User Reviews

I would place this film in the top five of Abbott and Costello's films and the best film they made in the 1950s. It gets very good marks for excellent special effect as well as a clever story. It's one of several "monster films" Bud and Lou made for Universal Studios--having also done movies with Dracula, Frankenstein, the Wolf-Man, Dr. Jekyll and the Mummy. All of these films were among their better films--great fun and a nice break from the usual Abbott and Costello formula. And speaking of formula, since this was made later in their careers, the original formula (including lots of song and dance numbers and a side romantic plot) was abandoned and the film was pure comedy.

The film begins with the boys graduating from detective college. When Lou wonders how he managed to graduate, Bud says that he "slipped them a few bucks"! Their first case involves a desperate man that comes for help. Tommy is a boxer who is accused of murder. He's on the run from the police and hopes Bud and Lou can help. Bud is only concerned with turning him in for a reward and Lou is his usual nice but wimpy self--he just wants to stay out of trouble. Just before the police nab Tommy, he injects himself with an invisibility formula. Now it's a matter of the doctor coming up with an antidote before the formula drives him made. It's also a matter of proving his innocence so he's able to once again show his face!

The movie has a lot of excellent invisibility special effects and these are done very well. About the only thing that is rather cheesy are the effects at the very end as well as the plot involving Lou posing as a pro boxer (with invisible Tommy taking pokes at his opponent). They didn't even try to do these scenes well and Lou obviously wasn't doing much of the punching. People said "wow he punches fast" but I just thought that looked a bit dopey. Still, considering how well made the rest of the film is, I can't complain. It's yet another one of the team's excellent Universal monster films and one any fan must see. Others probably will have a few laughs as well.

"Abbott and Costello meet the Invisible Man" is a lot better than what most would say it is.

**SPOILERS**

Fresh out of detective school, Bud Alexander, (Bud Abbott) and Lou Francis, (Lou Costello) are put in charge of the case of Tommy Nelson, (Arthur Franz) a man who was wrongly convicted for killing a mobster. Hearing of a serum that can make a man invisible, Tommy uses it and does become invisible, right in front of Bud. Even though the police don't believe his story, they let him continue to investigate. Leading back to the old boxing club where Tommy used to box to prove his innocence, all three run afoul of the gangster that had set Tommy up for murder.

The Good News: I honestly wasn't expecting this one to be as funny as it was, and it's one of the funniest ones in the series. There's a plethora of their trademark sight gags in here, and besides being quite funny, they are incredibly creative. The sight of watching Bud in a fight with a boxer, and any time he is landing punches, the boxer is beaten up with the blows heard landing on him. The other gags in there are just as creative, and are so uproarious that it has to be seen to be believed. Spread through-out the movie are other such moments that are just as creative and side-splitting hilarious. A dinner sequence with the Invisible Man quite drunk and a card game later, which itself is mind-blowing how well they were pulled off in the time, stand as highlights as well. A couple of very humorous word-plays at the beginning provide some more laughs, especially an interrogation scene that is fall-down funny. The effects are top-notch as well, and easily steal the show from the comedy. Whenever we see the Invisible Man, we are treated to show-stoppers. Here we are allowed to see the transparent pugilist through steam leaking out of a radiator and the effect is very impressive for one main example. A later sequence at the end, which was echoed to similar results in "Hollow Man," are just as effective and mind-boggling as they were back then. The fast-plot doesn't get too complicated, and serves as a backdrop for their brand of gags and word-play, and it easily entertains because of it.

The Bad News: I really didn't find much not to like here. Sure, the fast-moving plot is pretty similar to "The Invisible Man Returns," but it's easily forgiven. It's not one to think to hard about to figure out, and it's been mistakenly called as such. The main thing I can tell from this is that it follow in the footsteps of "Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein," and while any film that would follow that one have big shoes to fill, this one is unjustly criticized because of it.

The Final Verdict: This is a refreshing return to the fun and fantasy that buoyed their earlier features. It's more comedy than horror, but it pulls off most of the gags quite competently and remains a light, fancy-free film that any fans of the Abbott and Costello movies or comedy/horror fans will like.

Today's Rating-PG: Mild Violence

I'm not a fan of Abbott and Costello's brand of comedy movies, but this one does have a few good gags that play on the notions of concealment and what characters see and don't see, which is appropriate given that the duo meet the Invisible Man. One of their follow-up monster meetings after the monster-rally parody "Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein" (1948), "Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man," besides borrowing from the H.G. Wells inspired Invisible Man horror films, also mash together the boxing, detective and gangster genres. The story involving a boxer becoming invisible to clear his name and uncover a murder mystery and dive-taking corruption in the ring is throwaway.

Costello is practically the entire show this time, with most of the humor revolving around his reactions. He's also the first character to "see" the Invisible Man, and he's the only one to see the invisible camera, as he repeatedly looks directly into it, at least in the early scene in their detective agency office. Dressed in a Sherlock Holmes getup, he even throws a quick wink at the camera. Additionally, he tries to be "invisible" in committing a couple scams, or slight of hand, involving taking money from Abbott and cheating at cards. My favorite gag, however, is when Lou ridiculously hides the Invisible Man under a table cloth.

Compared to Universal's prior Invisible Man films, the visual effects this time, indeed, appear more flawless, but I think that's largely because they avoid some of the more difficult ones, such as those involving the covering or uncovering of his face, such as the mirror shots in the 1933 "The Invisible Man" and the 1940 "The Invisible Man Returns." "John," as opposed to Jack, Griffin is mentioned here, with a portrait of Claude Rains on the wall, and the blood transfusion business from "The Invisible Man Returns" and "The Invisible Man's Revenge" (1944) is reused. Anyways, the ending here is distasteful and especially nonsensical, with Costello being naked for no reason during a blood transfusion, then becoming invisible and committing a series of sexual assaults on nurses before his legs reappear backwards. Why?

