Invisible Agent

Wow, this movie is a perfect blend of intrigue, comedy and action, and it's done with quite a bit of flair too. Definitely corny at times, but that's part of the fun. As is the case with all Universal Horror pics from 1930-45, this chiller is incredibly moody and atmospheric. 8/10. Watch it with the lights off.

Jon Hall plays Frank Raymond, the grandson of the Invisible Man, who has changed his name from Griffin to Raymond and runs a print shop in hopes of avoiding people looking for his grandfather's formula for invisibility. When Axis agents led by the nefarious duo of Stauffer (Cedric Hardwicke) and Ikito (Peter Lorre) show up and threaten Raymond, he decides to become the Invisible Man and spy for the Allies.

The least of Universal's Invisible Man films but still enjoyable. The continuity's a little sloppy. Frank is said to be the grandson of the original Invisible Man, also named Frank Griffin. But the original was named Jack. It was his brother from The Invisible Man Returns that was named Frank. Plus the original Invisible Man died without kids, unless we're to believe his fiancée in the first movie was pregnant. Anyway, it's probably best to assume Frank Griffin took credit for his brother's discovery...or, you know, don't bother explaining it at all because it's really not that important.

Hall is fine but his character can be irritating at times. The film's worst scene is where he pranks Nazi Karl Heiser (J. Edward Bromberg). The whole scene is a juvenile attempt at laughs that fails badly. Bromberg's character is a perfect example of the movie's main flaw: the out of place comedy within the darker wartime plot. For the most part, Heiser is a joke and treated like Schultz from Hogan's Heroes. But then there are scenes where his darker side comes through that makes the comedy parts a poor fit. Ilona Massey looks great but her character seems to exist just to fall for Hall, even though he treats her pretty crappy. The climax of the movie plays like an action serial with the Nazis pursuing Hall and Massey as they try to escape by plane. What happens next I won't spoil but it's unintentionally silly.

Two characters that actually do work are the evil Stauffer and Ikito, played by Cedric Hardwicke and Peter Lorre. These two are the best part of the film, providing a real menace to the hero. Lorre's Ikito is an especially evil character. He begins the film by threatening to chop Frank's fingers off and later ingeniously (and sadistically) catches him with a net lined with fish hooks! These great actors own every scene they're in and it's worth seeing the movie just for them.

INVISIBLE AGENT (Universal, 1942), directed by Edwin L. Marin, is Universal's attempt in keeping H.G. Wells' "Invisible Man" stories in circulation by bringing them up to date, this time through the use of an original screenplay by Curtis Siodmak. Jon Hall, best known for his South Seas adventure tales with Maria Montez, might have become an unlikely candidate for the title role, but succeeds on his own merits. Though not exactly in the same league as its predecessors, especially the original 1933 classic starring Claude Rains, it's more of a propaganda film than horror, in the tradition of earlier outings as ESPIONAGE AGENT (1939) and Alfred Hitchcock's FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT (1940), both starring Joel McCrea.

The story opens in New York where foreign agents, Conrad Stauffer (Sir Cedric Hardwicke), a Nazi leader, and Baron Ikito (Peter Lorre), a Japanese, break into a printing shop run by Frank Raymond (Jon Hall), who's secretly the grandson of scientist Frank Griffin, inventor of an invisibility formula. (Is this in reference to Frank Griffin from THE INVISIBLE MAN RETURNS (1940), overlooking the fact that it was Jack Griffin from THE INVISIBLE MAN (1933), being the true inventor of that formula?) Knowing his true identity, the agents demand the formula from him. After going through the torture test that nearly causes him the loss of his fingers in a cutting machine, Frank manages to make his getaway and report the incident to John Gardiner (John Litel) of the American Embassy. When asked to relay the formula to the government, he refuses, but gives in after the bombing of Pearl Harbor that leads America into war, on the condition that he act as an invisible agent for America by spying on the Germans instead of their trained agents. Once he parachutes on enemy lines, Griffin, now invisible, follows his instructions by meeting with Arnold Schmidt (Albert Basserman), his contact, owner of a coffin shop, who secretly relays the information to England. Griffin's next assignment is to contact Maria Sorenson (Ilona Massey), Stauffer's mistress and counterspy who's under watch from Karl Heiser (J. Edward Bromberg), a Nazi officer. After finding himself trapped inside a fishing net full of hooks that leaves him helpless, Griffin accuses Maria, whom he now loves, to be his betrayer, and must somehow break free in order to acquire the secret plans revealing the Adolph Hitler's attack on New York.

