13 Nights of Shocktober: The Invisible Man (2020)

by A.J.

This is my favorite time of year, second only to Christmas. Autumn has arrived, the weather is cooling down, and October becomes the month-long celebration of scary movies called Shocktober. So, in the days leading up Halloween I’ll be posting some horror movie recommendations to help you celebrate Shocktober.

Night 2: Modern Monster Night
“He said that wherever I went, he would find me, walk right up to me, and I wouldn't be able to see him.”
The Invisible Man (2020)

The 2020 film The Invisible Man is not a remake of the classic 1930’s Universal Monster movie starring Claude Rains and directed by James Whale, or even a new adaptation of the H.G. Wells novel. In fact, aside from sharing a title and the basic concept of a sinister man that is invisible, this film has nearly nothing in common with the H.G. Wells novel. This frees up writer-director Leigh Whannell to create a wholly fresh approach to the story of a mad scientist that makes himself invisible. Unlike the Wells story or the film Hollow Man, this story focuses not on the scientist but on his victim.

Elizabeth Moss stars as Cecilia, whose partner, Adrian, is a controlling and abusive tech genius. In a suspenseful opening scene, she makes her escape from his luxurious compound-like West Coast mansion. She is hiding out with a friend (Aldis Hodge) and suffering through PTSD when she receives news that Adrian has killed himself. Cecilia finally begins to feel safe and free when unusual and suspicious occurrences begin. Adrian’s research was in optics, so it does not take her long to realize that he has somehow made himself invisible to continue to control and torment her.

The Invisible Man was produced and released by Blumhouse, the dominant production company in modern horror, which likes to keep budgets low (to keep profits high). The visual effects involving the invisible man are sparse but effective: floating objects, footprints appearing out of nothing, a human shape appearing when covered in paint or water. There are big scare scenes but also plenty of lowkey creepy moments to make your skin crawl. Disembodied breath on a cold night appearing behind Cecilia is a quiet but frightening moment. Maybe the simplest and scariest effect is the camera panning over to an empty corner or staying put after everyone has left a room. As a director, Whannell is smart enough to know that the best way to scare us is not with special effects or blood and gore but to put us right in Cecilia's shoes. We are as certain of the invisible man’s existence as she is and as uncertain of where he is or what he’ll do next as she is. His attacks on her are not only physical. When she is at a job interview and her portfolio is empty, we know what happened, but the interviewer just thinks that she is forgetful and unqualified. Adrian isolates her from her family and friends just as he did before, sabotaging the relationships that are holding her up, just as real life abusers physically and emotionally isolate their victims.

Elizabeth Moss gives an outstanding performance that drives the movie. Through her performance and the stylistic choices of Wharnell we really feel Cecilia’s paranoia. That is the major reason why this movie is so successfully frightening and suspenseful. She begins to come undone because of the stress and anxiety of her situation, but she knows she is not losing her mind. Scene after scene of her of not being believed has a deep significance beyond the plot. Any number of women could unfortunately relate to being not believed and left vulnerable by those supposed to offer protection. This movie easily avoids the male gaze and any lascivious scenes you might expect in a modern era movie about an invisible man: there are no scenes of Cecilia in the shower or getting undressed. From beginning to end this is an excellently crafted, scary film. This isn’t art house horror or elevated horror. This is just great horror. I wish more horror films were like this.