The Invisible Boy *** (1957, Richard Eyer, Philip Abbott, Diane Brewster) – Classic Movie Review 10,569

‘Can science go too far? Can it create life??’ Good question, MGM.

In a story by Edmund Cooper, computer boffin Dr Tom Merrinoe (Philip Abbott)’s 10-year-old son Timmie (Richard Eyer) repairs and befriends Forbidden Planet’s Robby the Robot, which battles a power-crazed Super Computer that is out for planet supremacy and seeks to control the Earth from an eerie satellite suspended in space. It is ‘The science-monster who would destroy the world!’

Director Herman Hoffman’s charismatic little junior 1957 black and white sci-fi movie The Invisible Boy, from the studio (MGM) writer (Cyril Hume) and producer (Nicholas Nayfack) of Forbidden Planet, makes good use of Robby the Robot, and refreshingly is all seen from the child’s perspective.

Though the adult acting is not up to much, Richard Eyer is excellent in a sweet performance, while the story and handling are very appealing.

Also in the cast are Diane Brewster, Harold J Stone, Robert H Harris, Dennis McCarthy, Alexander Lockwood, John O’Malley, and Gage Clarke.

Richard Eyer left the film business around the age of 16 after his agent Milton Rossner died, and became a teacher and taught elementary school children in Bishop, California. He was born in Santa Monica, California, on 6 May 1945.

Richard Eyer played another boy who can disappear into thin air in The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958).

© Derek Winnert 2020 Classic Movie Review 10,569

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