Bride of Frankenstein (5 Stars)

This 1935 film is a sequel to "Frankenstein", made four years earlier. It's considered a sequel, but it's more like an afterthought. It's a film that contains many of the details from the novel that were omitted in the original film.

Both the Monster and Henry Frankenstein seemingly died at the end of the first film, but we see that they both survived. It's not clear how much time elapses after the initial scenes, because Henry's father dies and he becomes the new Baron Frankenstein.

"Bride of Frankenstein" differs from the original in several aspects. There's more humour, especially when Dr. Pretorius displays his miniature creations. There's also a prologue which emphasises that the film is only a story. Is this to make it less horrific for the sensitive audiences of the 1930's?

Dr. Pretorius is an original character who wasn't present in the novel, but he plays a major role in the creation of the Bride. I don't see any reason to add him to the film, except maybe for the sake of humour. It also shows redemption for Henry Frankenstein. After the first film Henry wanted to give up creating life; he wanted to give up trying to be God's equal. Dr. Pretorius is the new villain. First he uses friendly persuasion to make Henry create new life, and when that doesn't work he blackmails him by taking his wife hostage.

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Frankenstein (1931) (5 Stars)

It can be argued that the monster in the film "Frankenstein" isn't Boris Karloff, who walks around with a scarred face and bolts in his neck. The true monster is Henry Frankenstein, the man who created him. Note that his name is Henry in the film, not Victor as in Mary Shelley's novel. There doesn't seem to be any logical reason for renaming him. Maybe the director and the screenwriter never read the novel?

What I mean to say is that Henry Frankenstein is driven by madness. In the novel Victor Frankenstein wants to do something to benefit mankind. In the film Henry Frankenstein wants to be like God. He wants to replace God as the creator of life. His famous words after creating the monster are "In the name of God, now I know what it feels like to be God". This isn't atheism. It's a man who believes in an almighty God but thinks he can be God's equal.

The Monster, which I write with a capital M because it's the only name given him in the film, isn't really evil. He's an innocent creature who doesn't know what he's doing. For instance, he plays with a little girl by a lake. She throws flowers into the lake, showing him how they float. He throws the girl into the lake, expecting her to float as well. This apparent murder, which would be called manslaughter today, is what drives the villagers to hunt him down. The Monster is a tragic character. If Henry Frankenstein had trained him better he wouldn't have killed as many people.

This is a magnificent film, despite the strong deviations from the novel.

Success Rate:  + 43.8

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Bride of Frankenstein (5 Stars)

This film was made in 1935 as a sequel to the 1931 film "Frankenstein". The monster was seemingly killed at the end of the first film, but "Bride of Frankenstein" shows us how he survived. The principle actors Colin Clive and Boris Karloff return as Henry Frankenstein and the monster, but Henry's wife Elizabeth is replaced by a newer, younger actress, 17-year-old Valerie Hobson. (I'm sure there's a joke in there somewhere). Baron Frankenstein, Henry's father, doesn't return in this film. We're told that he died, making Henry the new baron. The actor Frederick Kerr really did die in 1933, and I believe it was the right decision to rewrite the script rather than replace him with another actor.

"Bride of Frankenstein" is an example of a sequel that far surpasses an original film in terms of success and critical acclaim. Today it's considered to be the best film directed by James Whale, and the best horror film made by Universal Studios. It almost didn't get there. The American film board demanded 15 minutes of cuts from the film, footage which has been lost forever. It wasn't the film's violence that the censors objected to. It was scenes that they thought mocked Christianity, as well as the English actress Elsa Lanchester revealing too much cleavage in the film's prologue. The scene pictured below made it into the film, so what else happened that was so bad? Was she leaning forwards, enticing Percy Shelley and Lord Byron to look at her enormous breasts? Enormous? I've seen bigger.

Elsa Lanchester plays two roles in the film. She appears first as Mary Shelley, then as the Bride herself. At least she kept herself covered up enough to keep the censors happy in the latter role. But she still likes to have the attention of two men.

Something I didn't know until today is that Universal Studios wasn't considered to be a major film company in the 1930's. It was an independent film company, much smaller than Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Paramount. Universal was known for making low budget films, which included all of its early horror films. It wasn't until the late 1950's, after changing owners a few times, that Universal was acknowledged as a major studio.

Frankenstein (1931) (5 Stars)

It's been a long, long time since I last watched this film last. It was probably before most of my readers were born. When I was growing up there was a late night horror film double bill on television on Friday night, which I used to watch with my mother. Usually the first film ended at midnight, the second film started at midnight. Watching these films at a young age, my early teens, formed me and made me the person I am now. For this I'm thankful to my mother. Many of the films had a 15 or 18 certificate, too old for me to legally watch, but my mother used her common sense rather than adhering to the letter of the law. Back in the 1960's film certifications were ridiculously strict. The 1930's Universal horror films were considered horrifying and had 18 certificates; nowadays "Frankenstein" is rated PG in England.

The film takes a lot of liberties with the original story, not remaining as close to Mary Shelley's novel as Hammer's 1958 film, "The Curse of Frankenstein". (The 1994 film, "Mary Shelley's Frankenstein", adheres even closer to the novel). Significantly, the writing credit is given to "Mrs. Percy B. Shelley", enough to make any feminist groan. In Mary Shelley's novel the scientist was called Victor Frankenstein, but in the film his name is Henry, despite him being a German. He kept this name for "Bride of Frankenstein", but his name was changed back to Victor for later films.

But the film is a classic. It bears all the hallmarks of German expressionism with its stark contrast between light and dark. Boris Karloff wins our sympathy in the way he portrays the monster as a scared child. We feel sorry for him even when he kills people.