The Invisible Ray, Universal, 1936, Bela Lugosi, Boris Karloff, Frances Drake, Frank Lawton. Directed by Lambert Hillyer. 3 stars - One of the classic 1930s Universal pairings of Karloff and Lugosi. A trailer is here.
This film is unique in
that it is a science fiction film, rather than a horror film. Karloff and
Lugosi are scientists who travel to Africa to find "Radium X," who
Karloff has proven crashed into earth millions of years ago.
"Radium X" is
discovered, but contact with it turns Karloff radioactive, and deadly to the
touch. Lugosi prepares medicine that counters the poison, but when Karloff's
wife, (Drake) leaves him for an adventurer, Lawton, Karloff, going slowly insane,
shirks the medicine and goes on a killing spree. Violet Kemble Cooper is creepy
as Karloff's mother.
This a post pre-code
1930s Universal chiller with Lugosi and Karloff and it lacks the more overt
horror and sadism of the pair’s earlier pre-code films The Black Cat and The
Raven. While not as popular today as those two earlier films, it’s still a
strong film. It’s a better film than their final Universal co-starring film,
Black Friday.
Lugosi plays the good
character, and he shows that his acting depth went well beyond just the horror
genre. Karloff is effective as the determined scientist gone mad.
Easy to buy and usually
on TCM once a year.
-- Doug Gibson
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