Distinguished character actor Claude Raines was "The Invisible Man" back in 1933 and, at age 46, it was his American debut in films. This all-time classic was directed by James Whale and has some astonishing special effects. It's the story of a scientist fooling around with chemicals and as a result, he's rendered invisible - and crazy, and getting crazier by the minute. He's determined to find the formula that will get him back to being seen, so in a disguise, he takes refuge in an inn where he can work. The disguise consists of a raincoat, gloves, pants, shirt, bandages, a fake nose, sunglasses and a wig. Unfortunately, he starts getting rough with both the staff and the room, and soon he's on the run, naked so no one can see him, killing as he goes and playing pranks, such as taking a cash drawer from a bank and then throwing the money around for people to catch.
We don't get to see Raines until the end, but we hear his masterful voice and really lunatic laugh. The effects are fantastic especially considering it's 1933, and lots of imagination was needed to make up for the lack of technology. People are swung into mid-air with nothing underneath, footprints appear in the snow with nobody apparently making them, a cash drawer hangs in the air - wonderful stuff.
This was a perfect role for Raines as the character's voice and dramatic ability is so important. He would go on to become one of the really great actors in films and would continue working until about two years before he died in 1967, at nearly 78.
The girl he leaves behind is beautiful, classy Gloria Stuart who played a series of gorgeous ingénues in films. 64 years later, she wowed them in Titanic.
Truly a vintage film from Universal.
We don't get to see Raines until the end, but we hear his masterful voice and really lunatic laugh. The effects are fantastic especially considering it's 1933, and lots of imagination was needed to make up for the lack of technology. People are swung into mid-air with nothing underneath, footprints appear in the snow with nobody apparently making them, a cash drawer hangs in the air - wonderful stuff.
This was a perfect role for Raines as the character's voice and dramatic ability is so important. He would go on to become one of the really great actors in films and would continue working until about two years before he died in 1967, at nearly 78.
The girl he leaves behind is beautiful, classy Gloria Stuart who played a series of gorgeous ingénues in films. 64 years later, she wowed them in Titanic.
Truly a vintage film from Universal.