It’s just not Halloween without Frankenstein and his monster. This unholy duo have been frightening audiences in print, movies, and art for nearly 200 years. Below are just a few examples of Frankenstein and his monster through the ages:
1831
1910
1931
1932
1957
1973
1976
1984
1994
2004
2015
I know, I know.
This song isn’t really about the Frankenstein that we all know and love, the one who reanimated the dead and who declared himself to be God.
Oh well, no matter!
It still feels appropriate for October.
Enjoy!
If you’re a fan of horror and more specifically the several different versions — both literary and cinematic — of Frankenstein’s Monster, Frankenstein: The First Two Hundred Years is a book that you simply must own.
It’s really two books in one. The first half of the book deals with the original creation of Frankenstein. It goes into a detail about not only the famous night and game that led to Mary Shelley writing Frankenstein but it also details everything that not only influenced Shelley’s imagination but which led to the world becoming fascinated by her creation. How you react to this section of the book will largely depend on how interested you are in history. Me, I’m an unapologetic history nerd so I loved it.
The second part of the book is a visual history of the Monster through the years, featuring everything from his many film appearances to his use in advertisements and political cartoons to his appearances in various comic books. It’s not just a collection of pictures, though. It’s also a testament to the power of Mary Shelley’s creation and how the Monster has come to be a universal figure, one who has been adopted by every culture and ideology.
Christopher Frayling is a witty and engaging writer, which helps to get through some of the denser sections of the first half of the book. His love for the Monster comes through every page, which makes Frankenstein: The First Two Hundred Years a perfect celebration of the world’s most famous reanimated body.
Two hundred years ago, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley unleashed her novel FRANKENSTEIN upon an unsuspecting world. The ghastly story of a “Modern Prometheus” who dared to play God and his unholy creation shocked readers in 1818, and over the past two centuries has been adapted into stage plays, radio dramas, television programs, comic books, and the movies, most notably James Whale’s seminal 1931 FRANKENSTEIN, featuring not only a star-making performance by Boris Karloff as the Creature, but ahead of its time filmmaking from Whale.
Director James Whale and his star
James Whale had directed only two films before FRANKENSTEIN (JOURNEY’S END and WATERLOO BRIDGE), but the former stage director certainly adapted quickly to the new medium of talking pictures. The story had been made three times for the silent screen, but the new sound technology adds so much to the overall eeriness of the film’s atmosphere. Whale was obviously influenced by…
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4 Shots From 4 Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 Shots From 4 Films is all about letting the visuals do the talking.
This October, I am going to be using our 4 Shots From 4 Films feature to pay tribute to some of my favorite horror directors, in alphabetical order! That’s right, we’re going from Argento to Zombie in one month!
Today’s director: James Whale!
4 Shots From 4 Films
Frankenstein (1931, dir by James Whale)
The Old Dark House (1932, dir by James Whale)
The Invisible Man (1933, dir by James Whale)
Bride of Frankenstein (1935, dir by James Whale)
by JK Potter
“There is something at work in my soul, which I do not understand.”
― Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, Frankenstein
Today’s horror scene that I love comes from the 1931 Universal classic, Frankenstein!
Though it’s been parodied to death and often used out of context (for example, a few years ago, it was used in a freaking car commercial), the “It’s Alive!” scene from Frankenstein is still a classic piece of horror history. Colin Clive is often unfairly criticized for going overboard in this scene but let’s be honest here: if you ever reanimated a corpse, you’d probably get pretty damn excited about it.
(After watching the scene, be sure to check out my review of this classic film by clicking here!)
Today’s horror scene that I love is, much like The Haunted Castle and The Monster, less a scene and more an entire movie.
In 1910, Thomas Edison produced what is thought to be the first ever film version of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein! Clocking in at 12 minutes and 41 seconds, this film was directed by J. Searle Dawley and stars Charles Ogle as the monster.
Admittedly, the surviving prints of this 107 year-old movie are not in the greatest condition. But I still think it’s effectively surreal and, in its way, quite creepy. While it always takes a while for modern audiences to get used to the more theatrical acting styles of the silent films, Charles Ogle still makes for a very memorable monster. I especially enjoy the tinted scenes where the monster comes to life. In the video below, it start around the 2:18 mark and it’s truly a scene that I love!
Enjoy this piece of film history!
Horror films!
Audiences love them but the Academy has never quite felt the same way. True, there have been a few horror films nominated. The Exorcist was a major contender. Jaws was nominated. So was The Sixth Sense. Silence of the Lambs won.
But, for the most part, horror films have struggled to get Academy recognition. While the Academy has recently shown a willingness to honor science fiction, the horror genre has yet to benefit from the decision to increase the number of best picture nominees.
Because I love horror and I love movies and I love lists, here are ten horror films that I think deserved a best picture nomination:
One of the most popular and influential horror films of all time, Frankenstein was sadly ignored by the Academy. It’s certainly better remembered than the film that won best picture of 1931, Cimarron.
2. Psycho (1960)
Psycho may have received nominations for best director, supporting actress, cinematography, and art design but the film that made people afraid to take showers did not receive a nomination for best picture. The winner that year was a legitimate classic, The Apartment. But it’s hard not to feel that Psycho should have, at the very least, received a nominations over the other 4 films nominated.
3. Night of the Living Dead (1968)
George Romero’s zombie classic may have set the standard for zombie movies to come but it was not honored the Academy. The Academy was more comfortable with Oliver!
4. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
1974 was a very good year for the movies and certainly, I would not argue that The Texas Chainsaw Massacre deserved a nomination over The Godfather Part II, The Conversation, or Chinatown. But over The Towering Inferno? That’s another story.
Oscar nominee Dario Argento? In a perfect world, yes.
The night he came home … to Oscars! If nothing else, John Carpenter’s score definitely deserved to win.
Few sequels have been nominated for best picture. Dawn of the Dead definitely should have been one of them. Who wouldn’t want to see, at the very least, Tom Savini’s speech as he accepted his special award for best makeup?
8) The Shining (1980)
Stanley Kubrick’s film may be recognized as a classic now but the reviews, when it was first released, were mixed. So, I guess we shouldn’t be surprised that it wasn’t given any recognition by the Academy. It’s a shame because I’ve watched The Shining a few dozen times and it still scares the Hell out of me.
9) The Cabin In The Woods (2012)
One of the best films of the new century, this joyful tribute to the horror genre was sadly overlooked by the Academy in 2012.
Is Nicholas Winding Refn’s The Neon Demon truly a horror movie? It’s close enough. Though the film opened to mixed reviews, it’ll be recognized as a classic in another ten years.
Early TV science fiction was dominated by kiddie programming like CAPTAIN VIDEO and TOM CORBETT, SPACE CADET. In 1951, a more adult oriented fantasy series called TALES OF TOMORROW made it’s debut on ABC. The live broadcast dramatized works by prominent writers like Arthur C. Clarke, Theodore Sturgeon, Jules Verne, and H.G. Wells. Big name stars such as Boris Karloff, Leslie Neilson, and Rod Steiger headlined many of the episodes. Lon Chaney Jr. starred in a half-hour adaptation of Mary Shelley’s FRANKENSTEIN, with John Newland (later host and director of ONE STEP BEYOND) as the scientist who creates a monster. It’s said Chaney was *ahem* a bit under the weather during this live performance (in other words, drunk as a skunk!). I’ll let you be the judge. The quality of this kinescope-to-video isn’t great, but I hope you’ll enjoy watching Lon Chaney Jr. as the monster of FRANKENSTEIN!
