes things difficult as he attempts to romance a documentarian (a radiant Daryl Hannah) whom he's just met, and tries to avoid a sneaky Federal agent (an appropriately smarmy Sam Neill) who wants to exploit Nicks' situation.

At the least, "Memoirs of an Invisible Man" offers an interesting look at a person who has to accept invisibility as a fact of life. In addition to the benefits of not being visible, he must deal with the realities. For example, HE may be invisible, but the food and drink he ingests won't be as they enter his system. All the spy stuff is pretty standard-issue, and one has to presume that the source novel by H.F. Saint was somewhat more nuanced.

Still, this is reasonably entertaining. It was clearly just work for hire for the celebrated veteran director John Carpenter; because it's among the least "Carpenter-esque" of his filmography, it may not be very satisfying to his fans.

Chase is very earnest. You have to respect his restraint; at no time do you get the indication that he wants to crack wise. Hannah is appealing and of course gorgeous. Neill is an effective villain, although he doesn't really try to suppress his natural Kiwi accent for the role. Familiar faces like Michael McKean, Stephen Tobolowsky, Patricia Heaton, Donald Li (From JC's "Big Trouble in Little China"), Rosalind Chao, and Sam Anderson also turn up. JC himself has a cameo late in the picture as a helicopter pilot (billed as "Rip Haight").

But the real stars of the movie are undoubtedly the visual effects team at ILM. If a viewer is otherwise bored with this, they can't deny that the invisibility gags are effective.

Overall, good for some chuckles and thrills.

Six out of 10.

Details

Country:

USA France

Language:

English

Release Date:

28 February 1992 (USA)

Also Known As:

Memoirs of an Invisible Man

Filming Locations:

Las Vegas, New Mexico, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$40,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$4,601,954, 1 March 1992

Gross USA:

$14,358,033

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$14,358,033

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., Canal+, New Regency Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1