IMDB Description: After a freak accident, a company executive turns completely invisible, goes on the run and becomes hunted by a treacherous CIA official, whilst trying to cope with his new reality.
IMDB Rating: 6/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 26% critics (average rating 4.8/10) and 32% audience.
I’m a Chevy Chase fan, but this is one of his movies I had failed to watch up until this point. I knew it existed but was aware that it wasn’t so hot, so I held off. I’d just go watch Fletch, or a vacation movie, or Caddyshack.
That changed when I wanted to do another “Is it that bad?” segment. I never knew it would be that much fun to pick out universally dumped on movies and have to go watch them. It’s worth it when the film turns out to be better than what you’re led to believe.
This time around, I tried not to read too many reviews or ratings, and I didn’t check out any trailers. I wanted to just dive in with as few preconceived notions as possible.
Memoirs of an Invisible Man came out in 1992 and is loosely based on the 1987 book with the same title. John Carpenter directed it, and it stars an older Chevy Chase (compared to his 1980s reign) and has him play Nick, some sort of company or stock researcher. Nick’s unmotivated and doesn’t have too many friends or a partner either. That changes when he meets Alice Monroe, who is played by Daryl Hannah. They hit it off, and the chemistry between these two actors is pretty good. It blows the pairing of Stallone and Stone right out of the water. They played in the movie “The Specialist,” which was the feature of my last “Is it that bad?” Before Nick and Alice are due to meet again, a terrible, freak accident happens at the headquarters of the company Magnascopic Laboratories. Nick was there at the shareholder’s meeting, but, being the slacker he is, took a nap in the men’s washroom. That’s when the accident occurred. A mug of coffee spilled and led to the computers sparking. By the time you know it, the whole building is malfunctioning. The end result is that a part of the building is seemingly invisible, as is Nick, and thus the heart of the story has begun.
The special effects in the movie are downright impressive. They hold up really well considering it’s been 31 years since the release. It’s almost at the same level as Terminator 2.
Nick awakens to his new reality with confusion and panic. There are government officials investigating the accident scene who eventually notice Nick after spotting an object floating. Nick, still befuddled, approaches the investigation team and talks to an CIA official named David Jenkins. Jenkins, played by Sam Neill, turns out to be the lead antagonist. He wants Nick for himself, to use him for espionage missions. The cat-and-mouse game begins here and continues until the end. In between, we have Nick trying to adjust to his new life. He starts by hiding out in his gentleman’s club but eventually resorts to his friend’s oceanfront summer house, which looks absolutely amazing, by the way. There are a handful of comic and clever moments as well. Nick reunites with Alice eventually too, and they work together to avoid capture. Do they get away? Not telling! Does Nick remain invisible? I don’t want to spoil it, but let’s just say it’s not a 100% happy ending in my mind.
Firstly, watching the movie made me realize how crappy it would be to be 100% invisible. Chase’s character mentions how, when he was a kid, he thought it would be the coolest thing in the world, but now he wishes he could go back. I’d have to agree completely with that. Perhaps the movie did its job!
As for the quality of Memoirs, the story, and the acting, I have to say, overall, I rather enjoyed it all. The weak spot is that the movie is caught trying to be a few things at once, as in a thriller and a comedy, and the result is being light on both things. I did think the comedic parts were fine and would have wanted more. Some of the characters’ lines were a little lame too. Still, when the end credits rolled, there was no feeling of disappointment. Could it be a Chase bias? Possibly. I enjoy movies that include narration from him, like the Fletch movies. I think another reason I don’t think it stinks is because I never expected it to be a thriller-heavy movie. I didn’t sit down and expect it to play like The Firm or Total Recall. I think it could have been something really good had it gone much further as a comedy. You could imagine that during production there was a tussle between people to make it one way opposed to the other.
It falls into the category of off-the-beaten-path films that Chase has done; another example would be Funny Farm. It’s not as good as that one, but I’d confidently say that no, “it isn’t that bad.” Chase fans and someone looking for an older, easy-going, light entertainment film will like it!