Monday, October 22, 2012

Invisible Enemy (1938)


The plot of the film has ex-spy Jeffrey Clavering being hired by a combination oil cartel and British government to track down a Nikolai Kamarov who is a know king maker and financial double dealer who is moving to control the oil industry on the eve of war. Clavering wants no part of it since he was drummed out of the service years before after wrecking his career and fortune over a woman. He takes the job when he finds out that the woman of his dreams is the wife of the bad guy. Clavering is soon wooing the girl and fighting off bad guys.

This fast paced romp the film works solely on that basis of the cast. The plot which looks okay briefly summed up is much too messy up close and any rational person would walk away. On the other hand you have a great cast having fun being mysterious, romantic and spouting pithy lines so any reservations are washed aside.

Watching the film late one night I realized I had relatively recently seen the film. I groaned a bit until the film hooked me all over again and I found myself fighting to stay awake at 130 in the morning.

One of the joys of the film is watching C Henry Gordon as Nikolai Kamarov. Gordon was a character actor you no doubt watched in dozens of moldy oldies, but rarely was he given anything to do but be a type. Here Gordon is given copious screen time and allowed to create a scary character who finds he isn't as in control as he thought.

I really like this film and should you manage to get tour hands on a copy of the film give it a go.

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