Movie Review: X: The Man with the X-ray Eyes (1963)
Synopsis: Dr. James Xavier develops a serum that will increase human vision to allow people to see ultraviolet and X-ray wavelengths. With his primary sponsor threatening to shut down his research funding, Xavier takes the drastic step of testing the serum on himself, only to lose the funding anyway after it works too well, and he winds up hospitalized as a result. Soon after, he accidentally kills one of his colleagues and while a fugitive from the law attempts to raise money for further research by using his X-ray vision to pretend to be a mind reader, run an underground medical clinic and win money at a Las Vegas casino.
Who's in it? The movie stars Ray Milland, Diana Van der Vlis, Don Rickles, John Hoyt and Harold J. Stone.
Review: I came across the Roger Corman-directed X: The Man with the X-ray Eyes last night and thought it sounded interesting enough to give a try. After watching it this morning, I concluded it was an OK film, though maybe not quite what I was expecting.
The movie, frankly, seemed to be a bit too much like a rip-off of The Invisible Man. The premise was pretty much the same, only instead of being invisible to the naked eye, Xavier (Milland) was seeing things that were invisible to the naked eye and ultimately was being driven mad as a result.
Not helping this movie was the pacing, which seemed a bit slow for a film that was only 79 minutes in length. It felt considerably longer as a result and not necessarily in a good way. In other words, it's one of those movies that could have reduced its runtime by half by cutting out scenes like the naked dance party or the drive to Vegas and it would have had no real impact on the plot.
I also found myself a bit confused about Xavier's situation. One moment, he was complaining about how horrible his self-induced condition was. The next moment, he was putting more of the serum in his eyes because its effects were wearing off. Maybe I missed something, but it seemed like the former could easily be corrected by not doing the latter.
There were some things I did like about this film. For one, I liked how Xavier wanted to use his invention for good, such as making it easier for a doctor to diagnose a patient. That is so much better than the stereotypical "mad" scientist who creates an invention for no clear reason.
The movie also has a nice shock factor to it, at least by 1960s standards, by being somewhat graphic about the things he sees inside the human body. I'll also include the films unexpected ending in that shock factor category.
Last, I found I was very impressed with Don Rickles in his supporting role of Crane, the carnival manager who attempts to exploit Xavier's powers through extortion. While he's remembered more as a comedian, this is a great example of how talented he was in other roles as well. In fact, the movie might have been better had he been in more of it.
Final Opinion: It's a low-budget film that gives you what the title advertises. However, it never reaches a point where it is anything that seems overly unique or memorable.
My Grade: C
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Here are some reviews of other movies from 1963:
Movie Review: Bye Bye Birdie (1963)
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