{"id":22548,"date":"2021-04-16T14:49:29","date_gmt":"2021-04-16T21:49:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/?p=22548"},"modified":"2021-04-16T14:49:29","modified_gmt":"2021-04-16T21:49:29","slug":"blasts-from-the-past-blu-ray-review-the-invisible-man-appears-1949-the-invisible-man-vs-the-human-fly-1957","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/?p=22548","title":{"rendered":"Blasts from the Past! Blu-ray Review: THE INVISIBLE MAN APPEARS (1949) \/ THE INVISIBLE MAN VS. THE HUMAN FLY (1957)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This double-feature Blu-ray is currently available from\nArrow Video.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

In 1897, the iconic H.G. Wells novel The Invisible Man<\/em>\nhit bookshelves and amassed a huge following. After the release of the 1933\nfilm adaptation from Universal Studios, the title character became iconic.\nSince that time, there have been numerous filmic versions of the story. However,\nthere have been a few features from Japan that have somehow managed to slip\nunder the radar. A few of them didn\u2019t even get released in North America. Monster\nmovie enthusiasts can now rejoice and fill in some of the gaps with Arrow Video\u2019s\nnew Blu-ray of The Invisible Man Appears<\/em> and The Invisible Man vs.\nThe Human Fly<\/em>. They\u2019re both entertaining genre movies that lift elements\nfrom the Universal classic and combine them with crime picture tropes to\namusing and sometimes surreal effect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Invisible Man Appears<\/em> follows Dr. Kenzo Nakazato\n(Ryunosuke Tsukigata) and a pair of research scientists who are experimenting with\ninvisibility formulas. Kenzo has already secretly created a working serum, but\nhas no way of reversing the condition. Meanwhile, brash researcher Shunji Kurakawa\n(Kanji Koshiba) and the more subdued Kyosuke Segi (Darjiro Natsukawa) are toiling\non their own versions, hoping success will earn the love of the professor\u2019s daughter,\nMachiko (Chizuru Kitagawa). When Kenzo tells local businessman Shosaku Sugiyama\n(Ichiro Kawabe) about his discovery, he fails to realize his acquaintance is an\nillegal jewel smuggler. Shosaku kidnaps Kenzo and enacts a needlessly complicated\ncriminal plot to obtain a diamond necklace. It involves tricking someone into taking\nthe formula and then promising to provide a non-existent antidote if they steal\nthe goods for him. Unfortunately, violent behavior is a serious side-effect of\nthe potion, causing trouble for all as the good guys try to uncover the truth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Even though the movie was produced more than 15 years after\nthe 1933 version, it\u2019s clear that the Universal feature has inspired the look\nof the main character. We see the figure dressed in bandages and a trench-coat,\nunwrapping himself and attacking unsuspecting victims (sometimes even stealing\ntheir clothes to create more visual gags). The visual effects are impressive and\nit\u2019s clear that a lot of effort went into them. Naturally, the sinister plot is\nsilly and far too busy with numerous moving parts (including a budding romance\nbetween Kyosuke and Machiko that results in extreme jealousy from Shunji), but it\nis all part of the fun and it holds our attention as we try to keep up with all\nof the ongoing threads. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

