The Invisible Man's Revenge (1944)

User Rating:

5.4/10   

Director:

Ford Beebe

Writers:

Bertram Millhauser (writer)
H.G. Wells (characters)

Release Date:

9 June 1944 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

THEY'RE MARKED...for DEATH! (original print ad - mostly caps)

Plot:

An eccentric scientist helps a fugitive from the law become invisible, unwittingly giving him the power to exact revenge on his former friends.

Plot Keywords:

Fugitive | Invisibility | Revenge | Reporter | Old Friend

Cast

Jon Hall	...	Robert Griffin
Leon Errol	...	Herbert
John Carradine	...	Doctor Drury
Alan Curtis	...	Mark Foster
Evelyn Ankers	...	Julie Herrick
Gale Sondergaard	...	Irene - Lady Herrick
Lester Matthews	...	Sir Jasper Herrick
Halliwell Hobbes	...	Cleghorn
Leyland Hodgson	...	Sir Frederick Travers
Doris Lloyd	...	Maud
Ian Wolfe	...	Feeney
Billy Bevan	...	Sergeant
Grey Shadow	...	Grey Shadow
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jimmy Aubrey	...	Wedderburn - the Innkeeper (uncredited)
Ted Billings	...	Bettor in Pub (uncredited)
Lillian Bronson	...	Norma - the Maid (uncredited)
Leonard Carey	...	The Police Constable (uncredited)
Cyril Delevanti	...	Malty Bill - Shopkeeper (uncredited)
Janna DeLoos	...	Nellie (uncredited)
Tom Dillon	...	Ned Towle - Darts Expert (uncredited)
Mildred Dunnock	...	Norma - the Chambermaid (uncredited)
Arthur Gould-Porter	...	Tom Meadows (uncredited)
Olaf Hytten	...	Gray - a Cabman (uncredited)
Guy Kingsford	...	Bill (uncredited)
Skelton Knaggs	...	Alf Perry - a Cabman (uncredited)
William J. O'Brien	...	Bettor in Pub (uncredited)
Beatrice Roberts	...	Nurse (uncredited)
Yorke Sherwood	...	Jim Yarrow (uncredited)
Dan White	...	Pub Patron (uncredited)

Directed by
Ford Beebe

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Bertram Millhauser		writer
H.G. Wells		characters

Produced by
Ford Beebe	....	producer

Original Music by
Hans J. Salter		(as H.J. Salter)
William Lava		(uncredited)
Eric Zeisl		(uncredited)

Cinematography by
Milton R. Krasner		(as Milton Krasner)

Film Editing by
Saul A. Goodkind		(as Saul Goodkind)

Art Direction by
John B. Goodman
Harold H. MacArthur

Set Decoration by
Russell A. Gausman
A.J. Gilmore

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Fred Frank	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Bernard B. Brown	....	sound director
William Hedgcock	....	sound technician

Special Effects by
John P. Fulton	....	special effects

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Vera West	....	gown supervisor

Music Department
Hans J. Salter	....	musical director (as H.J. Slater)

Production Companies

• Universal Pictures

Distributors

• Universal Pictures (1944) (USA) (theatrical)
• Realart Pictures (1948) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Screen Gems (1957) (USA) (TV)
• MCA/Universal Home Video (199?) (USA) (VHS)
• Universal Home Entertainment (????) (USA) (DVD)

Runtime:

78 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #10009) | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:Btl | UK:H (original rating) (cut) | UK:PG (video rating) (2001) | USA:Unrated

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

Character actor Edgar Barrier, unhappy with the way his career was shaping up at Universal, dropped out four days before production began. He was quickly replaced by Lester Matthews.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Jasper hands the signed confession to Griffin it suddenly goes from being a limp piece of paper to being a stiff sheet, the better to be supported by wires.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Malty Bill: Two pounds, seven for the Burberry and the hat.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Son of Svengoolie: The Invisible Man's Revenge (1944) (#1.52)" (1980)

Least of the Series

This Invisible Man film is easily the least significant of the four made. It tells of a gruff left-for-dead man coming back named Bob Griffin, having absolutely nothing to do with anyone in any of the other Invisible Man films, dealing with a couple that may or may not have left him in Africa. The couple's complicity in the crime is never stated one way or the other, and we as viewers are left with an overacting Jon Hall barking out orders to everyone he meets. Hall's character is so odious that we feel nothing for him at all except a desire to see him die. I will not spoil that bit of plot for you, but I will say that the ending is one of the few highlights of this film. Because the script takes no ground morally, I was in a lurch as to whom I should be concerned for. Were Jasper and his wife responsible for Griffin being left-for-dead? Did they purposely swindle him? Even when they do something to him, one is never really sure of their intent. The other actors are typical for a Universal film and give adequate performances. The sole bright light for me was John Carradine as a scientist with invisible animals that discovers he can make a man invisible too. Carradine seems to have a lot of fun with his role as he is garbed in white lab coat and pince-nez. The plot never really thickens and any real meat to the film is indeed invisible. Save for Carradine and some spectacular special effects of the day, one can see why this was the end of one of Universal's monsters.