Graphic by Cindy Folefack | Editor-in-Chief
Why ‘The Invisible Man’ is the dark horse of the Dark Universe
Both before and after the release of “The
Invisible Man,” there was some speculation about the film serving as a
potential reboot to the Dark Universe franchise. With talent from Leigh
Whannell and Elisabeth Moss, this modern retelling of the H. G. Wells’ novel
was well received by critics and audiences alike. “The Invisible Man” earned an
overwhelmingly higher approval rating than “The Mummy,” the first and only Dark
Universe film. With that, it is easy to assume that Universal Studios will be
continuing with these installments and rebuilding their Dark Universe. Although
this new adaptation paves a new path for the studio, why exactly did the
previous incarnation of this franchise fail, what contributed to this film’s success,
and how can Universal continue its success?
Right off the bat, the film makes use of
personal horror. The plot begins with the main character, Cecilia, running away
from an abusive boyfriend. Although she experiences relief as soon as she hears
the news of his suicide, it does not last long. She finds herself haunted and
quite possibly stalked by her ex — and no one will believe her. It is very easy
to put yourself in Cecilia’s shoes and experience the fear alongside her. In
fact, The National Domestic Hotline states that “one in six women and one in 19
men in the United States have experienced stalking victimization at some point
during their lifetime in which they felt very fearful or believed that they or
someone close to them would be harmed or killed (by any perpetrator).” Keeping
that statistic in mind, this film reaches out to a larger audience than
originally anticipated. Not only does “The Invisible Man” apply to fans of old
and revamped horror alike, but there are also those who share similar experiences
with Cecilia. While the film is a work of fiction, for many people, domestic
violence is a horrifying reality.
All things considered, despite having a
supernatural tone, the circumstances in the film seem to be fairly realistic.
The so-called Invisible Man — rather than being a vengeful ghost — actually
uses a technologically advanced suit that is able to alter his appearance and
make him look invisible. Considering how far technology has advanced in the
past century, this version of the Invisible Man is quite possibly more
terrifying than past incarnations. In creating an atmosphere that seems doable
in the real world, “The Invisible Man” seems to bring personal horror to a new
level past the abusive partnership. Further into the film, Cecilia is able to
take away the Invisible Man’s element of surprise by splashing paint at him and
stabbing the suit with a fountain pen. Either way, it made him visible, leveled
the playing field between the two and overall put the odds in Cecilia’s favor.
The trend in horror is not supernatural monsters or crazy scientists anymore,
but involves a modern setting and creating a more relatable cast of characters.
It makes the film more believable, and therefore more horrific.
Bringing it back to the Dark Universe, there’s
the elephant in the room: “The Mummy,” released in 2017, starring Tom Cruise
and directed by Alex Kurtzman. This film was supposed to be the start of a new
franchise — a shared universe between classic Universal monsters, taking place
in the modern world. However, it was a rough start for this proposed Dark
Universe, with a very underwhelming box office performance and an
overwhelmingly negative reception. Most reviews on Rotten Tomatoes seemed to
indicate that the film felt like a rushed production, merely existing to start
a shared universe similar to Marvel’s Cinematic Universe. Because of this, the
franchise didn’t last long and was put on hold following the release of “The
Mummy.” All projects associated with it were put on the backburner to be reworked,
rewritten and recast.
From that point forward, any reboots of
Universal classic monster films would be released as standalone stories. This
was the intent of “The Invisible Man” ever since the negative reception of “The
Mummy.” In fact, Leigh Whannell confirmed it in an interview on the podcast
ReelBlend, despite some of the hype behind the idea of a Dark Universe 2.0
prior to the film’s release. This intent puts less pressure on the filmmakers
who make these films. In other words, by letting these future monster reboot
films tell their individual stories instead of forcing a crossover, we could
see more quality films in the future.
In short, the rushed production process of
“The Mummy” in the context of a shared universe seems to be what caused the downfall
of the Dark Universe. Although “The Invisible Man” isn’t necessarily going to
reboot the Dark Universe, it is the start of something new from Universal. In
addition to modernizing a classic monster, it approaches horror in a personal
way, connecting with audiences and striking a new kind of fear in them. Now
that they’ve redeemed themselves with a successful Universal Horror remake,
it’s up to the studio and how they tackle their future films. The only thing we
as audience members can really do is cross our fingers and hope for the best.