The Invader (1936)

Interesting facts

The Invader is a 1935 British comedy film directed by Adrian Brunel and starring Buster Keaton, Lupita Tovar, and Lyn Harding. The film was later remade by Keaton as a short subject, Pest from the West (1939), with a millionaire setting out to win a local girl in Mexico.

Production

Despite the efforts of director Adrian Brunel, Keaton managed to sneak a few drinks during production, at a time when he was recovering from severe bouts of alcoholism. Buster Keaton was noticeably impaired in some scenes but delivered a professional performance.

Produced at Isleworth Studios by British & Continental, The Invader was released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in England to meet the annual quota set by the British government—but the studio declined to do the same in the U.S. After leaving his job at the studio under a cloud in 1933, Keaton was no longer promoted by MGM as one of its players.

Instead, the American rights were secured by J. H. Hoffberg, a New York-based importer of European films who acquired the film in October 1935. This was the most important feature Hoffberg had handled, with a major star name to exploit, and the usually economical Hoffberg produced elaborate, full-color posters and accessories to promote the film, which he retitled An Old Spanish Custom.

Hoffberg wanted to replace the stately Latin overture of the British release with more upbeat swing music, but the closest he could manage was a commercial phonograph record of a current pop song, "It's an Old Southern Custom", performed by Victor Young and his orchestra. Current video versions of An Old Spanish Custom restore the Latin theme from the original British release.

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