Frankenstein has been hailed as one of the best films of 1931 as well as one of the greatest movies of all time. An analysis of the english influence on the first important wave of adaptations of gothic literature in hollywood in the 1930s is obliged to concentrate on the achievements of the massively influential james whale, director of the seminal frankenstein and several key movies of the genre sometime informed by his irreverent gay sensibility. An obsessed scientist assembles a living being from parts of exhumed corpses. Frankenstein 1931 film critique and analysis lusina. Frankenstein was greeted with screams, moans, and fainting spells upon its initial release, obliging universal to add a disclaimer in which edward van sloan advises the faint of heart to leave the. Frankenstein is a 1931 american precode science fiction horror film directed by james whale, produced by carl laemmle jr. Frankenstein 1931 cast and crew this iconic horror film follows the obsessed scientist dr. It is based on the book frankenstein by mary shelley.
Henry frankenstein colin clive as he attempts to create life. This classic iconic horror film follows an obsessed scientist dr. Thanks to the internet, it is now available to the public. It was followed by multiple sequels, including the bride of frankenstein and the son of frankenstein. Frankenstein is a film about a mad, obsessed scientist, dr. But he recovers, and does his frankenstein thing, which is stitching together a body out of corpse parts with the help of his assistant, fritz. Frankenstein, american horror film, released in 1931, that was based on a stage adaptation of mary wollstonecraft shelleys 1818 novel frankenstein. Denson argues that the process of transition from silent film to talkies, although it had mostly been completed by hollywood and for hollywood audiences by 1931, still resonates to use a sonic metaphor in the construction of james whales frankenstein, made that year. Boris karloff stars in frankenstein, as the screens most memorable monster, in what many consider to be the greatest horror film ever made. The same machinery reappeared years later in the fabulous mel brooks homage young frankenstein. The films hulking monster, portrayed by boris karloff with a flat. Read the full synopsis of frankenstein, 1931, directed by james whale, with colin clive, mae clarke, john boles, at turner classic movies. The creation sequence is a highlight of the film and a masterpiece of special effects work for its time. Victor frankenstein as he attempts to create life by assembling a monster from body parts of the deceased.
Of course we have a short articleon this longlost movie. This film is followed by the bride of frankenstein 1935, the son of frankenstein 1939, the ghost of frankenstein 1942, frankenstein meets the wolf man 1943, house of frankenstein 1944 and abbott and costello meet frankenstein 1948. A brilliant pyrotechnic show follows, and the body is brought back down. Interesting behind the scene photos of frankenstein, 1931. Henry frankenstein colin clive as he attempts to create life by assembling a creature from body parts of the deceased. There is a 1910 version of frankenstein that was really nothing to write home about. Directed by james whale and written by peggy webling, the movie stars colin clive as henry frankenstein victor frankenstein, john boles as victor moritz henry clerval, and boris karloff as frankenstein s monster. The movie was a great success with both audiences and critics. Frankenstein colin clive dares to tamper with life and death by creating a human monster karloff out of lifeless body parts. I arrived here yesterday, and my first task is to assure my dear sister of my welfare and. In 1931, over a hundred years after publication of mary shelleys frankenstein, the first movie adaption of the novel was released. However, mary shelleys frankenstein has been featured in over 60 movies and television shows. With colin clive, mae clarke, boris karloff, john boles.
Today we look at the ultimate monster movie, the original frankenstein 1931 starring boris karloff as the monster and colin clive as doctor henry frankenstein. Movie goers were easier to scare back there in 1931. Aided by his loyal misshapen assistant, fritz dwight frye, frankenstein succeeds in animating his monster boris karloff, but, confused and traumatized, it escapes into the countryside and. Released november 21st, 1931, frankenstein stars boris karloff, colin clive, mae clarke, john boles the movie has a runtime of about 1 hr 11 min, and received a score of out of 100 on.