There are a couple of interesting spins added to this\nedition, especially as more characters become aware of the Invisible Man\u2019s\nrampage. Criminals who haven\u2019t taken the serum begin dressing up in bandages to\nserve as red herrings and even the good guys employ the tactic to trick the\ncrooks. It\u2019s enjoyable to see the filmmakers draw suspense out of misleading\nviewers. There\u2019s also a supporting character in the form of Shunji\u2019s sister, Ryuko\n(Takiko Mizunoe). She ends up being a very strong and pro-active female character\nwho sets out to stop the villain herself. Overall, the movie is entertainingly\nquirky. It may be a little too overstuffed for its own good, but it\u2019s a\ncracking ride and displays a couple of nifty twists on the concept. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Invisible Man vs. The Human Fly <\/em>is an even\ncrazier and more exaggerated experience. It\u2019s a cheesy little 50s sci-fi\npicture that has little to do with the previous film, other than introducing\nanother figure who becomes invisible. Admittedly, the pacing feels a bit slower\nwith the story focused on a series of unexplained murders in the streets of\nTokyo. It plays like a bizarre police procedural during the first half. However,\nwhen all is revealed and the heroes and villains face off, some truly bizarre and\noccasionally hilarious events follow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Inspector Wakabayashi (Yoshiro Kitahara) is the cop assigned\nto solve these strange slayings, which involve persons being stabbed or killed\nin broad daylight without any witnesses. While investigating the possible\nreasons for these abnormal crimes, the detective visits the lab of Dr. Tsukioka\n(Ryuji Shinagawa), who happens to be working on an invisibility ray. Of course,\nthey\u2019re still working out the kinks, leading to some amusing experiments involving\nsubjects who are only partially visible. As the case progresses, Wakabayashi discovers\nthat the villain is actually a man who has developed an elixir giving him the\npower to shrink at will. It also allows him to fly around and buzz like an\ninsect when he does so. As you might imagine, this results in some amusingly\nweird shots of a tiny, murderous guy floating through the air and escaping\nthrough vents. Wakabayashi and Dr. Tsukioka decide that the only way to stop\nthe killer is for one of them to use the invisibility ray on themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re wondering why being invisible would be of any help\nin fighting a microscopic human fly, you wouldn\u2019t be alone. But really, it\u2019s\nall just an excuse for more wacky scenarios and plenty of trippy images as these\ntwo characters square off. The story itself is incredibly dopey, but as things\nprogress and we see the protagonist and antagonist use their powers, the flick\nbecomes a lot of fun to watch. And it is also a project of note for featuring an\ninvisible man who is actually a hero instead of a villain. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Once again, credit should go to Arrow Video for finding and salvaging these titles. Remarkably, the films seem as if they were on the verge of being lost. The opening of each feature states that the disc was created from the best possible materials that could be located, which in this case was a 16mm exhibition print. While the picture isn\u2019t quite as sharp as a recent Universal Blu-ray master, the final high-definition transfer looks solid (better than the stills here would suggest) and it will satisfy those excited to check the titles out. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

As with all other Arrow releases, there are some fun bonuses\nas well. This includes a nifty featurette with critic Kim Newman, who goes over\nthe entire history of \u201cInvisible Man\u201d movies. He gets them all, from early silent\nshorts, through the Universal titles, the Japanese features, to more recent B-movie\nitems like The Invisible Maniac<\/em> (1990). Of course, he also discusses studio\nfare including Memoirs of an Invisible Man<\/em> (1992) and Hollow Man<\/em>\n(2000). He finishes things up with a brief examination of the recent remake and\nbox-office hit that starred Elizabeth Moss. The Blu-ray also comes with a\ntrailer for the first movie and image galleries for both titles. And there\u2019s a\nlong, lengthy and informative article on the production history behind these\nmovies included in booklet form.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All of the extras appear to explain that due to WWII, Japan\narrived a little late to the monster movie party. They surmise that the 1933\noriginal wouldn\u2019t have been released in the country until after the end of the\nconflict, explaining why the first reimagining arrived at cinemas so late in\nthe day. By the 1950s, monster movies like Godzilla<\/em> and its follow-up\nwere all the rage, along with titles like The Incredible Shrinking Man<\/em> (1957),\nwhich certainly influenced the follow-up. They also note that the second movie\nsomehow managed to predate the original monster movie The Fly<\/em> (1958),\ndespite having a couple of similar elements. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

If you enjoy classic monster movies from back in the day,\nthen you should seek out The Invisible Man Appears<\/em> and The Invisible\nMan vs. The Human Fly<\/em> on Blu-ray. In all, it\u2019s a fascinating and fun little\nlook into a couple of titles that would be otherwise unknown in this part of\nthe world had no one decided to find and release it. Genre fans should familiarize\nthemselves with these international takes on the famous character.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This double-feature Blu-ray is currently available from Arrow Video. In 1897, the iconic H.G. Wells novel The Invisible Man hit bookshelves and amassed a huge following. After the release of the 1933 film adaptation from Universal Studios, the title character became iconic. Since that time, there have been numerous filmic versions of the story. However, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":22549,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[79,86,1832,1836,2269,2923,2928,3067,3073,9319,9478,9912,10385,14186,14197,17775,19397,21132,21137,24256],"class_list":["post-22548","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dvdblu-ray-reviews","tag-79","tag-86","tag-arrow","tag-arrow-video","tag-bandages","tag-blasts-from-the-past","tag-blasts-from-the-past-blu-ray-review","tag-blu-ray","tag-blu-ray-review","tag-horror","tag-human-fly","tag-invisible-man","tag-japan","tag-monster","tag-monster-movie","tag-science-fiction","tag-surreal","tag-the-invisible-man-appears","tag-the-invisible-man-vs-the-human-fly","tag-wild"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22548","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=22548"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22548\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=22548"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=22548"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=22548"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}