Written and directed by Australian filmmaker Leigh Whannell best known for 2018’s Upgrade, The Invisible Man is a surprisingly excellent modern adaptation of the H.G. Wells 1897 novel of the same name and makes for a truly entertaining and suspenseful experience that is dramatically enhanced by the terrific performance given by Elisabeth Moss. It is a very different story from the original book and the numerous film adaptations in that it takes the perspective of a woman who is physically and verbally abused by her rich and powerful boyfriend and is even terrorized by him after his apparent death. Without giving too much away, Cecilia Kass, played by the always stellar Elisabeth Moss, comes to the conclusion, after several terrifying experiences, that her supposedly deceased boyfriend Adrian Griffin, played by Oliver Jackson-Cohen, has discovered the ability to become invisible. He uses this unique power to continue to stalk and terrorize Cecilia without any initial explanation because of his apparent suicide and unbelievable skill of actually being invisible. What makes her situation even more horrifying is that nobody believes her, including her sister Emily, played by Harriet Dyer, and her best friend and cop James, played by Aldis Hodge, who she confides in and lives with after first escaping Adrian. The filmmaker is able to transform a relatively cheesy sci-fi story into a powerful metaphor for the constant fear felt by victims of domestic abuse in which they feel they cannot escape their abuser. Through Elisabeth Moss’s character, the audience is always kept on the edge of their seats by not knowing what Adrian as an invisible man will do next and the numerous shocking twists in the plot that follow. The movie’s tension is further heightened by the eerily dark settings, moody music, and the slowly creeping camera movements, all elements typical of a horror film but that is crafted in such a smart way that transcends the genre. Overall, I found it to be a brilliantly creative and emotionally draining cinematic experience that plays more like a thriller that can appeal to both fans and non-fans of the horror genre and is able to vividly portray a terrifying story of domestic abuse, primarily as a result of the gravitas of Elisabeth Moss’s performance.
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