Who gave Aldis Hodge permission to be this fine in this here thriller? Who? Point to ‘em. Because…bay-bay!! 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾 Full course meal 🥘 #WITCHOFINEASS 🗣️ 🗣️ 🗣️

The Invisible Man is a thrill ride, but the finale of the coaster was a bit predictable. Building the exposition with such urgency, panic, and anxiety was stylistically brilliant! Get the audience on edge early so that we can be just as fearful as the main character, a young woman named Cecilia Kass (played by Elisabeth Moss) who’s attempting to escape a domestic abuse relationship with her boyfriend. She hides out with her childhood friend James (played by Hodge) and his daughter Sydney (played by Storm Reid).

I want to breakdown one scene because I thought it did a spectacular job with reinforcing that sense of anxiety and fear that keeps the audience with Cecilia. At James’ house, Cecilia attempts to step outside for the first time since her escape from her ex. She nervously stands at the door, and pans the yard focusing on the mailbox. She lacks confidence. That time, she can’t handle the idea of being caught and senses her ex’s presence. Later on, she tries again (I believe). The scene is set like it was during her previous attempt. She scopes out the yard, walks to the mailbox, and as a runner approaches her, she runs away in terror.

• First thing I noted—the editing. Thrillers can either keep you engaged or lose you with editing. Quick pans and unnecessary jumps from close-ups to mid- screen shots can remove the suspense.

• Second—the actors. Elisabeth Moss is phenomenal. It felt like I was watching a friend (or myself) cycling through anxiety and depression. When she curled up in the fetal position on the floor and sobbed endlessly until Sydney found her, I felt a jolt of sweat. Moss pulled in what felt like real anguish, regret, despair, and brokenness in this role. I commend her for championing this because it looked challenging. And also, her supporting cast. BRAVO!!! I think this screenplay could’ve turned comical in a jiffy had less capable actors joined the ensemble cast.

• Third—the score. Shouts to the music department for not resorting to tropes for the score. Too many thriller/suspense/horror films harp on scratchy, nerve-inducing sounds to prime audiences for reaction. This film’s plot is already derivative of other horror films using the essence of invisibility to induce fear, but here, the music department understood that silence was deafening, but not too much silence. Every few scenes when Cecilia was still skeptical of the invisible ex, the scenes would poke at the idea, but it didn’t linger too long. Great balance!

Not 👏🏾 gonna 👏🏾 lie—the conclusion dropped the ball for me, and didn’t really live up to the hype. Whew chile 😓😓😓, that CGI took me down. I almost open-mouthed cackled, but I kept it cute. So, like, remember how rubbery Erik Killmonger and T’challa looked during their fight scene on the Wakandan railway in Black Panther. Now, I’m talking the original version from the theatrical release, not the updated version on Disney+. (The real ones know.) So I got those vibes during the fight scene in the rain and at James’ house, and it took me out of the thrill. Like those final seconds of a ride at the State Fair when it starts slowing up so you know it’s over. 🎢🎡🎠 Also, the confession dinner at the end was predictable, and lost cool points in my book.

Still, an entertaining film. Moss will receive an Oscar one day. The woman is just too damn good. 🔥🔥🔥

The one scene I can’t get out of my mind was the one when Cecilia invited her sister to dinner at the swanky restaurant to tell her about something she found at her ex’s house. When the scene begins, Cecilia is centered at a table in the middle of the restaurant, and the camera pans in on her. She’s the only person who looks disheveled and anxious, while other patrons around her seems glossy, posh, and look to be enjoying themselves. Cool juxtaposition, right—but I’m undecided on if the scene worked for me. So I could tell something elevating was about to occur because we hadn’t yet reached a climax in the screenplay, and this film wasn’t working in any fractured order to assume something other than a linear story. And then surprise! (No spoilers.) What I appreciated during this segment was the screenplay slowed down, a sudden calm before the storm. I think the reason it’s hitting my hippocampus in a strange way is because I sensed a climax, and I was hoping for a little something more than a “gotcha” moment and then its aftermath. I think I’m just picking. I need to re-watch to decide. 🤷🏾🤷🏾