John Carpenter is mostly known for his horror movies like Halloween, The Thing and Prince Of Darkness. Apparently there is also another face of Carpenter, a face for which he is not that famous. One of my favorite movies of the 80s and my favorite Carpenter film is Big Trouble In Little China, a movie that is both hilarious and truly enjoyable. But there is also another movie in his filmography that most people are unaware of. The movie is called Memoirs Of An Invisible Man and star Chevy Chase and Daryl Hannah. Now the movie was both a commercial and critical failure, but that doesn't mean that is not a worthy movie. Memoirs is a movie that hits you in the most guilty pleasure part of yourself. And I am saying that not because the movie is so trashy, but because there is a clear naivete in the movie that was, clearly, misunderstood for a serious flaw. Well I didn't take it for a flaw and I don't believe that there is any kind of flaw in the movie. The movie is a lovely lighthearted science fiction comedy with bits of mystery movie in there.
The fact that Carpenter left his horrific images and tried something completely different from what he was doing is most certainly something welcoming and not something that should be treated with hostility. The movie has virtues that you can feel. It's an example of entertainment movie that works perfectly for a Saturday evening or a Christmas time movie. There is that lovely feeling coming from the screen, that warm thing that you feel whenever there is a movie that doesn't aim for your brain, but for the part of your heart that screams for some joy. With all the crappy popcorn movies that we see every year coming out, this movie over here is a beautiful example of cinema that makes you genuinely happy. I would go as far as to compare it with another film, Who Framed Roger Rabbit. And I am not saying of course that it's equally good, of course Roger Rabbit is one of the greatest 80s movies, but there is the same feeling coming to you, when you watch those two movies. That feeling that... you are going to live forever, if you watch that kind of films. That there isn't any obstacle in this life that you cannot surpass. Meaning that Memoirs is a truly and genuinely feelgood movie. A movie that you can watch with your family or your beloved and find that you can take a piece of the love that the movie is brining on the screen. And I know, that some might say that these things that I am writing are completely corny. Well I have only one answer for those people. If my words seem corny to you, you should see a therapist and tell him that you are incapable of having quality time in your life.
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