This movie largely succeeds, despite giving away its premise from the start, as both a nail-biting dramatic thriller and poignant social commentary on unhealthy relationship dynamics. Does it have plot holes? Yes. Do they spoil the movie to the extent some reviews are suggesting? Not unless you are uncommonly cynical and picky.

This is not an HG Wells Invisible man. I've read the book, and this is not it.

I was skeptical that a rather worn horror/thriller trope could yield fresh frights, and while I don't think the scares are all incredibly original, the film does what it sets out to do. It was infuriating to constantly know that a jump-scare was looming on the horizon, yet still feel jolted in that disconcerting way that makes jump-scares an enduring staple of the genre. I want to complain that the sparse soundtrack and tired inception "booj" effects were unfairly wielded or that the timid, slow-pan camera was applied too often, but honestly, it worked. I could have done with less predictability in the sound design, however. I was scared, despite myself. I was thrilled. And isn't that what thrillers are supposed to do? It kept me on the edge of the seat.

Acting was solid, with the lead giving a praiseworthy performance of a harried, mentally unstable victim, whose mannerisms and appearance gradually deteriorate into convincing madness. Her character is believable in ways that Barbieesque horror girls often are not. She possesses an every-woman charisma reminiscent of the first Halloween movie, or Drew Barrymore's Scream opener, seems impossibly average, and the audience is both compelled to empathize and also dared to question her sanity, so that the plot manages to leave a few questions to be answered until the closer (and perhaps even after). It's not a cliffhanger or a I-didn't-see-that-coming movie, but it's still satisfying.

If you like a good thriller, see it. If you like a good psychological thriller, see it. If you like fast-paced thrillers, maybe pass on this one. If you nitpick plot holes, go suck on a lemon and frown at the mirror, or stretch your imagination and enjoy this simple, but entertaining, ride.

It's worth the price of admission.

(I made it all the way through with no "invisible" puns, and I'm quite proud of myself)

A woman escapes her abusive husband, but feels his menacing presence even after he's declared dead.

A mysterious opening scene leads us in nicely to the tale of a battered wife seeking refuge. But the pace instantly falls away, and the first half hour feels like it's double that length as the implausibility of the heroine's refuge grows, with the relationships increasingly out of kilter. Eventually I burst out in a long sigh, when the camera cut away to the umpteenth shot of an empty door-frame with scary music.

At this point the producer had a chat with the screenwriter:

"If he's invisible, how do we let the audience know he's present - like, without 'showing' him?"

"Get this. You know when you go outside at night, and it's cold? And you exhale ..?"

"Shut the fridge door! That's genius!"

"Well, you 'ain't paying me the big bucks for nothing."

The real mystery is why Elizabeth Moss got herself mixed up in this. Why you, Elizabeth? To be fair, the most interesting aspect is that she plays the part as a deteriorating psychotic, the irony being that she's up against a psychopath with techno-magic powers. But why is she in this trouble? There is no interesting answer to her question, Why me? - and the one element supposed to cement the villain's motivation is left dangling in the end. If you want to see her in a weird, mutually dependent relationship, watch Shirley instead.

With half an hour to go, cue a TV weather forecast and the climax kicks in, washing away any nuance in an exhausting chase that you know is going to catch a second and a third wind. There is a twist, and for a moment a hint of an intriguing reshape of the story, but it instantly resolves into flat revenge.

The editing is pretty slow, with long pans of various empty rooms and corridors. Performances and camera work are good. The music is generic, but in a few scenes it is pointedly not used to generate tension: the one real surprise in the whole affair.

I've seen a few recent movies of female responses to male violence, and they are all basically revengers. We are better than that, but the industry is having none of it.

Mad scientist is also an abusive stalker. Starting when Cecelia gets away from the abusive stalker, she nonetheless continues to be impacted by the echoes of the emotional abuse. But these aren't echoes. Elizabeth Moss does well to turn the woman of domestic violence into one of psychological breakdown. She keeps the movie engaging. Whannell manages the direction of this film well (he also wrote the story and screenplay). He frames shots expertly to give empty space a personality. Worth the rental.