Frankenstein (dir. James Whale, 1931); The Bride of Frankenstein (dir. James Whale, 1935). Despite Edward Van Sloan’s pompous introduction (only matched by the equally pompous preface to the sequel, featuring Byron and the Shelleys) and an underdeveloped filmmaking technique, Frankenstein is one of the most important and influential horror films to be produced in the Hollywood system. Though the film exhibits a disturbing fear of science, Frankenstein still speaks to major concerns of the human experience by subtly posing the question “What is life?” The sequel Bride of Frankenstein retcons the finale of the previous film to launch into a mostly incoherent story involving the predatory Dr. Pretorius and the monster’s burgeoning humanity (shown through interestingly subverted images from Christian narrative). The (overwrought) script is fascinatingly realized by the director: scenes between doctors Frankenstein and Pretorius are charged with curious homoerotic overtones while the film as a whole is saturated with colorful minor characters and broad camp humor.
Frankenstein: B / The Bride of Frankenstein: B+.
