Very disappointing...

it is finally so absorbing because it plays like a lyrical road odyssey that’s also a detective story.

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Unusual blend of crime drama and science fiction. Not a bad premise: a escaped (actually kidnapped) con becomes a guinea pig for a old-world doctor's radiation-fueled invisibility experiments. The pacing is pretty good. The main setting, a dilapidated Victorian somewhere in the sticks of the Southwest, adds a creepy dose of isolation.Given the early Cold War's obsession with anything atomic, it's not hard to suspend disbelief as Dr. Ulof (Ivan Triesault) uses stolen radium to change an actual guinea pig, then Douglas Kennedy's Faust into a ghost-like invisible state. What's ludicrous is James Griffith's Major as the psychopathic criminal mastermind. Ulof looks nutty enough to fill both roles. The Major, who's about as military-looking as Anthony Perkins, just gets in the way. He's sort of a desk-job criminal trying too hard to act tough.At least Faust makes a fairly convincing criminal, although his swagger is a couple of pay-grades above his character. I assumed that the Major, whether he's fantasizing about his invisible army, or just out for some quick scores, would focus on using Faust to rob banks. After all, he needs money to finance whatever he's up to. Strangely, though, the robbery that occurs is Faust's idea. It might've been better to stay with the crime theme. In this low-budget territory, there clearly wouldn't be enough guys on the payroll to show an actual 'army,' not to mention the tons of special effects necessary to have some kind of invisible battle scene.The robbery is the best part of the movie. It's well-edited, convincing, even funny. The bag of money floating towards the exit is a great bit. Another good special-effect shows Faust becoming visible, making what seemed an easy heist suddenly problematic. Invisibility isn't a miracle; it's contingent, even dangerous. There's a bit of tragedy when Faust realizes that he will die from radiation.This is a rare instance in 50s-60s sci-fi when the authorities don't waste time denigrating and denying the problem. They don't assume there's a hoax, so they react appropriately. I wish the main characters were more sensibThe main problem with The Amazing Transparent Man is awful acting. I can't see what either Marguerite Chapman or the Julian character add to the movie. As noted in other reviews, Chapman's Laura is an airhead. She'll go along with the last person she talked to, or the one yelling the loudest. Julian is even dumber, and really has nothing to do. Griffith's role isn't interesting enough for him to warrant a side-kick. On the other hand, Ulof's daughter might've been given a bigger role.She could've taken Laura's place and still played Ulof's daughter. As someone has said, why doesn't Ulof make himself invisible and rescue his daughter? Then he does the same to her, he sabotages the equipment, and they both just split. The ending is pretty wild: the fight in the lab leads to the predictable explosion, with a mushroom cloud to top it off.There's some good stuff here, but The Amazing Transparent Man is just too dull between the bright spots.

As with THE MAN FROM PLANET X, THE AMAZING TRANSPARENT MAN has one very big Plus in its favor: the script. There are some who argue that the short running time is another plus, but there I would differ: the movie seems to me to be a tad too short. Case in point, the prison escape that opens the movie (it's over before the credits have rolled, if I'm not mistaken): it wouldn't have hurt (except, perhaps, budget-wise) to have actually SHOWN the planning of this escape (it is, after all, essential to the plot). Another interesting aspect of the script is the revelation by Dr. Ulof that he was used by the Nazis to conduct experiments on prisoners in a concentration camp during World War II- one of whom turned out to have been his own daughter (who is now being held prisoner by the madman who owns the house where this story takes place). Another interesting thing about the movie: when the Transparent Man becomes Transparent, some of the scenes are shot from his POV- a neat little deceit. THE AMAZING TRANSPARENT MAN is exactly the kind of movie that contemporary filmmakers are always trying to replicate- with very little success. While I see no reason whatsoever to remake this one, it WOULD be welcome relief from the kind of cgi-driven drivel we've seen far too much of as of late.

Bitter and crazed ex-military officer Paul Krenner (an excellent performance by James Griffith) forces kindly scientist Peter Ulof (a sturdy turn by Ivan Triesault) to create an invisibility process using radiation. They proceed to break volatile safe cracker Joey Faust (robustly played with venomous aplomb by Douglas Kennedy) out of jail so he can steal more radium, but things don't go according to plan. Director Edgar G. Ulmer, working from an engrossing script by Jack Lewis, relates the compelling story at a steady pace and maintains an appropriately serious tone throughout. Margueritte Chapman does well as greedy and treacherous moll Laura Matson. The bank robbery set piece is a lot of fun (Faust turns visible again in the middle of the gig!) and the thrilling conclusion ends with a literal explosive bang. Both Meredith M. Nicholson's sharp black and white cinematography and Darrell Calker's moody score give this picture a cool film noir-style atmosphere. The special effects are admittedly rough, but overall decent and acceptable. The tight 57 minute running time ensures that the movie never becomes dull or overstays its welcome. A neat little flick.

A crazed scientist (Ivan Trisault) invents an invisibility formula. An Army major (James Griffith) plans to use the formula to create an army of invisible zombies.Does this film rip off "The Invisible Man"? To some degree, of course. There is no possible way the creators did not know about that earlier film. But it goes its own way, too -- for one thing, the transparent man is not invisible from the beginning.The only person I know attached to this film is the makeup artist, Jack Pierce. That may explain why people have rated it so incredibly low. I am sure the cast was known in their day, but they are not known to me, and the fact this comes from a defunct movie studio suggests a lot. Director Edgar G. Ulmer is a legend in his own way, perhaps ironically.I appreciate that a guinea pig is used as a guinea pig, but beyond that, I do not know what to say. Even with its very short run time, it does not move quick enough in some scenes. The special effects -- which made "Invisible Man" a classic a few decades earlier -- are not nearly as good here. Perhaps author David Wingrove summed it up best when he said, "Its cheap-budget origins show throughout. Amazing claims too much for what is essentially a thriller involving an escaped criminal..."