Welp. looks like we've got another classic Universal movie today, this time, an eccentric scientist helps a fugitive running from the law become invisible, unwittingly giving him the power to exact revenge on his former friends and business partners...
It stars Jon (MONSTER FROM THE SURF) Hall, Leon (MEXICAN SPITFIRE'S ELEPHANT) Errol, John (THE UNEARTHLY) Carradine, Alan (PHILO VANCE'S SECRET MISSION) Curtis, Evelyn (THE WOLF MAN) Ankers, and Gale (THE BLACK CAT) Sondergaard.
It's a twisted tale to start with, Bob Griffin has made his way back to London from South Africa after he became ill and ended up in a mental hospital. He has escaped from South Africa by killing two interns at the hospital. Running from the law, Griffin shows up at his partner's home and demands his cut of the fortune (of which he has the contract with him) from their diamond mine (business partner Sir Jasper Herrick and his wife left South Africa after they thought Griffin would die from his illness) but finds out that they lost most of the money in an investment that went south.
Griffin gets angry and tells Herrick that he wants everything they have including their home! And their daughter, Julie!!.. But after Griffin has a drink, he becomes dizzy and faints. Thinking they're dealing with a madman, Jasper and Irene take the contract and then have their butler dump the body near a nearby lake.
At the lake, Griffin wakes up but is still dizzy, and falls in the water. Luckily, Herbert Higgins is strolling by and pulls him out of the lake. He takes Griffin home with him and lets him stay there while he recovers.
Griffin, paranoid, goes wandering (he had to leave the place he was staying because of the police) and comes across a large stone house. It's the home of the scientist, Doctor Drury. Asking for help, he tells the doctor that he's hiding from the police, and that he was being unjustly accused. The doctor lets Griffin come in, and he shows him his mad lab.
Then the doc shows him his faithful invisible German Shepard, and tells him the story of how one intruder found that out the hard way!
So, after Griffin becomes invisible and pummels the doctor, he heads off into the night.
Griffin sneaks into Jasper's house and gives him a big surprise, and has him write out a letter of guilt dictated by the invisible bully, and then he leaves.
He goes back to Herbert's place and spooks the Hell out of his friend!
But, Herbert doesn't have the rent money and is getting kicked out. So, Griffin comes up with a scheme. They go to the pub and bet 5 pounds that Herbert can hit the bulls eye with all his darts. the big guy on the right top takes him up on the bet. After Griffith assists Herbert by running the dart to the center of the bulls eye a number of times, the little guy shoots a dart off of a squeeze box and it hits its mark. The guy who's betting with Herbert finally loses his cool!
He takes his money back from the little guy and is ready to clock him when Griffin steps in and knocks the big guy out cold. Everyone thinks Herbert hit him!
Griffin is creeping around the doctor's house one night.
He sees the doc give his dog a transfusion where it becomes visible again!
Griffin has the doctor call the police, asking for Mark Foster, Julie's beau, to have him come to his house where he can find the invisible man. What Griffin wants Foster for is to drain his blood for the transfusion, and to get rid of him so that he can marry Julie. But, Mark is not there, so Griffin decides to use Dr. Drury, calling the police back (as the doctor) to say he didn't make the call.
Then Mark shows up and the officers tell him the odd story of the phone calls. Mark (a newspaper reporter) grabs a policeman and they drive out to the doctor's place to check the story out.
In the meantime, Griffin has finished the transfusion and starts the place on fire! The dog (now visible) escapes the house and follows Griffin through the woods.
Now visible himself, Griffin goes back to Jasper's house and tells him and the butler that he's a guest who is there to stay for a while, and his name's not Griffin, it's Fields!
Griffin's new plan is to get rid of Mark and marry into the money with Julie!
Herbert drops in to say hello to his friend, but the crazy man is thinking about using Herbert's blood for the next transfusion!! The little guy weasels his way out of the sticky situation, so, Griffin wants him to kills the dog that keeps howling and is driving him crazy. Herbert agrees after Griffin says that he'll give him 1,000 pounds to take care of the dog!!
But at lunch when Julie and Mark are there, Griffin starts to turn invisible again. He runs out of the room saying that he had cut his hand with a knife.
Mark is lured to the basement where Griffin locks him in, then begins to pummel the unsuspecting victim. The maniac knocks Mark out and puts him on a table where he starts performing the transfusion...
Herbert cannot control the dog and it gets loose and goes directly to the basement door where it scratches and howls.
The police show up and knock a hole in the door and the dog jumps through and goes directly at Griffin. By the time the cops break in, it's too late, the invisible man is Dead!! Mark recovers and there's a happy ending.
If the world doesn't end, we'll be back on Wednesday with who the Hell knows what, here at The Dungeon!!..
