| | | Universal Legacy Series.
Features: DVD
FRANKENSTEIN 75TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION: UNIVERSAL LEGACY SERI (DVD MOVIE)
"Genuine old-school horror movie excellence..." Scott Weinberg, eFilmCritic.com
"The classic and definitive monster/horror film of all time..." Tim Dirks, The Greatest Films
"An essential classic." Victoria Alexander, FilmsInReview.com
Editor's Note
FRANKENSTEIN is James Whale's first stylish, expressionist film (INVISIBLE MAN, BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN) to grace the Universal horror cycle of the 1930s and 1940s (DRACULA, THE MUMMY). Scientist Henry Frankenstein (Colin Clive) and his hunchbacked assistant, Fritz (Dwight Frye), embark on an unholy mission by stealing a body from a graveyard and a human brain from a medical college. Unbeknownst to Frankenstein, however, Fritz takes a violent and murderous abnormal brain. Henry's strange letters about his experiments worry his fiancée, Elizabeth (Mae Clark), and friends Victor (John Boles) and Dr. Waldman (Edward Van Sloan). They arrive at Frankenstein's laboratory to find the spectacular scene of creation under way--and Frankenstein intoxicated with his own godlike power.FRANKENSTEIN is in many ways the original horror classic, virtually creating the genre itself, leading to numerous sequels and myriad imitators. Whale's ability to give humanity to the Monster is one of the film's most stunning successes.
Plot Summary
James Whale's trailblazing horror classic is loosely based on Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley's gothic novel and features Boris Karloff in the role that made him a star. Mad scientist Henry Frankenstein (Colin Clive) has an insane ambition to create life in his own image. Frankenstein and his hunchbacked assistant, Fritz (Dwight Frye), toil in his foreboding mountaintop laboratory using pillaged human brains and cadavers. With the terrible creation's success, Frankenstein must shield his fiancée, Elizabeth (Mae Clark), and friends from the Monster's (Boris Karloff) fiendish wrath. Will Frankenstein pay the ultimate price for playing God?
| Features | Boo!: A Short Film | | Frankenstein Archives | | Audio: English Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono | | Feature Audio Commentary With Historian Sir Christopher Frayling | | Feature Audio Commentary With Rudy Behlmer | | Featurettes: Karloff - The Gentle Monster, Monster Tracks, Universal Horror & The Frankenstein Files - How Hollywood Made A Monster | | Interactive Menus | | Original Theatrical Trailer | | Scene Selection | | Subtitles: English, French, Spanish |
| Technical Info
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Release Information
| | Studio: Universal |
| Release Date: 7/8/2008 |
| Running Time: 71 minutes |
| Original Release Date: 1931 | | Catalog ID: 31021 | | UPC: 00025193102126 | | Number of Discs: 2 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: English | | Available Audio Tracks: English | | Video: B&W |
Aspect Ratio | | Standard 1.33:1 [4:3] |
| Cast & Crew
| Memorable Quotes| "It's alive! It's alive! It's alive! It's alive!...Now I know what it feels like to be God!"----Henry Frankenstein (Colin Clive) after creating the Monster |
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| | Professional Reviews | Premiere
"The granddaddy of the horror genre..." 12/01/2003 p.4Total Film
"The best of the Universal monster movies, it boasts a fragile beauty." 01/01/2004 p.134-5 New York Times
"A complete reimagining of the Mary Shelley novel, Whale's version makes the monster an object of both terror and pity..." 09/26/2006 p.E4 Box Office Magazine 10 of 10
Once in a great while a truly remarkable screen production comes along that leaves its stamp of impression on our memory. Universal in producing "Frankenstein" has such a picture. From the standpoint of the story, cast, direction and photography the picture is sure to rate with the greatest in picturedom...Colin Clive as Frankenstein, the young scientist, and Boris Karloff as the monster are the chief characters audiences won't forget so easily because of their remarkable performances. Karloff evinces the possibilities of becoming a successor to Lon Chaney.
ReelViews 9 of 10
Horror movie fans have always debated the merits of Frankenstein versus Dracula. Both films were, in their own ways, groundbreaking, but, in a head-to-head comparison, Frankenstein stands out as the stronger movie. The absence of Lugosi is more than made up for by Karloff, and Whale's direction displays greater artistry than that of Tod Browning. Both pictures effectively build atmosphere, but there's more depth and potential in Mary Shelley's material than in Bram Stoker's. - James Berardinelli
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