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Now You See Him, Now You Don't

Now You See Him, Now You Don't

Comedy · Family · Science Fiction · 1972

Dexter Riley is a science student at Medfield College who inadvertently invents a liquid capable of rendering objects and people invisible. Before Dexter and his friends, Debbie and Richard Schuyler, can even enjoy their spectacular discovery, corrupt businessman A.J. Arno plots to get his greedy hands on it. Slapstick hijinks ensue as Dexter and his pals try to thwart the evil Arno before he can use the invisibility spray to rob a bank.

Movie details

Now You See Him, Now You Don't

“He's going... going... gone!”

1972 Comedy · Family · Science Fiction 1h 28m

Critical arithmetic

The consensus, allegedly.

IMDb

6.2 / 10

2.4K votes

Rotten Tomatoes

80 %

Tomatometer

TMDB

6.3 / 10

Community rating

External scores via OMDb · CC BY-NC 4.0. Values normalized for display; availability varies by title.

Dexter Riley is a science student at Medfield College who inadvertently invents a liquid capable of rendering objects and people invisible. Before Dexter and his friends, Debbie and Richard Schuyler, can even enjoy their spectacular discovery, corrupt businessman A.J. Arno plots to get his greedy hands on it. Slapstick hijinks ensue as Dexter and his pals try to thwart the evil Arno before he can use the invisibility spray to rob a bank.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over Now You See Him, Now You Don't?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Where it lives

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Robert Butler

Written by

Joseph L. McEveety · Robert L. King

Kurt Russell

Kurt Russell

Dexter Reilly

Cesar Romero

Cesar Romero

A.J. Arno

Joe Flynn

Joe Flynn

Dean Eugene (E.J.) Higgins

Jim Backus

Jim Backus

Timothy Forsythe

William Windom

William Windom

Professor Lufkin

Frank Welker

Frank Welker

Myles

Joyce Menges

Joyce Menges

Debbie Dawson

Court is in session

Put Now You See Him, Now You Don't on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Sentimental Softie

“Sincerity is not manipulation.”

The film risks embarrassment to make emotion communal, and that openness is harder than fashionable detachment.

The prosecution The Cool Ironist

“The strings are showing.”

Every cue tells you exactly what to feel and when, leaving sentiment to do the work character should have done.