Which brings me to some other nagging questions I have from watching Universal's invisibility films. For starters, why do invisible men not wear underwear (like Claude Rains in the 1933 film, when this one strips, he also doesn't include them)? Also, why would a man sit naked playing cards just because he's invisible? And why would a woman stare an his invisible face while talking to him? It doesn't add up.

Although this Abbott and Costello film has its share of laughs, I really wish that it had more of the horrors that many of their late 1940s, early 1950s films had. The Invisible Man had made a brief cameo with the voice of Vincent Price in Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein, but here, it is character actor Arthur Franz who takes on the role of the Invisible Man. He is a boxer who is in hiding for an apparent murder he committed, and it is up two private detectives Bud and Lou to try and prove his innocence. They have to go up against wisecracking police investigator William Frawley and obvious mobster Sheldon Leonard in order to do so, and with Franz appearing in and out of the film, for some reason Lou ends up in the boxing ring and a fight with he is supposed to take a dive ends up being the comic highlight of the film. However for me the funniest moment comes when Bud and Lou do a routine with money where Lou cleverly pocketing it after Bud insists that he gets it all. It is nice to see Lou getting the upper hand on bud, one of the rare times where he was able to do so. Unfortunately a lot of the film involves juvenile humor. By this time in the aging team was getting a bit old. Certainly, this team did have the longest running pairing in Hollywood history, lasting well over a decade. But other than a few truly original comic bits, this is a trip down the same road and unfortunately it lacks in originality.

Right out of the gate I got a kick out of 'Dugan's Detective Training' Class of 1951. The initials 'DDT' could also be taken for a widely used insecticide during the era that was eventually banned in the U.S. As a farmer, my Dad used it on his onion crops in the 1950's, and it makes me wonder now whether the film's use of the initials was a clever pun on taking out the competition.

So with a title like "A&C Meet the Invisible Man", probably the last thing you would think of is some connection to a boxing story. But then again, why not, as anything could happen with these boys around. As new graduates of the detective school, Bud and Lou's first case involves boxer Tommy Nelson (Arthur Franz) who's on the run after being framed for murdering his manager. The invisibility hook comes in as Tommy's girlfriend (Nancy Guild) has an uncle (Gavin Muir) who's a scientist working on a secret pripitane serum that's been effective on animals, but has the potential of driving human users insane. Nevertheless, Tommy is intent on turning himself invisible and hires Bud and Lou to get the goods on gangster Boots Morgan (Sheldon Leonard) who's been fixing matches against his champ Rocky Hanlon, and also arranged the rubout of Tommy's manager.

If you've seen your fair share of Abbott and Costello flicks you could figure how they'd use the invisibility gimmick to their advantage in setting up a variety of situations. The most humorous example of it here was when Lou nonchalantly worked on the speed bag and amazed every onlooker at the gym. Of course it came in real handy in the final match against Rocky (John Daheim), with Lou defeating his rival with an assortment of phantom punches.

Today was Abbott and Costello day on Turner Classics, a nice way to ring out the old year 2012 on New Year's Eve. Catching this one was a welcome treat as I don't remember seeing it back in the day, though I could have. A&C were teamed up with various Universal monster characters during their heyday, like Dr. Jekyll and The Mummy, but like many others, my favorite will always be their 1948 flick when they 'Meet Frankenstein', though the title doesn't tell the whole story. Universal went for the gusto by throwing in Dracula and the Wolf Man as an added bonus.

Having enjoyed watching some of The Road To..films with my dad.I was really hoping the this would be a similar type of film,and,though it does not break the fourth wall or has as many in-jokes as the Road movies,i still feel that it is a very good comedy with some surprisingly very well done special effects. The plot:

Straight after having graduated from their training school,Detectives Lou Francis and Bud Alexanders office gets invaded by a man,who is a boxer the is being framed for murdering his coach by some gangsters that he double-crossed.The boxer tell them that he them to help him to give the gangsters some payback,for what they have done.His very surprising idea is for both of the detectives to enter a boxing contest that the gangsters are taking bets on!.Whilst they are both at first not keen on the idea (due to neither of them being able to box),they both become very supported of the idea,when they discover that the boxer can become invisible... View on the film:

With the story and cast in the film,i though the one of the cleverest things was to have the Invisible Man not not be a scientist,but instead be a normal (though also being a extremely talented boxer) man,Whilst having the great Abbott and Costello inject plenty of funny moments into a film noir style story!!.The main part of the film,that i want to highlight are the very impressive special effects.With the dinner scene (easily one of the funniest parts in the film)and the Invisible Man changing his clothes in the car being very good,Although,some of the effects (such as a cigar "mystriusly" moving across the room)have sadly not aged as well.

Final view on the film:

A very watchable comedy,with good performances and great special effects.

So this was essentially a boxing match featuring the invisible man, man after the first one this series really went down hill.

It begins with the idiots becoming detectives, then some guy comes in and hires them. He get followed by the police goes to his house becomes invisible, then wacky antics ensure. Eventually the story catches up and it's a final is a boxing match and somehow that is supposed to pass as a good movie.

The fat guy gets turned invisible at the end then after forcing himself on women, cause that's funny. He turns visible and his feet are on backwards and he runs through a wall.

Now I've watched the whole series, whilst this isn't the worst, that doesn't make it a good movie. It is much better than their Mummy movie, it's just the invisible man doesn't do anything. It's not even his story it's theirs's, he's just a background character. What was even the point of them being detectives in the first place, they could have easily been boxers in fact the story would have made a lot more sense if it went that way instead.