Frankenstein

Released 1931
Stars Colin Clive, Mae Clarke, John Boles, Boris Karloff, Edward Van Sloan, Frederick Kerr, Dwight Frye
Directed by James Whale
 
Like Dracula, Frankenstein has a rich and varied history. The story was committed to paper by Mary Shelley in 1818. Within a decade, play interpretations of the gothic drama had begun springing up. In 1910, it was first adapted for the screen in a silent short produced by Thomas Edison, and starring Charles Ogle as the monster. The most famous version is, of course, James Whale's 1931 film, which not only made Boris Karloff into an international star, but fixed an image of the creature in the public's consciousness that the passage of 70 years has not weakened.

Summary by James Berardinelli

I've just seen this classic in its entirety for the first time--70 years after its release. I'm just amazed at the films of the 1920's and 1930's. They're quite amazing technically. I read Mary Shelley's novel several years ago, and it's interesting how the early films concentrate on the gothic aspects of the story instead of the philosophical aspects. This is interesting, because the novel concentrates on the philosophy of man tinkering with the creation of life and tempting God. Since it's been 70 years since this movie was released, parts of it are dated. That's to be expected, and it's obviously not the film's fault. What struck me was how much of this movie has been copied and used throughout the history of cinema; it was terribly influential. I was also surprised at how well it still works in the 21st century. The brilliance of "Frankenstein" is the sympathetic portrayal of the monster by Boris Karloff and the sympathetic direction by James Whale. Would the monster have been good if he had not been tormented by Fritz? Even with the abnormal criminal brain, the monster may have been civilized if he had been protected by his creator. Instead, he's rejected and hunted. In the film's most poignant scene, we see that the monster doesn't want to hurt the little girl. He just doesn't know what he's doing. The later scene with the father carrying his daughter's body through the wedding celebration is heart-wrenching. It may not be scary anymore, but it's easy to see why it's a classic. --Bill Alward, November 23, 2001