Man-woman team of investigators uncover a gang whose mad scientist leader has developed an invisibility chemical and plans to build a mercenary army of invisible men.
18 Feb The Invisible Monster (1950)
Commies!
The actual story of this as it develops is so ordinary that it is a waste of time: one fist fight after another. The situations are indefensibly unimaginative.
It is the premise of the thing that’s interesting. I’ll give it to you here so you don’t have to watch this.
There’s a master criminal bent on taking over the country. He has a “chemical” from some unknown foreign country. Anything coated with this is invisible when illuminated with a certain lamp. This two part system leads to the amazing improbably: the bad guy can skulk about unseen if his accomplice keeps a light shown on him from a truck. But the beam is narrow, so the accomplice has to move it to barely cover the skulker. So how does he know where to point the beam?
The commie metaphor is extended. The bad guy has a group of helpers that are illegally smuggled into this country. They are clearly European. He places them in positions where they can spy and steal unknown to their blind employers. Though they aren’t literally invisible as the boss would make them eventually (if he could only get enough of that chemical!) they are virtually so. No employer suspects until it is too late.
This is much like “Federal Agents vs. the Underworld” (which preceded it) in most respects.
Posted in 2005
Ted’s Evaluation — 3 of 3: Worth watching.
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