“The Amazing Transparent Man” is a 1960 American science fiction film that delves into the realm of atomic experimentation and criminal ambition. Directed by Edgar G. Ulmer, a filmmaker known for his work in low-budget films, the movie has garnered attention over the years as a cult classic, despite its modest production values and brief runtime of only 57 minutes. The film centers around the character of Paul Krenner, a former military major turned criminal mastermind, who is determined to create an army of invisible soldiers to carry out his nefarious plans.
To achieve this, he forces Dr. Peter Ulof, a German scientist, to perfect a machine that can render people invisible. Krenner’s first subject is Joey Faust, a hardened convict, whom he breaks out of prison for the experiment.
Faust is made invisible by Ulof’s machine, and Krenner orders him to steal a critical component from a government laboratory that will allow them to mass-produce the invisibility technology. However, Faust has his own plans; he sees the opportunity to use his newfound power to gain freedom and wealth.
As Faust’s greed and Krenner’s authoritarianism collide, the experiment spirals out of control, leading to an explosive conclusion that questions the boundaries of science and ethics.
Main Cast
- Chapman, Marguerite as Laura Matson – (March 9, 1918 – August 31, 1999) On Their Own, Charlie Chan at the Wax Museum, The Body Disappears, Submarine Raider, Murder in Times Square, Destroyer, The Gallant Blade, Flight to Mars, The Seven Year Itch, The Amazing Transparent Man, TV episodes of Fireside Theatre, The Revlon Mirror Theater, The Whistler, Science Fiction Theatre, Strange Stories, Climax!, Pursuit, Rawhide, Perry Mason, Laramie, Marcus Welby, M.D., Hawaii Five-O, Police Story, Barnaby Jones
- Kennedy, Douglas as Joey Faust – (September 14, 1915 – August 10, 1973) ‘G’ Men, North West Mounted Police, Passage from Hong Kong, Possessed, Dark Passage, Adventures of Don Juan, Whiplash, Task Force, Montana, Ma and Pa Kettle Go to Town, Oh! Susanna, The Texas Rangers, Last Train from Bombay, Torpedo Alley, Invaders from Mars, Sitting Bull, Wiretapper, The Land Unknown, The Lone Ranger and the Lost City of Gold, The Alligator People, The Amazing Transparent Man, The Fastest Guitar Alive, TV episodes of Fireside Theatre, Hopalong Cassidy, The Lone Ranger, Science Fiction Theatre, Dragnet, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Tales of Wells Fargo, Cheyenne, Perry Mason, Cimarron City, Wagon Train, Maverick, Bat Masterson, Colt .45, Zorro, Wyatt Earp, Pony Express, Laramie, Rawhide, Bonanza, Have Gun – Will Travel, The Rifleman, Gunsmoke, The Outer Limits, The Big Valley, Lassie, The Virginian, Cade’s County, Hawaii Five-O
- Griffith, James as Maj. Paul Krenner – (February 13, 1916 – September 17, 1993) Blonde Ice, Alaska Patrol, Special Agent, Indian Territory, The Great Missouri Raid, Eight Iron Men, Jesse James vs. the Daltons, The Law vs. Billy the Kid, Dragnet, Masterson of Kansas, Manhunt in Space, The Guns of Fort Petticoat, The Vampire, The Amazing Transparent Man, Spartacus, Notrth to Alaska, How the West Was Won, Speedtrap, TV episodes of Hopalog Cassidy, Death Valley Days, Gunsmoke, Cheyenne, Laramie, U.S. Marshal, Maverick, Rawhide, Perry Mason, Tales of Wells Fargo, Have Gun Will Travel, The Untouchables, Daniel Boone, Laredo, F-Troop, Batman, The Monkees, The Mod Squad, Kung Fu, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, The Six Million Dollar Man, Police Story, Fantasy Island, B. J. and the Bear, Hart to Hart, Dallas
- Triesault, Ivan as Dr. Peter Ulof – (July 13, 1898 – January 3, 1980) Mission to Moscow, Hostages, The Strange Death of Adolf Hitler, The Hitler Gang, The Mummy’s Ghost, Cry of the Werewolf, Escape in the Fog, Counter-Attack, The Return of Monte Cristo, The Woman from Tangier, Spy Hunt, Ma and Pa Kettle on Vacation, The Buster Keaton Story, Journey to the Center of the Earth, The Amazing Transparent Man, Batman, TV episodes of Climax!, The Adventures of Jim Bowie, Perry Mason, Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color, Combat!, Burke’s Law, Honey West, Batman, The Girl from U.N.C.L.E., Mission: Impossible, Hogan’s Heroes, The Wild Wild West, Bonanza, It Takes a Thief, Ironside
- Morgan, Boyd ‘Red’ as Julian – (October 24, 1915 – January 8, 1988) Smoky Canyon, The Last Musketeer, Beyond the Time Barrier, The War Wagon, The Stalking Moon, Support Your Local Sheriff!, True Grit, Zabriskie Point, Blazing Saddles, Foxy Brown, Gone with the West, TV episodes of Gunsmoke
- Cranshaw, Patrick as Security guard – (June 17, 1919 – December 28, 2005) The Amazing Transparent Man, The Yesterday Machine, Bonnie and Clyde, Bandolero!, Thunder and Lightning, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, The Private Eyes, The Gong Show Movie, Nothing to Lose, Bubble Boy, Air Bud: Seventh Inning Fetch, Air Bud: Spikes Back, My Boss’s Daughter, Herbie: Fully Loaded, Air Buddies, TV episodes of Adam-12, Sanford and Son, Alice, Little House on the Prairie, Mork & Mindy, The Dukes of Hazard, CHiPs, Diff’rent Strokes, Highway to Heaven, Night Court, Perfect Strangers, Growing Pains, Married… with Children, The Beverly Hillbillies, Coach, The Drew Carey Show, Just Shoot Me!
