Invisible

The Chronicles of Benjamin Knight

A mad scientist wants radioactive crystals located in the lab of a wheel-chair scientist, his scientist lover, and their colleague who is plagued by invisibility caused by radiation.
**½

My interest in Full Moon’s Invisible was the idea that Charles Band and company would take on the invisible man formula that I really enjoy if the story is told in an exciting, somewhat original (or at least, creative…) way. Sadly, this is basically just a Mandroid (1993) sequel in Romania with a mad scientist in a mask (right out of Phantom of the Opera) leading a merry band of loonies inside a decrepit sanatorium, kidnapping local girls, enslaving them in cells (that look like bleak white slaver dungeons), and causing general mischief.

Let me tell you, though, that what I took away from Invisible was Jennifer Nash. My God, what a beautiful woman. Tall, with these long legs (I personally love a woman with long legs) and a body that is particularly captivating inside this gypsy “bikini”, Nash even wields a sword while scantily clad, engaged in battle with the demented Drago. I am hooked, I don’t care to admit, when I see a babe, wielding a sword, scantily clad, and holding her own against a foe. Even if the sword fight isn’t that magnificent. She seems to be wielding the sword herself, so that is at least something. When she pushes him out the window, watching him plunge to his death, Nash passes off a smirk that confirms she just kicked his ass. It is empowering, and shows she got her revenge and that her brand of justice is sweet to the taste.

Brian Cousins is Wade, stuck in a wheel chair. He’s often burdened by this. It infects his emotional state and psyche periodically. He’s a genius, in particular, of robotics. Nash is his colleague, confidante, and lover, Zanna. Benjamin Knight (Michael Della Femina) was being treated in a clinic, and part of the treatment wound up causing invisibility. Zanna comes up with a medicinal solution Ben will have to take the rest of his life in order to keep from turning invisible. Drago (Curt Lowens) had attacked Ben in their lab, causing him to fall into a radioactive chamber containing crystals, and because of this radioactivity, he was rendered invisible. If he touches a certain crystal, he will become invisible. During this event of the attack, Drago lifted up a container of acid that splashes on his face, causing hideous scarring.

As with plenty of Full Moon plots, this one’s busy. With all that has already been mentioned, included is a politia led by the crooked Petroff (Aharon Ipalé) who sets his eyes on an invisible police force, a corrupt physician, Dr. Knox (Alan Oppenheimer) who comes to Petroff with a proposal regarding the power available through the use of invisibility (he was the on-site doc seeing after Ben while in his Romanian hospital), and Zanna’s young assistant, Ryder (David Kaufman), attempting to steal some of the radioactive crystals for Drago who has his father imprisoned. So you have the politia chasing Wade, Zanna, and Ben, looking to secure the secret of invisibility and upon reaching their laboratory, finds Mandroid. While Zanna and Ben hide behind the library shelves in a secret room (I can’t get enough of these!!!), Wade and his Mandroid are taken by Petroff to politia headquarters. With Zanna and Ben coming up with a rescue attempt, Wade (who has now developed a guiding device in a pair of Rayban-stylized shades instead of the helmet) might just be able to activate Mandroid and escape. Drago and his mental patients must be brought back to our attention from time to time just so we won’t forget them there’s so much going on!

So let’s see. Wade, in wheelchair operates a bad ass cyborg through the use of a pair of shades. Invisible Man. Drago, the mad scientist with mask to cover his hideous visage. Crooked politia. Corrupt physician. Loonies in an asylum. Local girls enslaved. Crystals that cause invisibility. Zanna and her serum to cure invisibility. Shootouts during car chases. A swordfight. Even the slave girls get to please Drago by walking across a long dinner table to the delight of the loons in his asylum congregated about, grabbing at their legs. Like I said, this one is busy.

Drago is painted by the film as your classic comic book psycho. The mask, his treatment of others, and his mad dream to gain control of the crystals. He’s melodramatic and expects orders to be followed without fail. He has no qualms using his loons to do whatever bidding benefits his mad goals. He hates Zanna and Ben because their interference disrupts his plans.

I think it is probably important to see Mandroid (1993) before watching Invisible because of the backstory used in this “sequel of sorts”. All the major principles from Mandroid (1993) returned for Invisible. Invisible doesn’t exactly give us anything memorable or original. You get politia beaten up by Invisible Ben (easy to fake), Invisible Ben smoking a cigarette and driving a van, Invisible Ben going berserk after some sparring on a punching bag held by Mandroid, and Invisible Ben wielding an ax. Full Moon studios has Ben modeled practically identical to the Claude Rains Invisible Man. That’s a homage, on purpose, I suppose. I don’t mind that, really. But, this film doesn’t really follow through with the title as it seems to indicate that Invisible Ben will be the star and the plot will be centered specifically around him. He’s just another part of a larger plot. I think that is detrimental, actually. In regards to Drago, he has been trying to design a serum that will repair damaged tissue. He fails over and over. This might say that he's not exactly as good a scientist as he thinks. That is funny to me.