Genre: Horror/Sci-Fi/ThrillerDirector: James Whale
Producer: Carl Laemmle, Jr.
Writers: Mary Shelley (suggested by the original story written by) (as Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley); William Hurlbut (adapted by) and John L. Balderston (adapted by) (as John Balderston); William Hurlbut (screenplay); Josef Berne (adaptation)(uncredited), Lawrence G. Blochman (adaptation)(uncredited), Morton Covan (adaptation)(uncredited), Robert Florey (story)(uncredited), Philip MacDonald (adaptation)(uncredited), Edmund Pearson (screenplay)(uncredited), Tom Reed (contributing writer)(uncredited)R.C. Sherriff (adaptation)(uncredited)
Cast: Boris Karloff, Colin Clive, Valerie Hobson, Ernest Thesiger, Elsa Lanchester, Gavin Gordon, Douglas Walton, Una O’Connor, E.E. Clive, Lucien Prival, O.P. Heggie, Dwight Frye, Reginald Barlow, Mary Gordon, Anne Darling
Music: Franz Waxman
Cinematography: John J. Mescall
Editing: Ted Kent
Distribution: Universal Pictures
Running Time: 75 min
Release Date: April 22, 1935
Bride of Frankenstein is one of the most deliriously original films I’ve yet seen. Rightfully called Campenstein no other film has combined horror, comedy, drama, and a bit of homosexuality the way Bride of Frankenstein does. Here we have a film that bounces back and forth between its various elements while never sticking to any one single element. What we have instead is a cocktail of various ideas, which somehow shouldn’t work, but do.
James Whale is a director who is especially noted for his work in the horror genre, the original Frankenstein is a classic, and probably the first important horror film of the sound era. However it isn’t a perfect film, but it’s a prerequisite for watching Bride of Frankenstein, and it is a triumph of art direction. The film was a financial success, but Whale held off from directing the sequel, he felt the story had been exhausted, and a sequel would be foolish. Money talks though, and he was promised complete creative control, so he took up the task. What he came up with was a much more original film, the original Frankenstein lacks an edge that it had back in 1931, the film was about shocks, and it doesn’t shock anymore. This time Whale had bigger ideas in mind, for one he sticks closer to the novel and some of the bigger themes of the novel, and although he insisted the film was meant to be made as a farce he doesn’t allow the campiness get out of hand, and even leaves room for some scenes of pure beauty surprisingly enough.
Perhaps the greatest change this time around is the character of The Monster, once again played by Boris Karloff. The Monster is no longer the antagonist, but rather a sympathetic anti-hero. He’s a lost soul trying to become human, but alas he’s doomed from the start. About halfway through the movie, The Monster befriends a blind violinist who has all but been abandoned by society. The relationship between these two misfits is oddly touching and has a certain beauty. Karloff allows himself to become much more human here, the expressions he takes on are quite heart-wrenching, and express so much, and in the scenes as he’s introduced to those good ol’ vices like smoke and drink there’s a childlike curiosity in his face that really brings the character to life.
The film, as mentioned, has a great dose of camp value. Most of this is supplied by the wonderfully flamboyant Dr. Pretorius (Ernest Thesiger) who has come to rope Dr. Frankenstein (Colin Clive) into creating The Monster’s bride. Thesiger gives a gloriously over-the-top performance, and he just secrets melodrama and lights up the screen every time he comes on. He is the archetypical mad scientist, but at the same time he’s a fully fleshed out character. There’s a scene where he shows to Dr. Frankenstein his army of little men, the twinkle he gets in his eyes is unsettlingly funny, one can tell Thesiger had a blast playing the role. One minute he can be docile and humorous and the next he’s a madman. Pretorius is a fascinating character, and he supplies the film with some of the most memorable scenes. There’s one moment where he decides to have a full course meal while sitting in a crypt, it’s hard not to laugh as he sits there are docile and when The Monster enters he doesn’t express any surprise what so ever. Yet, like The Monster, he’s a tragic character, what is it he really wants? To make The Monster a mate, or further his experiments?
The acting around the table is memorable. Colin Clive’s role as Dr. Frankenstein is limited, but he provides the perfect foil to Pretorius, he’s more calm and collected, and the look on his face as he gets dragged into the whole affair is priceless. There’s plenty of turns by some great character actors as well, who can forget Una O’Connor as the bumbling Minnie? The blind hermit, mentioned earlier is brought to life perfectly by O.P. Heggie, who brings the right amount of pathos to his role.
It’s this tug between horror, drama, comedy, and camp that makes Bride of Frankenstein such a great film and the film is also enhanced by masterful visuals. Whale was working with a bigger budget this time around, and this allowed for a bit more visual elaboration. The creation scene of The Bride is much more extravagant than the one in the original movie; it’s unforgettable, and truly amazing. The scene where Pretorius displays his little people boasts some great special effects that still hold up today. Whale’s cinematographer John J. Mescall was supposedly drunk all the time, but he conjures up some great images, and uses expressionist lighting and a mobile camera to create some indelible images. The design of The Bride is a triumph of art direction, and though her role is limited she creates a lasting effect. This is one tightly directed film.
Bride of Frankenstein is a classic, it remains not only one of the best horror films, and one of the best sequels of all time, but one of the greatest films in general. It’s witty and full of creativity at every turn. They certainly don’t make horror like this anymore.
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