Statistically speaking, battered women in abusive relationships are most at risk for violence and life-threatening harm after they leave their abuser. Leigh Whannell uses this as his starting point to completely retool H.G. Wells’ literary classic, The Invisible Man. Save for a central, unhinged character named Griffin that renders himself invisible and wreaks havoc on the lives around him, there’s not much else resembling the original story. And that’s okay because it essentially frees Whannell to spin a new, modern take on the iconic monster, one with a severe level of nail-biting, anxiety-inducing tension.

The film opens with a suspenseful scene. Cecilia Kass (Elisabeth Moss) gets out of bed in the middle of the night after having drugged the abusive Adrian Griffin (Oliver Jackson-Cohen). She adjusts the hallway’s camera toward him so she can keep an eye on his whereabouts as she proceeds to sneak through his large, isolated home to retrieve all her needed belongings. A few missteps along the way and Adrian very nearly catches her, violently, before her sister drives off. Even though the trailer indicates how this scene will go, it says a lot that the scene still manages to instill palm-sweating anxiety.

Cecilia might be physically free from her abusive ex, but it’s only the beginning of her nightmare. Adrian commits suicide and leaves her his fortune; except, that’s far too tidy and sweet for the extremely controlling scientist that specializes in optics. A series of strange events have Cecilia convinced Adrian’s set up an elaborate plan for revenge.

Of course, no one believes her.

Whannell is a master of drawing out tension to an excruciating degree. He utilizes space and sound to maximize paranoid terror in a way that often leaves you checking the corners of a scene for possible clues of Cecilia’s invisible stalker. The way he’s approached the invisibility itself is smart, too. Much of the first half of the film plays like a horror-tinged psychological thriller, with Cecilia’s tormentor starting small in his violent gaslight game. As it escalates, the film transforms into an exhilarating full-blown action thriller; as Whannell proved in Upgrade, he’s got an impressive talent for crafting action sequences that bring the horror and blood. What’s more, he knows how to deliver a slick, polished production that looks far more luxurious than the production’s meager budget. The Invisible Man looks excellent. The score is equally impressive.

Above all, though, The Invisible Man is Elisabeth Moss’s show through and through. She proves to be a force of nature with an incredible and impressive performance here. Playing an abused victim, and the multiple layers of trauma that entails, needs finesse, and Moss more than delivers. Her Cecilia is broken, vulnerable, yet with a strength she doesn’t even know she possesses. There are several fantastic supporting actors worthy of mention. Aldis Hodge’s James and Storm Reid’s Sydney give needed warmth as Cecilia’s surrogate family, Jackson-Cohen’s limited scenes as Adrian brilliantly convey a fully-fleshed out character, and Michael Dorman’s Tom offers a new angle of abused victim as Adrian’s brother. But most of the film features Cecilia on her own, or instead acting opposite someone who isn’t there. She nails it. Whannell creates the effectively haunted space for her to play in, but it’s Moss who sells the hell out of the concept.

For those worried that the marketing gave away far too much, fret not; Whannell has many surprises up his sleeve for this intense ride. Moments of startling violence, unexpected wrenches that are thrown into Cecilia’s fight for control over her own life, and shocking turns that keep you on your toes. It’s a tautly spun narrative full of chills and thrills; there’s zero fat in this story. Everything has a specific purpose. Casual lines of dialogue or seemingly mundane tasks all work in service to the story, contributing to the atmosphere and performances.

The one caveat to this new take on The Invisible Man is this; it’s not straightforward horror like some may expect. It offers plenty of tension, the kind that leaves your stomach in knots, and even provides a couple of great scares. The character building scenes might feel sluggish in comparison to the adrenaline-fueled highs. Ultimately, though, it’s a seriously potent psychological thriller that maximizes the suspense and violence in ways that leave you breathless. Whannell makes updating a classic look so easy, which is no small feat. As for Moss, well, give her all the genre projects, please. In terms of reboots, this is a prime example of how to approach it.

The Invisible Man is a masterclass on intensity, with a compelling story of trauma to back it up.