Invisible Ghost

This murder shocker, featuring some typically hilarious plot twists and insane character reactions, is buoyed by that inimitable Lugosi magic. Also worth mentioning is the surprisingly inventive direction by Joseph H. Lewis, as is the comparatively dignified treatment of the black butler character, well played by Clarence Muse. Fans of old Monogram and PRC programmers will be well entertained.

If you haven't seen Invisible Ghost, I won't bother going into much of the plot. Most of it is silly and doesn't make much sense. Basically, the story involves a man who is driven to commit murder by seeing his supposedly dead wife. That's really all you need to know. And, it's not much of a spoiler as you discover most of this within the first ten minutes or so.

Lugosi is great as the mad killer. A really first-rate acting job that is by far one of his best from the Poverty Row movies he made (that I've seen). He does an excellent job of alternating between the kindly Charles Kessler and the mad killer. Clarence Muse is also a standout as the butler, Evans. Muse played Evans as smart, calm, strong, and nothing like the typical black character you find in a 40s horror/mystery movie. I call him the anti-Mantan.

Over the past few years, I've learned to enjoy the movies from the 40s that Monogram and others were putting out. Invisible Ghost is not the best of the bunch, but it's certainly not the worst. It's fun to watch if just to see Lugosi hamming it up. Just don't take these movies too seriously.

Maybe this is a spoiler, but I don't think anyone should watch this movie without knowing the following: this movie makes no sense.

Bela Lugosi stars as a wealthy estate owner who misses his wife and thinks she is dead. But she's not dead -- the gardener keeps her in a shed in the backyard. And sometimes she escapes in a bathrobe to steal a piece of chicken from the kitchen, only to be spotted through the window by Lugosi who thinks it's a ghost. This causes him to enter a trance and kill some random person. Even after several murders (maybe dozens) in the same house, the police never suspect Lugosi.

On one occasion, they arrest the boyfriend of Lugosi's daughter and execute him. A minute later in the next scene his twin brother shows up.

If you like Lugosi, this film is decent and quite fun. But seriously, don't try to figure out why the wife is in a shed or what causes him to go into a trance or why the police are so stupid. Because you will never make sense of this preposterous film.

I must say, I was a bit surprised after viewing "Invisible Ghost." It

could have been because of Bela Lugosi's sympathetic portrayal

of Charles Kessler, a warm and kind-hearted man, deeply

troubled by his wife's absence. Or ... it could have been Clarence

Muse, playing the black butler sans the usual comic relief.

Whichever way you look at it, "Invisible Ghost" is certainly worthy of

note. Too bad one has to rummage through so many bad movies

to locate the few really good ones. Here we have the late, great

Bela Lugosi, looking better than ever. His portrayal of a sympatheic

man under the control of powers beyond his comprehension is

somewhat of a diversion from previous characters. He's not

sucking the blood of beautiful ingenues. Nope. He's on a murder

rampage, suffocating his victims with a ... bedroom robe?

Okay ... a little quirky. What did you expect? Shakespeare?

What's impressive here is Mr. Lugosi's enormous acting talent.

Lugosi could express more emotion through a simple facial

expression than most actors could through an entire monologue.

He's an excellent example of a talented man giving a performance

greater than the movie itself deserves. No make-up effect or

computer generated effect could ever reproduce this. To this, I hold

Mr. Lugosi up next to Vincent Price ... as a man whose talents

barely reached the public surface. If only he were alive today and

making movies. No doubt he would have been treated with a great

deal more respect and admiration.

And so ... "Invisible Ghost" is a very good movie to enjoy. I was

lucky enough to purchase this along with seven other Lugosi films

in AMC's Monsterfest DVD collection. Pick it up if you get a chance.

It includes movies like "The Human Monster" and the amazing

"White Zombie." While some of these films were hits and others

were misses ... all feature the extraordinary presence of Bela

Lugosi ... certainly one of our greatest actors.

Another cheapie from Monogram, once again casting Lugosi as a hypnotic murderer, lit from below as is expected. This time, however, he's the innocent victim, entranced by the sight of his 'dead' wife who appears beneath his window and seemingly 'commands' him to kill (rather surreptitiously and for a reason not fully explained). Indeed, most of the plot isn't really fully explained, but it's academic. Instead of the plot, concentrate on the director's unusual flair, and the writers' penchant for a decent gag or two. It's these that elevate this slightly above the rest of its kind. Some interesting panning between rooms, and behind furniture, and a memorable shot of Lugosi leering direct to camera from behind his black robe show that director Lewis had, at least, a modicum of creativity. There's also a wicked sense of humour that takes you by surprise, and is handled well enough to complement the thriller element. Sadly, the performances are mundane, especially Lugosi, who, once again mugs and grimaces his way through the part. The film is stolen by Clarence Muse, superb as the amenable butler, Evans - although he does get all the best lines.