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‘THE INVISIBLE MAN,’ Rated R
Any movie infused with psychological thrills and acts of desperation is bound to have a few plot holes, and as entertaining as the thriller “The Invisible Man” turns out to be, exceptions to the rule are not found here.
There’s no need to get into a discussion about the source material of the H.G. Wells eponymous novel. This film’s story is imagined to contemporary times with technological innovations that could have frightening implications.
In a standout performance, Elisabeth Moss’ Cecilia Kass is trapped in a violent, controlling relationship with a wealthy and brilliant scientist acclaimed for his breakthrough work in the scientific field of optics.
The opening scene in the dead of night is a chilling, intense escape that Cecilia devises from the clutches of her abusive partner Adrian Griffin (Oliver Jackson-Cohen), slipping away with little more than a bag of personal items.
Barely making a getaway after an alarm is tripped at the fortress-like seaside mansion, Cecilia is aided by her sister Emily (Harriet Dyer) so that she may take refuge at the home of childhood friend James Lanier (Aldis Hodge).
Moving in with James, a Bay Area police officer, and his teenage daughter Sydney (Storm Reid), seems like a safe haven for Cecilia, especially after Adrian commits suicide, leaving her a generous portion of his vast fortune with certain stipulations.
Even beyond the grave (or is he really dead, after all?), Adrian exerts control over Cecilia with conditions that are left to his lawyer sibling Tom Griffin (Michael Dorman) to administer at his discretion.
Soon thereafter, a series of eerie coincidences build tension within the Lanier household, beginning with an unseen force that removes the covers from Cecilia’s bed and then keeping her from pulling the covers back again.
The odd things happening in the house become more pronounced, such as an eerie stovetop fire and the odd disappearance of items like Cecilia’s portfolio of architectural drawings.
Convinced that Adrian’s suicide was a hoax and that somehow the genius has found a way to use his optics machine invention to cloak his physical being, Cecilia’s sanity unravels as she tries to prove she is being hunted by someone nobody can see.
Eventually the happenings turn more violent to where only Cecilia knows what’s happening and others begin to question her erratic behavior, or worse, suspect that she has committed the foul deeds.
All of this is designed, of course, so that Cecilia will start to go mad with paranoia, a state of mind that conveniently would allow the creepy lawyer to rescind any monthly payments of Adrian’s estate.
To its credit, “The Invisible Man,” though it has its share of plot holes, eschews the junk thrills of many horror films and instead creates a mood of dread that builds tension that is really entertaining.
‘THE LAST THING HE WANTED’ ON NETFLIX
To state the obvious, Netflix is delivering a surfeit of original movies and television series to rival the output of most major studios, networks and cable channels, and just like its competitors, Netflix will have its share of duds.
Case in point is the adaptation of Joan Didion’s novel “The Last Thing He Wanted” into a feature film with an all-star cast that cannot save what turns out to be an incoherent plot not worth following.
Action kicks off in 1982 when Anne Hathaway’s Elena McMahon, an intrepid reporter with the Atlantic Post, and her colleague Alma Guerrero (Rosie Perez), are fleeing a hail of bullets in war-torn El Salvador.
Even after safely returning to Washington, D.C., Elena wants nothing more than to return to Central America in pursuit of stories about American involvement in support of Nicaraguan rebels.
Instead, she gets assigned to cover the balloon drops at campaign rallies during the 1984 presidential election, when she’d rather be anywhere else. She gets an out when her estranged father, Dick McMahon (Willem Dafoe), takes ill.
Reunited with her father in Miami, Elena learns that he remains a renegade outlaw even when his final days are at hand. Dick seeks her help to salvage a lucrative seven-figure deal.
Elena heads to the capital city of Costa Rica, where she will broker an arms deal for surplus Army weapons with the Contras, thus putting herself into the middle of her own story that had been sidelined by her editor.
Meanwhile, she forms a relationship with shady government official Treat Morrison (Ben Affleck) that creates another murky storyline.
Sadly, Elena’s only emotional connection to anyone consists of phone calls to her young daughter who understandably doesn’t want to be stuck in a boarding school.
Also, what’s up with her stint as a maid at a near-deserted beach hotel run by the dissolute ex-pat Paul Schuster (Toby Jones)? Maybe it was a place to hide until safe passage back to the States.
