The Invisible Ray is a 1936 American horror film and is one of Universal's pairings of Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi.
Plot[]
A scientist becomes murderous after being exposed to the radiation of a new and undiscovered element.
Cast[]
- Boris Karloff as Dr. Janos Rukh
- Bela Lugosi as Dr. Felix Benet
- Frances Drake as Diana Rukh
- Frank Lawton as Ronald Drake
- Violet Kemble Cooper as Mother Rukh
- Walter Kingsford as Sir Francis Stevens
- Beulah Bondi as Lady Arabella Stevens
- Frank Reicher as Professor Meiklejohn
- Paul Weigel as Monsieur Noyer
- Georges Renavent as Chief of the Surete
Production[]
Producer David Diamond, who teamed up actors Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff for the 1935 film The Raven, had plans to reunite the two actors in an upcoming Karloff film Bluebeard. The script for Bluebeard did not proceed as expected, leading the studio executives at Universal Pictures to put that film on hold and put Lugosi and Karloff in a different film. In August 1935, the studio announced that production on The Invisible Ray would commence with producer Edmund Grainger.
At the time of production, Universal Pictures was among reports that the studio was going to be sold. Pressure was put on the first initial director Stuart Walker who was not happy with the original script written by John Colton. Walker requested a three-day delay on the production to work on the script which was refused by Universal Studios which led Walker leaving the production. Walker responded to trade papers on leaving the picture stating that he was enthusiastic about the film's story and the cast but he "did not feel that [he] could do the studio or [himself] justice under their conditions that came up suddenly". Walker declared that he "suggested that some other director would be better for the assignment. It was not a matter of "walking out...."" Lambert Hillyer ended up the director of the film. The film's score by Franz Waxman is predominantly original material, but includes cues from The Bride of Frankenstein.
The film was initially given a budget of $166,875, an amount described in the book Universal Horrors as "a fairly lavish budget" for an "upper-class B" film. Filming began on September 17. Filming concluded on October 25 which was over-schedule and $68,000 over-budget. Walker later responded to this, retorting that "the director who did the picture started nine or ten days after I was ordered to start and finished 25 or more days after I was ordered to finish".
Release[]
The Invisible Ray was distributed by Universal Pictures on January 20, 1936. Marguerite Tazelaar of the New York Herald Tribune commented on the audiences response to the film on their viewing, stating the audience "composed largely of men, gave to the picture their respectful attention, finding the laboratories especially absorbing, and the climax vastly exciting".
The film was released on DVD as part of the Bela Lugosi Collection in 2005 along with Murders in the Rue Morgue, The Black Cat, The Raven, and Black Friday. The film was released on Blu-ray by Shout Factory as part of their "Universal Horror Collection: Vol 1" which included The Black Cat, The Raven, and Black Friday.
Reception[]
From contemporary reviews, "Char." of Variety declared that the film was not "as blood-curdling to the point achieved in some Hollywoodian efforts, but it is different and fairly entertaining". Frank Nugent of The New York Times stated that Universal had "made its newest penny dreadful with technical ingenuity and the pious hope of frightening the children... Boo right back at you, Mr. Laemmle!"
From retrospective reviews, Kevin Thomas of The Los Angeles Times stated in 2005 that the film was "[s]ometimes amusingly dated" as well as that it was "also surprisingly poignant, building to a tense and dramatic climax... [A] handsome, ambitious production in which some stilted acting and dialgoue add to, rather than detract from the fun".
Legacy[]
Footage of The Invisible Ray, specifically the scenes where a scientist descends into a fiery pit, was re-used in the Universal Pictures film serial The Phantom Creeps.