Supporting Cast
- Daniel, Carmel as Maria Ulof
- Erwin, Edward as Drake
- Ledford, Jonathan as Smith
- Smith, Norman as Security guard
- Kelly, Kevin as Woman
- Adams, Dennis as State Police officer
- Morgan, Stacy as State Police officer
Edgar G. Ulmer, who directed the film, is often celebrated for his ability to create atmospheric and engaging stories despite limited budgets. Ulmer was a German-American filmmaker best known for his work in the low-budget film industry, where he earned the nickname “The King of the Bs.” Despite his limited resources, Ulmer’s films often displayed a unique visual style and an ability to create atmosphere and tension. One of his most famous films is the film noir classic Detour (1945),
which has been praised for its grim, fatalistic tone and economical storytelling. Other notable works include The Black Cat (1934), a stylish horror film featuring Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff, and Bluebeard (1944), a dark tale of a painter turned serial killer.
Ulmer’s career spanned various genres, from horror to sci-fi, and his influence is still recognized by filmmakers and cinephiles today. The film was produced by Robert L. Madden, an American film producer primarily known for his work on low-budget science fiction and horror films during the 1950s and 1960s.
He produced several films that have since become cult classics, most notably this film and Beyond the Time Barrier (1960), both directed by Ulmer. Madden often collaborated with independent filmmakers, contributing to the era’s wave of imaginative yet economically produced genre films.
It was released by the small distribution company, American International Pictures (AIP), known for its B-movies and double features. The production was handled with significant budgetary constraints, which is evident in the film’s special effects and set design.
The invisibility effect was achieved through simple techniques like double exposure, which, while not groundbreaking, was effective enough for the era and the film’s B-movie status. The movie was shot primarily in and around Dallas, Texas.
Invisibility-Themed Movies
- The Invisible Man – 1933 – Claude Rains
- The Invisible Man Returns – 1940 – Vincent Price
- The Invisible Woman – 1940 – Virginia Bruce
- The Invisible Agent – 1942 – Jon Hall
- The Invisible Man’s Revenge – 1944 – Jon Hall
- Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man – 1951 – Arthur Franz
- The Amazing Transparent Man – 1960 – Douglas Kennedy
- The Invisible Dr. Mabuse – 1962 – Lex Barker
- The Invisible Ray – 1963 – Boris Karloff
- Memoirs of an Invisible Man – 1992 – Chevy Chase
- The Invisible Kid – 1988 – Jay Underwood
- Hollow Man – 2000 – Kevin Bacon
- The Invisible Man – 2000 – Steven Price
- The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen – 2003 – Sean Connery
- The Invisible – 2007 – Justin Chatwin
- Hollow Man 2 – 2006 – Christian Slater
- The Unseeable – 2006 – Siraphan Wattanajinda
- The Invisible Boy – 2014 – Ludovico Girardello
- The Invisible Man – 2020 – Elisabeth Moss
The locations chosen were typical of the era’s low-budget films, utilizing local settings to keep production costs down. The use of real-world locations, such as a farmhouse that serves as the site of Krenner’s lab, added a layer of authenticity to the film despite its fantastical premise. “The Amazing Transparent Man” is often remembered for its place within the broader landscape of 1960s science fiction cinema. Despite its low budget and brief runtime, the film touches on themes that resonate with the anxieties of the Cold War era,
particularly the fear of unchecked scientific experimentation and the potential for new technologies to be exploited by the unscrupulous. The film is also part of the long tradition of movies featuring invisibility, a theme that has been explored in various ways in science fiction,
from H.G. Wells’ “The Invisible Man” to the numerous adaptations and inspirations that followed. Over the years, the film has gained a cult following, especially among fans of classic sci-fi and B-movies. Its inclusion in various horror and sci-fi collections has helped keep it in the public eye, despite its obscurity at the time of release.
I enjoyed the film. It had a pretty good pace and a fair amount of action. I will give this movie 3 out of 5, visible, stars.
Further Reading
Sources
- Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Amazing_Transparent_Man
- Rotten Tomatoes https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/amazing_transparent_man
- IMDb. (n.d.). The Amazing Transparent Man (1960) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053593/
- AllMovie. (n.d.). The Amazing Transparent Man – Overview https://www.allmovie.com/movie/the-amazing-transparent-man-am41892
- Turner Classic Movies. (n.d.). The Amazing Transparent Man https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/67197/the-amazing-transparent-man#overview