The irony of “The Last Thing He Wanted” is the obvious play on its title as a short-hand summary of a critical review, namely “The Last Thing We Wanted,” or “The Last Thing We Needed.”
That pretty well sums it up.
Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.
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- Written by: Tim Riley
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife invites artists to submit their original artwork to the 2020-2021 California Duck Stamp Art Contest.
Submissions will be accepted April 27 through May 29.
The contest is open to U.S. residents 18 years of age or older as of Feb. 27, 2020. Entrants need not reside in California.
The winning artwork will be reproduced on the 2020-2021 California Duck Stamp. The top submissions will also be showcased at the Pacific Flyway Decoy Association’s art show in July.
The artwork must depict the species selected by the California Fish and Game Commission, which for the 2020-2021 hunting season is the canvasback.
These fast-flying, diving ducks are the largest of their genus, Aythya, and are characterized by a white back with a reddish-brown neck and head that slopes gently into a long black beak. In California, the canvasback migrates along the Pacific Flyway to wintering grounds on lakes, estuaries and protected bays.
The design is to be in full color and in the medium (or combination of mediums) of the artist’s choosing, except that no photographic process, digital art, metallic paints or fluorescent paints may be used in the finished design.
Photographs, computer-generated art, art produced from a computer printer or other computer/mechanical output device (airbrush method excepted) are not eligible for entry and will be disqualified.
The design must be the contestant’s original hand-drawn creation. The entry design may not be copied or duplicated from previously published art, including photographs, or from images in any format published on the Internet.
All entries must be accompanied by a completed participation agreement and entry form. These forms and the official rules are available online at wildlife.ca.gov/duck-stamp/contest.
Entries will be judged in June. The judges’ panel, which will consist of experts in the fields of ornithology, conservation, and art and printing, will choose first, second and third-place winners, as well as honorable mention.
Since 1971, CDFW’s annual contest has attracted top wildlife artists from around the country. All proceeds generated from stamp sales go directly to waterfowl conservation projects throughout California. In past years, hunters were required to purchase and affix the stamp to their hunting license.
Now California has moved to an automated licensing system and hunters are no longer required to carry the physical stamps in the field (proof of purchase prints directly onto the license).
However, CDFW will still produce the stamps, which can be requested by interested individuals at http://wildlife.ca.gov/licensing/collector-stamps .
Submissions will be accepted April 27 through May 29.
The contest is open to U.S. residents 18 years of age or older as of Feb. 27, 2020. Entrants need not reside in California.
The winning artwork will be reproduced on the 2020-2021 California Duck Stamp. The top submissions will also be showcased at the Pacific Flyway Decoy Association’s art show in July.
The artwork must depict the species selected by the California Fish and Game Commission, which for the 2020-2021 hunting season is the canvasback.
These fast-flying, diving ducks are the largest of their genus, Aythya, and are characterized by a white back with a reddish-brown neck and head that slopes gently into a long black beak. In California, the canvasback migrates along the Pacific Flyway to wintering grounds on lakes, estuaries and protected bays.
The design is to be in full color and in the medium (or combination of mediums) of the artist’s choosing, except that no photographic process, digital art, metallic paints or fluorescent paints may be used in the finished design.
Photographs, computer-generated art, art produced from a computer printer or other computer/mechanical output device (airbrush method excepted) are not eligible for entry and will be disqualified.
The design must be the contestant’s original hand-drawn creation. The entry design may not be copied or duplicated from previously published art, including photographs, or from images in any format published on the Internet.
All entries must be accompanied by a completed participation agreement and entry form. These forms and the official rules are available online at wildlife.ca.gov/duck-stamp/contest.
Entries will be judged in June. The judges’ panel, which will consist of experts in the fields of ornithology, conservation, and art and printing, will choose first, second and third-place winners, as well as honorable mention.
Since 1971, CDFW’s annual contest has attracted top wildlife artists from around the country. All proceeds generated from stamp sales go directly to waterfowl conservation projects throughout California. In past years, hunters were required to purchase and affix the stamp to their hunting license.
Now California has moved to an automated licensing system and hunters are no longer required to carry the physical stamps in the field (proof of purchase prints directly onto the license).
However, CDFW will still produce the stamps, which can be requested by interested individuals at http://wildlife.ca.gov/licensing/collector-stamps .
- Details
- Written by: California Department of Fish and Wildlife
