Chevy Chase manages to tone down the pratfalls and mugging in "Memoirs of an Invisible Man," which is neither strictly a comedy nor strictly a rehash of science-fiction "invisibility" conventions.
In fact, this is arguably Chase's most restrained and effective performance and could attract an audience beyond his established, indiscriminate following.
Too bad then that the film is allowed to gradually sink into an overly familiar and not very believable government-paranoia thriller by director John Carpenter ("Halloween," "Starman") and screenwriters Robert Collector, Dana Olsen ("The 'burbs") and veteran Oscar-winner William Goldman ("Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" and "The Princess Bride").
That the film doesn't realize its possibilities is somewhat disappointing, but on the whole "Memoirs" is a lively, entertaining and funny romp, with some astonishing special effects.
Chase plays a successful San Francisco stock analyst whose personal life is empty. Since he's already fairly transparent, it's not that big a change when he is the victim of an accident at a high-tech research plant and finds himself literally invisible.
Af first, Chase is willing to submit himself to the scientists at the facility, but a renegade CIA hitman (well-played with some unexpected comic touches by Sam Neill) sees him as an opportunity - the ultimate invisible spy. Chase quickly catches on and takes off, so Neill uses his resources to track him down, and the rest of the film plays like a patchwork of chase scenes from other pictures, such as "Silver Streak" (itself a hybrid of Hitchcock films).
But Chase's affability, his romance with the charming Daryl Hannah (as a lawyer who tries to help him) and inventive sight gags and special-effects make the plotting more palatable than it might otherwise be.
We get a showy display of those special effects in the opening sequence, as a stick of gum floats in the air, unwraps and is chewed, with invisible Chase even blowing a bubble.
Some of the film's most appealing moments come as Chase is trying to adjust to the idea of being invisible - trying to find his invisible suit (it was on him when the accident occurred), finding he can't eat without drawing attention (floating food), foiling a purse-snatcher, etc.
Carpenter is clever in his use of the main gimmick here, allowing the audience to sometimes see Chase when he's invisible so we can see his reactions to each situation, and thereby develop a better feel for his dilemma. But he can't resist some cheap gags, as when Chase sees in a mirror his own digestive system processing Chinese food, which causes him to vomit, and a nightmare scene that shows Chase naked, with his groin invisible.
"Memoirs of an Invisible Man" is a very enjoyable film most of the way, but jokes like those, along with the sex, violence and profanity (the film is rated PG-13), make it unsuitable for children.
(As a footnote, the music here is by Shirley Walker, the first time I can remember seeing a woman composer listed as scoring a film.)