Although related to the previous Invisible Man sequels, INVISIBLE AGENT is often treated as an outsider mainly because it's more of a spy vs. spy story than the science fiction/mad scientist formula. Regardless of a fine supporting cast consisting of Hardwicke as the central villain and Lorre, even more menacing, coming close to resembling the Oriental sleuth, Mr. Moto, a character he portrayed in eight film mysteries during the late 1930s, through the use of his thick glasses, the somewhat unbalanced script appears to be geared more for the juvenile audiences out to cheer for their unseen hero. Humor takes precedence over the seriousness nature of the wartime story during its 81 minutes. Top-billed Ilona Massey, who arrives late in the story, plays a Mata Hari-type mystery woman leaving audiences wondering whose side she is on. That's one of the fun parts of the movie. Her key scenes include her encounter with the invisible agent and placing cold cream on him to see his face; and her attempt in having dinner with Nazi Heiser with the unseen Griffin having the time of his life disturbing them by moving things around and driving Heisler to the point of distraction. And speaking of driving, the plot is highlighted by a well staged car chase between Griffin and the Nazis. The scene where the invisible agent, giving himself a bath, covered with soap suds, is realistically done, thanks to John P. Fulton's first-rate contribution to the special effects department that equals the credibility to his earlier technique for THE INVISIBLE MAN and THE INVISIBLE MAN RETURNS.

Formerly distributed on video cassette around the 1990s, and rarely visible on the television markets in recent years, INVISIBLE AGENT's current availability happens to be on DVD as part of its "Invisible Man" movie package. Next in the series, THE INVISIBLE MAN'S REVENGE (1944) also starring Jon Hall. (**1/2)

The grandson of Jack Griffin, the Invisible Man, has been living peacefully somewhere in the United States until some German agents find, corner, and try to "persuade" him to give up the family formula so Germany can have this new weapon. Jon Hall plays the relative of the biggest disappearing act ever, and he manages to escape the German clutches and offer the use of the formula to the United States with the proviso that only he will use the possibly fatal formula. This is one of those films that is very light and a whole lot of fun. It is definitely trying to promote the war effort and patriotism with a lot of figurative flag waving. So what? I'd rather have that than goosestepping to and fro while some German autocrat mouths idealistic tripe under a small moustache. Anyway, the film is more a comedy than anything else with Nazis once again being stereotyped as figures of ridicule. Bromberg in particular is very effective as an overweight Nazi with little intelligence and a knack for comedic situations. There is a very serious side as well and Edward Hardwicke and Peter Lorre mix wit with menace as an intelligent German Gestapo head and a Japanese diplomat looking out for the interests of Japan. Hall makes an affable leading man in nothing else. Naturally we get to see lots of things move on their own and other such situations, but the film as a whole if a lot of entertaining fluff with some moral ideology as a fringe.

Of the "Invisible Man" series made by Universal, I was only familiar with the first two (both of which I'll rewatch again presently) - the James Whale original being one of my all-time favorites.

Ever since it was released as part of the "Legacy" set, I had mostly read negative opinions about this film - and even Leonard Maltin gives it a pretty low rating. However, I was very surprised by how much I enjoyed it! True, the leads are rather bland (why on earth is Ilona Massey credited before Jon Hall?!) but, then, INVISIBLE AGENT has a formidable trio of villains - Peter Lorre, Sir Cedric Hardwicke and J. Edward Bromberg - going for it (who even make Curt Siodmak's script sound better than it is). Besides, I must say that I'm a sucker for both WWII and espionage movies, so that's a big plus as well...which, I guess, means that it isn't really a horror film and that The Invisible Man is the hero! Oh well, you can't have everything!

John P. Fulton's still-impressive special effects (exposed a bit here by the extra clarity of the DVD transfer) deliver the goods and, all in all, the film made me keen to get to the remaining titles in the series.