Theatrical Poster
Dr. Henry Frankenstein (Colin Clive) is a man obsessed with creating life. This, of course, worries Henry’s fiancée Elizabeth (Mae Clarke) and best friend Victor (John Boles). Together, they visit Henry’s old medical school teacher in the hopes that Dr. Waldman (Edward Van Sloan) might talk some sense into Henry and perhaps help bring him home to his Father, Baron Frankenstein (Frederick Kerr) and back into the loving embrace of Elizabeth.
Henry is near madness and with the help of his hunchback assistant, Fritz (Dwight Fry), he whips up a body made of various pieces of corpses and a criminals brain. He plans to give this being life and prove to the world that the power to give life is in man’s hands as well as God’s.
Despite pleas from Elizabeth, Victor and Dr. Waldman, Henry has decided to see his experiments through even if it means he’ll go insane.
When a storm rolls through, Henry sees his opportunity to show his guests what he’s been working on. As the storm grows in power, he raises the corpse through the roof and after a couple good jolts, he reels him in. The project is a success…Its ALIVE!!
This reanimated being is hideous and chained in the cellar for the safety of everybody involved. It certainly doesn’t help matters that the hunchback freak Fritz continually tortures and antagonizes the creature.
When a scream rings out from the cellar, Henry and Dr. Waldman are horrified to find Fritz hanging from the rafters with his whip around his neck. The monster, played by Boris Karloff but credited as “?”, is frenzied and after a struggle, it escapes into the countryside.
Will Henry be able to stop the monster before it kills?
I won’t go any further. It needs to be seen to be truly appreciated. It’s such a damn shame that our horror heritage is so unappreciated. Luckily, Universal heard the cries of those who truly love these classic horror films. Their Universal Legacy Collection box sets are simply amazing. Hands down, the best box sets I’ve ever come across.
This particular box set includes Frankenstein, The Bride of Frankenstein, Son of Frankenstein, Ghost of Frankenstein and House of Frankenstein. You get all of these wonderful films for around $20. If you can’t afford that…stop smoking for a damn week. Get cancer on your own time…this is a must have collection.
Granted, the three remaining Frankenstein films that followed The Bride of Frankenstein were less than stellar, this is still a set worthy of a true fan. Truth be told…despite what everybody says about Bride being James Whale’s best entry…I disagree. I disliked the comedy aspects, the poorly done monster makeup, the overdone melodramatics, blathering dialog and the continuity errors. The first installment is dark and the monster is truly scary.
In my opinion, Frankenstein alone is worth the price. The other films included are fun freebies. Gather the Family together, pop some popcorn, turn down the lights and enjoy. Keep your eyes peeled as I’ll be reviewing the full Frankenstein series in the coming weeks.
