There’s a Velociraptor on the loose in small-town America… and it’s invisible. What more do you need to know? After the titular beast escapes from an underground laboratory, down-on-his-luck amusement park paleontologist Grant Walker (Mike Capes, who also had a hand in the screenplay) and security guard Denny Denielson (David Shackelford) join forces to stop the beast before it can wreak any further havoc. And, with Sean Astin, a kid and a dog among its victims already, the creature has a pretty hefty head start as it is.
With a title like The Invisible Raptor, certain promises are made, putting it firmly in the Cocaine Bear and Sharknado school of high-concept creature feature. Mike Hermosa’s raucous comedy-horror makes good on that promise, featuring the Invisible Raptor in all of its ridiculous glory, cutting a bloody swathe through the suburbs. The comedy is broad and puerile but well-distributed, switching evenly between gross-out humour, mean-spirited violence and good-natured silliness. Capes and Shackleford are fun as the two would-be heroes, with Richard Riehle and Sandy Martin (Mac’s mom in It’s Always Sunny) stealing the lion’s share of laughs during their brief screen time.
You may think you know what you’re in for with The Invisible Raptor, but that isn’t always the case. Yes, the CGI is bad, and some of the performances are wooden, but its story is surprisingly well-structured, featuring fun action and a sweet bromance at its core. Almost two hours of it is far too much, but it comes brimming with an infectious enthusiasm that can’t be faked.
It’s the smart version of a stupid movie while still being so very deeply stupid.
THE INVISIBLE RAPTOR is out now in the US.
