MovieChat Forums > The Amazing Transparent Man Discussion > Unexpected Surprise

Unexpected Surprise

posted 12 years ago by silvrdal
4 replies | jump to latest

This film was buried in a cheapo set of sci-fi movies.
What a delight! I had NO expectations going in,
and this was far better than you'd think.

The plot is goofy, but fun when you buy the premise.
Sure, it's no classic, like "The Invisible Man",
but the story hangs together pretty well, and the
characters are fairly consistent in their behavior
throughout the film.

Marguerite Chapman is gorgeous and quite clever --
she's no hack or scenery-chewer. James Griffith is
his usual oily creep, fun! Douglas Kennedy makes
for an enjoyable gangster/guinea pig in the title role.

There are some nifty surprises, and considering that
it's just a B-picture, it packs a lot of fun into its
one-hour running time. It certainly deserves a better
rating than it's current 3.4 stars.

[–] bradme 12 years ago

Everyone just seems to assume that any B-Movie that was featured on MST3K is automatically bad. This is actually a nice little film. It's brisk and fun and the invisibility effects look cool as hell. For what it is it's great. And the way it blends classic film noir with sci fi is seamless.

[–] lubin-freddy 11 years ago

I agree. It at least was shot in a professional manner, decent composition, lighting, and camera movement. And the acting, while not great, was not Ed Woodesque camp.

Listen to the river sing sweet songs
to rock my soul

[–] vpilutis 10 years ago

was not Ed Woodesque camp.

PLAN NINE FROM OUTER SPACE
"You stupid Earth men" "You stupid, stupid Earth Men"

See some stars here
http://www.vbphoto.biz/

[–] talisencrw 8 years ago

I completely agree. To me, director Ulmer is cash money. Like another American director whose cheapo work I really enjoy, Allan Dwan, some directors just do their art for their own enjoyment, for art's sake, and to hell with everything else--and I for one greatly admire that philosophical approach. Especially today, when films either have to be $300 million monstrosities or intentionally bad, more directors, and studios in general, need to have more of that attitude, for the sake of cinema itself. 7/10 for me.