It's a little bit Hollow Man, a little bit Gaslight and a lot Sleeping With the Enemy.
Aussie writer/director Leigh Whannell's new The Invisible Man film is a fantastic reinvention of the classic monster story.
This time around the titular see-through man isn't the protagonist, but the villain.
He is abusive tech genius Aaron (The Haunting of Hill House's Oliver Jackson-Cohen), who has isolated his partner Cecilia (Top of the Lake's Elisabeth Moss) from her friends and family in their picturesque beach house.
The film's opening sees Cecilia make a tense and daring escape in a brilliantly crafted sequence that will set audiences up for the rest of The Invisible Man's thrills and scares.
Soon after, Aaron is found dead and has left $5 million to Cecilia, contingent on her not being convicted of any crimes.
This paves the way for a series of paranoia-inducing incidents that make our protagonist question her sanity and safety.
The film takes a close look at the nature of abusive relationships through the scope of horror and hits the nail right on the head.
Domestic and family violence is such a big problem in Australia and the world, and it is often 'invisible', happening behind closed doors, out of sight of everyone else.
The Invisible Man is a perfect allegory for this really serious issue.
Quite apart from what the film has to say, the way it says it is exceptionally well crafted.
The slow, deliberate camera movements build a tonne of tension and allow our characters to swim in their fear without cutting away for a cheap scare.
The Invisible Man was filmed in Sydney (Aaron's amazing house was shot in Gerringong), so there are a few familiar faces alongside our leads, like Harriet Dyer (Love Child) and Michael Dorman (Wonderland).
Aldis Hodge (What Met Want) and Storm Reid (When They See Us) are also great as Cecilia's friends.
But it's Moss who absolutely steals the show in the lead role and watching her mental state deteriorate over the course of the film is a masterclass in acting.
Whether you're a horror aficionado or not, The Invisible Man is well worth a watch.
