Directed by James Whale
Starring Colin Clive, Mae Clarke, Boris Karloff
Produced by Universal Pictures
A brilliant scientist allows his intelligence and ego to drive him to the brink of sanity as he plays god and creates a new living being from stitched together dead bodies. His creation at first seems innocent and childlike, but lashes out when threatened by fire. Can the scientist bring himself to destroy his creation?
I honestly hesitated to bother with even a capsule recap of this one. The story of the monster and his creator is such a cultural touchstone that most people do not even realize the significant deviations this takes from the book. When you say "Frankenstein," nine out of ten people are going to picture this depiction.
Frankenstein as directed by James Whale is all about its visuals. Boris Karloff's look for the creature has been copied many times in many films, but revisiting the original, you realize what a poor facsimile these other versions really are. Sure, there are the flat head and the neck bolts, but Karloff's eyes are the key to the character here. Those droopy eyelids seem unthinking and dull, but then the windows open and the sunlight fills his face and those eyes glimmer with just a small amount of life. He brings a restrained humanity to the creature, which makes what happens to him all the more tragic.
No sooner do we see the monster's ecstasy from simply being bathed in sunlight, then we see his absolute terror when confronted with the flame of a torch. The doctor mistakes his creation's fear as an attack and confines him in a basement dungeon. Frankenstein's assistant Fritz further antagonizes the monster with his torch and eventually is killed by the enraged creature.
As much as I love the tragedy of these early scenes, I feel like the movie sprints a little too much after this point. It has some memorable moments, but they feel disjointed. Frankenstein just leaves the creature so he can go off and get married. The monster kills again and escapes. It encounters a little girl, plays by the side of a river with her and then playfully tosses her in, not understanding she'll drown. Then the monster is in Frankenstein's bride's bedroom.
Geography and pace are sacrificed as the film sets up the pieces for the endgame. Fortunately, Whale's distinctive visual style remains and Karloff embody the character in ways that never stoop to the cliche the creature has become in pop culture.
I want Frankenstein to be better. There are script problems. There are acting problems. However, Karloff and the direction remain enough to consider this a classic. A flawed classic, but a classic nonetheless.
**** out of *****
NOTE: This is the second version of the Frankenstein tale I've reviewed. Check out my thoughts on the 1910 version (which was also my first ever review on the site).
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