The Invisible Man Returns *** (1940, Vincent Price, Cedric Hardwicke, Nan Grey, John Sutton, Cecil Kellaway, Alan Napier) – Classic Movie Review 2676

Director Joe May’s 1940 first Invisible Man sequel stars Vincent Price as Geoffrey Radcliffe, who takes a drug to turn himself invisible with the help of his chemist friend Dr Frank Griffin (John Sutton) in order to prove that he didn’t kill his brother (the character played by Claude Rains in the 1933 The Invisible Man).

Framed for the murder and scheduled to hang, Radcliffe vanishes mysteriously from prison after a visit from Griffin. But Inspector Sampson of Scotland Yard (Cecil Kellaway) susses it out and sets up a police dragnet to find him. It’s up to Radcliffe to try to elude the police long enough to find the real murderer, while Griffin looks for an antidote to the invisibility formula which has side effect of driving Radcliffe insane.

There’s plenty of welcome factor here in this good, solidly entertaining sequel, which is only one slight notch less entertaining and enduring as an esteemed cult movie than the first film.

Sir Cedric Hardwicke enjoys himself as the wicked Richard Cobb. Also in the cast are Nan Grey, Alan Napier, Forrester Harvey, Frances Robinson, Harry Stubbs, Harry Cording, Mary Gordon and Leyland Hodgson.

The special effects by John P Fulton and the Universal Studios production are again superior for the film’s era. The 1933 star Claude Rains was presumably by this time too big a name to be re-hired for any actor’s most frustrating monster role of invisible person. So this film gave Price the same first opportunity to enjoy a starring role, which he grabbed and used in the same way to propel his career as Rains had.

© Derek Winnert 2015 Classic Movie Review 2676

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