Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.5

The Invisible Maniac 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf December 28, 2022

Writer/director Adam Rifkin had a dream, working to bring “The Dark Backward” to screens. However, he also needed work as a young filmmaker, and part of his learning process involved the creation of 1990’s “The Invisible Maniac,” which was written and produced in a matter of weeks. It’s a low- budget quickie from Rifkin (billed here as “Rif Coogan”), and his creative mission here is to play with the mad scientist genre and photograph as many nude actresses as possible. Even with limited creative goals, “The Invisible Maniac” isn’t quite the romp it should be, as Rifkin has a real problem with filler, noticeably sweating to get the movie up to a sellable run time, which results in some serious drag in a feature that wants to be a rip-roaring ride of violence and sexploitation.

Dr. Dornwinkle (Noel Peters) is a man of science determined to crack the code of invisibility, or “molecular reorganization.” When a public display of his discovery goes wrong, he elects to murder the witnesses, landing him in a state hospital. Escaping from the facility, Dornwinkle changes his identity, becoming Kevin Smith, a high school physics teacher hired to deal with a summer school class of rowdy teens. The students are nasty, planning pranks on Smith, who can’t handle such pressure, electing to work on his serum. Finally achieving invisibility, Smith goes crazy, setting out to kill the teens who’ve harassed him, losing his mind in the process.

“The Invisible Maniac” establishes Dornwinkle’s disease, highlighting his childhood interest in becoming a Peeping Tom, which gives Rifkin a chance to beef up the run time by studying the bedtime routine of a young woman during the main titles. Dornwinkle’s mother has rage issues, passing them on to her son, and two decades later, he’s ready to showcase his smarts with the debut of his invisibility serum. The day doesn’t go well, resulting in a killing spree, identifying the scientist as someone who isn’t well, trying to perfect ultimate sneakiness. “The Invisible Maniac” finds its way to a high school, and Rifkin doesn’t have much to offer here, delivering broad antics from bullies and the girls who love them.

Plot isn’t a primary concern for Rifkin, who uses the central situation with Dornwinkle/Smith as a way to capture as much nudity as possible. The females are involved with cheerleading practice (at summer school?) and such physical exertion requires long, hot showers, giving male characters (including a mute janitor) a chance to peep, while Rifkin makes sure to linger on these personal hygiene events. There’s Principal Cello (Stephanie Blake), an undersexed leader trying to seduce the students. And there’s Dornwinkle, who’s mostly invested in pulling clothes off his victims once he does master invisibility, possibly inspiring Paul Verhoeven’s “Hollow Man.” “The Invisible Maniac” presents pranks and bullying as fun, but Rifkin doesn’t have much in the way of humor, offering a comedy that’s weirdly low on jokes, mostly relying on bare skin to hold attention.

The Invisible Maniac 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Screencaps are taken from the Blu-ray.

For those who've only seen "The Invisible Maniac" on VHS or cable, Vinegar Syndrome delivers a likely mind-blowing upgrade for the feature, offering a 4K presentation for the video store staple. Clarity is excellent throughout the viewing experience, as the movie prefers to show a lot of skin, with the particulars of facial surfaces and full body shots distinct. Textures extend to costuming, capturing the softness of sweaters and the sheerness of undergarments. Interiors around the school offer defined decoration, and limited exteriors retain dimension. Color is vibrant, dealing well with bright primaries on clothing and school tours, securing deep reds on makeup as well. Skin tones tend to dominate most scenes, and they look natural, with some mild ruddiness. Blacks are deep. Highlights are tasteful. Grain is heavy and film-like. Source is in excellent condition.

The Invisible Maniac 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 2.0 DTS-HD MA mix for "The Invisible Maniac" secures decent dialogue exchanges, preserving the bizarre mix of intensity and amateur acting from the cast. More powerful are scoring cues, which sound a little distorted at time, possibly reflecting the low-budget nature of the production. Sound effects are pronounced, and mild atmospherics are appreciable.

The Invisible Maniac 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary #1 features writer/director Adam Rifkin.

• Commentary #2 features The Hysteria Continues.

• "Fast, Cheap, and Out of Sight" (32:08, HD) is the making-of for "The Invisible Maniac," featuring interviews with writer/director Adam Rifkin, executive producer Cassian Elwes, crew member Dan Povenmire, composer Marc David Decker, and actors Rod Sweitzer, Debra Lamb, and Stephanie Blake. Rifkin begins with his boyhood love of movies, knowing at a young age that he was going to become a director, even if he didn't know what that job was. Making his way to L.A., Rifkin teamed up with Elwes, trying to break into the business with his first endeavor, "Never on Tuesday." Taking career advice from John Landis, Rifkin elected to make a "practice" film with "The Invisible Maniac" before taking on "The Dark Backward," banging out a script in a matter of days, with production beginning right away. Such speed necessitated a pseudonym, with "Rif Coogan" taking the reins of the project. Casting is highlighted, with people collected in a hurry, and performance choices are recalled, including Povenmire, who was tasked with creating a music video for the picture. Scoring efforts from Decker are examined, who had little time to generate music. Rifkin shares his motivation to add 13 minutes of footage for the international release, coming up with a dream sequence to honor contractual obligations. And the feature's release is tracked, doing well on the home video market.

• Deleted Scene (13:00, SD) is a dream sequence added to "The Invisible Maniac" to increase the run time for the international release.

• "He's Invisible" (4:16, SD) is a music video.

• Behind-the-Scenes (10:05, SD) is a look at the making of the "He's Invisible" music video.

• "Request Video" (12:11, SD) is a public access show featuring "Rif Coogan" as a guest, exploring his Texas upbringing and the R-rated content of "The Invisible Maniac." Coogan hangs around to answer viewer questions and plug the premiere of the film, soon joined by singer Richard Barone.

• And a Video Trailer is included.

The Invisible Maniac 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"The Invisible Maniac" eventually gets around to more slasher film-style activity in the final act, where the physics teacher finally cracks and takes care of bad kids, with one brat force-fed a sandwich while another is strangled by a fire hose. Special effects can't sell the menace of a see-through killer, with Rifkin battling a severely limited shooting schedule, keeping a few mistakes in the final cut. A shift toward campy horror isn't unappealing (Peters commits to the part in full, making him interesting to watch), but it's clear "The Invisible Maniac" struggles to make it to 86 minutes, in need of a tighter edit and more mischief for the characters to manage. However, with lowered expectations, there's certainly enough saucy activities presented here to maintain passable interest in the picture, which offers a strong reminder of the days of video store titles and their limited desire to offer anything more than the bare minimum of exploitation elements.