The title of frankenstein says get ready to scream. The movie stars colin clive, mae clarke, john boles, and boris karloff. The electrical machinery in dr frankenstein s laboratory was provided by kenneth strickfaden. Frankenstein, therefore, doesnt just refer to the mad scientist dude or the monster dude. Mary shelleys frankenstein different film techniques compare and contrast the way in which the directors of mary shelleys frankenstein 1994 and frankenstein 1931 use different film techniques to build up atmosphere in their opening sequences. Victor frankenstein, familiar from many horror movies and horror movie parodies. Frankenstein or, more accurately, frankenstein s monster may have started out as a character in a book, but it was in james whales 1931 classic and very loose adaptation that he achieved cultural godhood and its not hard to see why.
As a race we constantly demand answers, progression, hungry for knowledge and advancement. Frankenstein 1931 stream and watch online moviefone. Perhaps the longestlasting and most memorable image of frankenstein and his monster was created in 1931, when universal pictures released what is now often praised as the definitive horror film. Balderston and the screenplay written by francis edward faragoh and garrett fort, with uncredited. It is considered one of the few sequels to a great film that is even better than the original film on which it is based. The footage would be recycled throughout all of universals frankenstein films. Slowly, the hand moves and frankenstein, overcome with joy, delivers the famous line. Almost 100 years later, in march 1910 the first frankenstein movie premiered in the usa. The creature was immortalized on film in 1931, when universal studios released frankenstein with boris karloff playing frankenstein s monster. Frankenstein is a 1931 american precode horror monster film from universal pictures directed by james whale and adapted from the play by peggy webling which in turn is based on the novel of the same name by mary shelley, about a scientist and his assistant who dig up corpses to build a monster, but his assistant accidentally gives the monster a murderers.
This iconic horror film follows the obsessed scientist dr. Of course, the movie was a trendsetter in more ways than one, and features one of cinemas alltime finest performances from boris karloff as the tragic frankenstein monster, whilst whales inventive direction, the splendid sets, the awesome makeup, and colin clives hysterical turn as henry also contribute to the movie s overall effect. Frankenstein had a hunchbacked assistant in the film frankenstein 1931, his name was fritz. It lets you know that in this movie, youll see mad scientists, monsters, mayhem, and scary things. My second piece of retrospective analysis, looking into the year 1931, continuing from cimmaron 1931 i take a look at iconic horror monster flick frankenstein. The two films i will be addressing in this essay are kenneth branaghs and james whales versions of frankenstein, a horror.
Igor, or sometimes ygor, is a stock character lab assistant to many types of gothic villains, especially mad scientists such as count dracula or dr. Henry frankenstein is startled to discover hes called henry because hes victor in the novel. It was selected for preservation in the united states national film registry by the library of congress as being culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant. Read famous quotes from frankenstein, 1931, directed by james whale, with colin clive, mae clarke, john boles. Watch tcm is the convenient way to watch great classic films when you want, where you want uncut, commercial free. Mary shelleys frankenstein different film techniques. Frankenstein 1931 movie simple english wikipedia, the. Dracula is a 1931 vampirehorror film directed by tod browning and starring bela lugosi as the title character. Mankind will always strive to push limits and boundaries particularly when science is involved. In the original 1818 mary shelley novel, frankenstein. Bride of frankenstein advertised as the bride of frankenstein is a 1935 american sciencefiction horror film, the first sequel to universal pictures 1931 hit frankenstein.
Deleted video deleted video frankenstein meets the space monster by mason stafford. This frankenstein 1931 film is an incredible piece of work and will stand the test of time. Watch frankenstein 1931 trailer film gorillas on dailymotion. Welcome to another edition of memorable movie quotes, that column where we look at memorable quotes from the movies, especially horror movies. Mary shelleys classic novelwas first published anonymously on january 1, 1818. Balderston and the screenplay written by francis edward faragoh and. It was selected for preservation in the united states national film registry by the library of. Henry frankenstein, who creates a monster, by taking body parts from dead people.
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