Frankenstein (1931 film)
Frankenstein is a
1931 horror film from
Universal Pictures directed by
James Whale and very loosely based on the
novel Frankenstein by
Mary Shelley. The film stars
Colin Clive,
Dwight Frye,
Edward van Sloan, and
Boris Karloff. The film also features
Mae Clarke and
John Boles.
The film was adapted by
John L. Balderston,
Francis Edward Faragoh,
Garrett Fort,
Robert Florey (uncredited) and
John Russell (uncredited) from the Shelley novel and the play by
Peggy Webling. It was directed by
James Whale.
Visually, the film was heavily influenced by the
German expressionist films of the
1920s.
The film tells the story of a scientist named Dr. Henry Frankenstein, whose work takes him into the dark side of life after death. When Frankenstein creates a man out of stolen body parts, he does not achieve his desired effect and creates a monster.
Dr. Henry Frankenstein (Colin Clive), an ardent young scientist, and his assistant Fritz (Dwight Frye), a devoted dwarf, attach together a human body, the parts of which have been secretly collected from various sources. Frankenstein's consuming desires is to create human life through various electrical devices which he has perfected.
Elizabeth (Mae Clarke), his fiancee, is worried to distraction over his peculiar actions. She cannot understand why he secludes himself in an abandoned watch tower, which he has equipped as a laboratory, and refuses to see anyone. She and his friend, Victor (John Boles), go to Dr. Waldman (Edward Van Sloan), his old medical professor, and ask Dr. Waldman's help in reclaiming the young scientist from his absorbing experiments. Elizabeth, intent on rescuing Frankenstein, arrives just as the eager young medico is making his final tests. They all watch Frankenstein and the dwarf as they raise the dead creature on an operating table, high into the room, toward an opening at the top of the laboratory. Then a terrific crash of thunder and the black hand of Frankenstein's monster turns white and begins to move.
The manufactured monster (Boris Karloff) is held in a dungeon in the watch tower, a strangely hideous, grotesque, inhuman form. Through an error on the part of the dwarf, a criminal brain was secured for Frankenstein's experiments which result in the monster knowing only hate, horror and murder. It has the strength of then men. Suddenly, there is an unearthly, terrifying shriek from the dungeon. Frankenstein and Dr. Waldman rush in to find the monster has strangled Fritz. He makes a lunge at the two, but they escape. As the monster breaks through the door, Dr. Waldman injects a powerful drug into the monster's back and he sinks to the floor.
With perperations for the wedding completed, Frankenstein is once himself again and serenely happy with Elizabeth. They are to marry as soon as Dr. Waldman arrives. Suddenly, Victor rushes in, saying that the Doctor has been found strangled in his operating room. Frankenstein suspects the monster. A chilling scream convinves him that the fiend is in the house. The monster has gained access to Elizabeth's room. When the searchers arrive, they find her unconscious on the floor. The monster has escaped. He is only intent upon destroying Frankenstein.
Leading an enraged band of peasants, Frankenstein searches the surrounding country for the monster. He becomes separated from the band and is discovered by the monster, who springs at his prey and carries him off to the old mill. The peasants hear his cries and follow. Finally reaching the mill, they find the monster has climbed to the very top, dragging Frankenstein with him. Suddenly, in a burst of rage, he hurls the young scientist to the ground. His fall, broken by the fans on the wheel, saves him from instant death. Some of the villagers hurry him to his home while the others remain to burn the mill and destroy the entrapped monster.
In the original novel, the monster's creator is named Victor Frankenstein and his best friend's name is Henry Clerval. A woman named Justine Moritz works for the Frankenstein family. In the film, the monster's creator is named Henry Frankenstein, and his friend is Victor Moritz.
Whereas in Mary Shelley's novel, the creature's savage behavior is seen as the result of maltreatment and neglect, the 1931 film adaptation adds as further explanation the fact that Frankenstein's assistant Fritz, played by Dwight Frye, has provided a defective brain to be used in the experiment. This suggestion that the Monster's brutal behavior was inevitable arguably dilutes the novel's social criticism and depiction of developing consciousness.
Frankenstein was followed by a string of sequels, beginning with
Bride of Frankenstein (
1935), which is considered by some to be the best film of the series - partly because the Creature actually talks in this film.
Elsa Lanchester plays Frankenstein's bride. A recreation of the filming of this movie is shown in the
1998 film
Gods and Monsters.
The next sequel,
1939's
Son of Frankenstein - made, like all those that followed, without Whale or Clive, and featuring Karloff's last performance as the Monster - is generally regarded as a lesser work, although it is the most visually memorable of any. The Monster wears his trademark furry vest, and the sets and lighting have a decidedly expressionistic tone.
Basil Rathbone plays Baron Wolf von Frankentein, and
Lionel Atwill as Inspector Krogh delivers his famous line: "One doesn't easily forget, Herr Baron, an arm torn out by the roots." The film also features
Donnie Dunagan (who voiced
Disney's
Bambi) as the
grandson of Frankenstein, Peter.
What followed was a long slide that ended in
1948 with the deliberately
farcical Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein.
Mel Brooks's comedy
Young Frankenstein parodied elements of the first three
Universal Frankenstein movies.
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Boris Karloff as Frankenstein's Monster |
In the opening credits, Karloff is unbilled, a question mark being used in place of his name. He is, however, listed in the closing credits, which otherwise duplicate the credits from the opening under the principle that "A Good Cast Is Worth Repeating".
As was the custom at the time, only the main cast and crew were listed in the credits. Additionally, however, a number of other actors who worked on the project were or became familiar to fans of the Universal horror films. These included
Frederick Kerr as the old Baron Frankenstein, Henry's father;
Lionel Belmore as Herr Vogel, the Burgomeister;
Marilyn Harris as Little Maria, the girl the monster accidentally kills; and
Michael Mark as Ludwig, Maria's father.
Jack Pierce was the makeup artist who designed the now-iconic "flat head" look for Karloff's monster.
Ken Strickfaden designed the electrical effects used in the "creation scene." So successful were they that such effects came to be considered an essential part of every subsequent Universal film involving Frankenstein. Accordingly, the equipment used to produce them has come to be referred to in fan circles as "Strickfadens."
Although the character of
Ygor is widely thought of as Dr. Frankenstein's assistant, there is no character by that name in either
Frankenstein or
Bride of Frankenstein.
Dwight Frye played Dr. Frankenstein' assistant in both films, but was called 'Fritz' in the former and 'Karl' in the latter. The iconic character named Ygor was not introduced until
Son of Frankenstein, where he was played by
Bela Lugosi.
The film has been selected for preservation in the United States
National Film Registry.
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www.frankensteinfilms.com - Comprehensive information on the Universal Frankenstein series; compares films to original novel
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Frankenstein at the
All Movie Guide
