Universal Pictures has gone to great pains as of late to keep the legacy of their original Monster Movie Universe alive.
Franchises like Dracula, Frankenstein, The Wolf Man, the Creature From The Black Lagoon, and The Invisible Man have enjoyed several home video releases in a variety of collections -- some together and some solo. Granted, a good deal of these entries arguably lack the luster of what special effects can accomplish in the creature features of today; but ardent and faithful fans of Horror and Classic films alike continue to relish 'Old School Charm' for what it is -- a great device with which to weave some more relatable magic. Though some might argue a handful of the sequels were imperfect, the films still resonate with others because they focus more on the humans caught up in these extraordinary circumstances; and, yes, there's absolutely nothing wrong with a bit of rediscovery every generation.
For what it's worth, I enjoyed The Invisible Man Returns (1940) -- a chiller that turns an astonishing 85 years young today -- a tad more than its predecessor. There's nothing wrong with The Invisible Man (1933) whatsoever: my issue with it is that aside from the great tortured central performance of actor Claude Rains the story didn't do all that much for me as a viewer. Everyone else in it is fine; and yet I remember feeling a bit empty when it was all over and done with. The Invisible Man Returns might offer up only a modest variation on the same story; but I felt its various characters were a bit more fleshed out than were the faces of the original, circumstances being what they were.
According to the citation on Wikipedia.org, Unversal Studios launched a campaign to develop the Invisible Man's sequel after the positive box office success of Son Of Frankenstein, the 1939 sequel to their earlier Frankenstein (1931) production. As can happen when such a demand precedes a script submission, the affair allegedly went through a pair of hands before the studio settled on Joe May as director along with genre veteran Curt Siodmak crafting the shooting script. Frankly, this would be Siodmak's first foray into authentic monster movies; but the eventual success of The Invisible Man Returns would see him crafting a good handful of other cinematic outings in the years ahead. Director May, Lester Cole, and Cedric Belfrage also contributed to the finished screenplay.
Again according to Wikipedia.org, the early reporting surrounding the picture strongly suggested that screen heavyweights like Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi were at different times considered for the lead in Returns. Alas, neither actor are ultimately in the completed film; and there's the suggestion that Universal instead sought out the talents of a virtual unknown, perhaps thinking that might be a bit more economical especially if the film went gangbusters with audiences, leaving the prospect for future installments on the table. Lo and behold, Vincent Price -- a man who's star was truly starting to climb -- emerged with the part, and history was made.
There's a good deal written on both IMDB.com and Wikipedia.org that confirms Returns was not exactly a smooth production. Apparently, filming ran somewhat behind, and production costs -- while not unreasonable -- managed to accumulate. Special effects work of the day being what they were might very well have contributed to both this slowdown and run-up of the budget; but I've not seen any specific accounting for these overages, so I'll leave it at that. Sometimes -- as they say -- it is what it is.
Was it all worth the effort?
Unquestionably, Universal Studios was pleased with the results. Of course, I don't doubt the suits would've wanted to make a bit more from ticket sales; but IMDB.com indicates that the box office brought back just under four times what it cost to make the picture, and the movers and shakers arguably took that as a win. The performance also caused the studio to greenlight another foray into the world of the invisible, a Comedy this time out: The Invisible Woman (1940) is also credited to May and Siodmak (as screenwriters) along with Robert Lees, Frederic I. Rinaldo, and Gertrude Purcell, with A. Edward Sutherland directing.
It's also worth a mention that Returns went on to garner a 1941 Academy Awards nomination in the category of 'Best Special Effects,' the work on turning invisible and back being groundbreaking for its time on the silver screen. Though the picture ultimately lost out to The Thief Of Bagdad, its Special Effects formula would continue to be used on screens big and small for decades.
That is some legacy.
Franchises like Dracula, Frankenstein, The Wolf Man, the Creature From The Black Lagoon, and The Invisible Man have enjoyed several home video releases in a variety of collections -- some together and some solo. Granted, a good deal of these entries arguably lack the luster of what special effects can accomplish in the creature features of today; but ardent and faithful fans of Horror and Classic films alike continue to relish 'Old School Charm' for what it is -- a great device with which to weave some more relatable magic. Though some might argue a handful of the sequels were imperfect, the films still resonate with others because they focus more on the humans caught up in these extraordinary circumstances; and, yes, there's absolutely nothing wrong with a bit of rediscovery every generation.
For what it's worth, I enjoyed The Invisible Man Returns (1940) -- a chiller that turns an astonishing 85 years young today -- a tad more than its predecessor. There's nothing wrong with The Invisible Man (1933) whatsoever: my issue with it is that aside from the great tortured central performance of actor Claude Rains the story didn't do all that much for me as a viewer. Everyone else in it is fine; and yet I remember feeling a bit empty when it was all over and done with. The Invisible Man Returns might offer up only a modest variation on the same story; but I felt its various characters were a bit more fleshed out than were the faces of the original, circumstances being what they were.
According to the citation on Wikipedia.org, Unversal Studios launched a campaign to develop the Invisible Man's sequel after the positive box office success of Son Of Frankenstein, the 1939 sequel to their earlier Frankenstein (1931) production. As can happen when such a demand precedes a script submission, the affair allegedly went through a pair of hands before the studio settled on Joe May as director along with genre veteran Curt Siodmak crafting the shooting script. Frankly, this would be Siodmak's first foray into authentic monster movies; but the eventual success of The Invisible Man Returns would see him crafting a good handful of other cinematic outings in the years ahead. Director May, Lester Cole, and Cedric Belfrage also contributed to the finished screenplay.
Again according to Wikipedia.org, the early reporting surrounding the picture strongly suggested that screen heavyweights like Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi were at different times considered for the lead in Returns. Alas, neither actor are ultimately in the completed film; and there's the suggestion that Universal instead sought out the talents of a virtual unknown, perhaps thinking that might be a bit more economical especially if the film went gangbusters with audiences, leaving the prospect for future installments on the table. Lo and behold, Vincent Price -- a man who's star was truly starting to climb -- emerged with the part, and history was made.
There's a good deal written on both IMDB.com and Wikipedia.org that confirms Returns was not exactly a smooth production. Apparently, filming ran somewhat behind, and production costs -- while not unreasonable -- managed to accumulate. Special effects work of the day being what they were might very well have contributed to both this slowdown and run-up of the budget; but I've not seen any specific accounting for these overages, so I'll leave it at that. Sometimes -- as they say -- it is what it is.
Was it all worth the effort?
Unquestionably, Universal Studios was pleased with the results. Of course, I don't doubt the suits would've wanted to make a bit more from ticket sales; but IMDB.com indicates that the box office brought back just under four times what it cost to make the picture, and the movers and shakers arguably took that as a win. The performance also caused the studio to greenlight another foray into the world of the invisible, a Comedy this time out: The Invisible Woman (1940) is also credited to May and Siodmak (as screenwriters) along with Robert Lees, Frederic I. Rinaldo, and Gertrude Purcell, with A. Edward Sutherland directing.
It's also worth a mention that Returns went on to garner a 1941 Academy Awards nomination in the category of 'Best Special Effects,' the work on turning invisible and back being groundbreaking for its time on the silver screen. Though the picture ultimately lost out to The Thief Of Bagdad, its Special Effects formula would continue to be used on screens big and small for decades.
That is some legacy.
As always, thanks for reading ... thanks for sharing ... thanks for being a fan ... and live long and prosper!
-- EZ
-- EZ
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