Invisible Invaders (1959) – Review

Alien invasions have been a staple of science fiction since H.G. Wells first penned his classic novel War of the Worlds but bringing such tales to the big screen comes at a cost, and not all studios can provide the budget to properly depict such events, enter Premium Pictures and their budgetary solution of “What if the alien invaders were invisible?”

The film opens with your standard diatribe about man’s expansion into atomic warfare – a typical element of the genre – but when leading atomic scientist Dr. Karol Noymann (John Carridine) is killed in a laboratory explosion his colleague Dr. Adam Penner (Philip Tonge) resigns his post on the Atomic Commission, much to the charging of the United States Government. Unfortunately, a debate over the ethics of nuclear proliferation is put on hold when mysterious invisible invaders arrive and reanimate Dr. Karol Noymann and send his corpse on a house call to Dr. Penner, where they inform the good doctor that they have watched mankind climb its way up into the atomic age and that we are now considered as a threat – they’ve had a hidden base on our moon for centuries but we couldn’t see them because they are invisible – and they demand that Earth surrender to them within 24 hours or be destroyed.

“Seriously, I can’t make this shit up.”

Needless to say, the world governments find the very idea of “invisible invaders” to be laughable and poor Dr. Penner is publicly ridiculed for his part in this, which results in him turning to his daughter Phyllis (Jean Byron) and friend Dr. John Lamont (Robert Hutton) for help, and he takes them Dr. Noymann’s grave.  This is where they are visited by an invisible alien who informs them that Earth will get “one final warning” which leads to the aliens causing B-17 to crash outside New York and then the corpse of the pilot to hijack the announcers at an NHL to give the alien’s public decree promising death and destruction. These pesky aliens repeat this threat via the corpse of a man they killed in a fiery car crash, with this dead man interrupting a football game to deliver the same threat, and I’m left wondering “Isn’t that two warnings? And if these aliens can’t count how big of a threat can they be?”

“We now return you to your normally scheduled sporting event.”

The governments of the world decide to resist the invaders and this results in the aliens taking over more dead bodies and blowing up dams, causing fires and destroying buildings and this spreads chaos worldwide. The corpses of deceased individuals become destructive saboteurs and soon the very world is on the brink of extinction. The film’s narrative then follows our heroes as they desperately try to find a solution to the impending doom facing humanity. As the invisible invaders wreak havoc; Penner, his daughter and Lamont are whisked away to an underground bunker by Major Bruce Jay (John Agar) who is their military liaison – a bunker that most will recognize as Bronson Canyon – and while there, they will work tirelessly to find a way to stop this alien invasion.

Cue the sonic death ray.

Stray Observations:

• Mankind’s venturing into the atomic age and attracting alien attention is pretty much the plot of The Day the Earth Stood Still only Klaatu wasn’t as big a dick about it as these aliens are.
• These alien invaders may have the power of invisibility but they drag their feet like Universals’ The Mummy, leaving heavy furrows in the dirt, which kind of negates the point of being invisible.
• Aliens using the dead as part of their attack plan seems very reminiscent of Plan 9 from Outer Space and if you find yourself ripping off Ed Wood you should rethink your life choices.
• The B-17 pilot who was killed delivering the alien’s message crashes his plane into a mountain outside of Syracuse, New York. I’m not sure if you know this, but there are no mountains near or around Syracuse.
• A sonic weapon used to take out an alien invasion had already been implemented in Ray Harryhausen’s Earth vs. The Flying Saucers.
• The brief shot of one of the aliens turned visible will have fans of classic sci-fi films laughing as they are none other than the monster from It! The Terror from Beyond Space.
• The invaders’ major advantage against the Earth is the fact that they are invisible, yet by inhabiting the bodies of dead Earthmen they give up this advantage, for no obvious purpose.

“Tonight, on The Walking Dead.”

Directed by Edward L. Cahn, Invisible Invaders falls flat in its attempt to capitalize on the alien invasion craze of the era and despite the promising premise of invisible extraterrestrial beings the film ultimately fails to deliver on multiple fronts, leaving audiences with a dull and forgettable cinematic experience. The narrative is riddled with clichés and predictable sequences, following the familiar formula of aliens arriving on Earth with nefarious intentions. The absence of a fresh and innovative storyline leaves viewers with a sense of déjà vu as it fails to distinguish itself from other sci-fi offerings of the time.

“Do not adjust your set, we control the budget.”

The special effects, even by the standards of the late 1950s, are woefully inadequate. The invisible invaders are represented by translucent, floating outlines and this visual choice lacks the sophistication needed to generate genuine fear or suspense and is not helped by repeated footage of the same group of “zombies” tromping down a hill. The film’s limited budget is evident in the poorly executed effects, undermining any attempt to create a convincing otherworldly menace. In terms of performances, the cast does little to elevate the material. The actors seem burdened by the uninspired script, delivering unconvincing performances that are so wooden that woodpeckers would be more of a threat than invisible aliens.

They save the world despite suffering from a near-fatal case of ennui.

Despite its notable flaws, and there are many, Invisible Invaders may hold some nostalgic value for fans of 1950s science fiction or those who appreciate the era’s B-movie charm and goofiness. However, its inability to fully realize its “intriguing” premise, coupled with laughably bad effects, overabundant use of stock footage and underdeveloped characters, relegates this entry to the ranks of cheap alien invader movies.