Boris Karloff's Frankenstein Trilogy
Frankenstein's Monster, as portrayed by the late, great Boris Karloff, is widely regarded as the greatest Universal movie monster of all. As a lifelong horror fan – especially of the Universal monster movies – I would certainly agree with that. In fact, the Universal Frankenstein creature is the first movie monster that I can recall watching on late night TV, as a kid, growing up back in the late sixties. The minute I saw this huge, square-headed, menacing but somehow pitiable brute – born of lightning and shambling out of the shadows of Dr Frankenstein's castle – I was instantly hooked. To an eight-year-old kid, who'd never seen anything quite like this before, this iconic first appearance of Karloff's monster was a wonderful revelation, sparking off my lifelong fascination with everything that Universal studios subsequently produced.
It wasn't just the stunning visual appeal of Karloff's Frankenstein monster that started my deep fascination with Universal horror movies; it was their customary eerie, foggy landscapes, their sprawling gothic castles, their unforgettably eccentric characters (Dr Pretorious from Bride of Frankenstein and Ygor from Son of Frankenstein, to name but a few), and of course their compelling storylines. And, boy, did I love all those torch-brandishing villagers, marching through the misty woods in search of the monster (a recurrent scenario in most Universal monster epics). In presenting these brilliant horror stories, Universal evoked a unique kind of Never-Never land, electrified by the darkest of characters and creations.
I loved the very first Frankenstein film (1931) featuring Karloff as the monster, but I loved the two sequels he starred in even more. In my view, Bride of Frankenstein (1935) is the greatest horror movie sequel ever made, surpassing even its predecessor in terms of sheer breathtaking entertainment. The added ingredient of giving the monster the power of speech was an interesting aspect, and even though I read that Karloff himself was very much against this, there is no doubt that a verbally capable monster gave an greater character depth to Frankenstein's creation. After the newly created bride's shrieking rejection of her monstrous spouse-to-be at the climax of the film, the deep pathos that Karloff so brilliantly injected into the monster reached its zenith, and we really empathise with the creature's utter despair as, yet again, he is rejected and shunned, this time even by one of his own inhuman type. Talk about a kick in the face! The final insult. Small wonder then that, at the end of the film, the spurned monster becomes so fed up with his incessantly negative existence that he reaches for the lethal lever that every mad scientist's lab has, and uttering the immortal words, "We belong dead," blows himself, his patched-together bride and the nefarious Dr Pretorious sky high.
In Son of Frankenstein (1938), Karloff returns as the monster for the third and final time (a great shame, in my opinion, as I could have gone on watching him as the monster in sequel after sequel, so consummate was he in this role), having somehow survived the climactic lab explosion in Bride. Whenever I think of Son, two endearing images instantly spring to mind: the monster clad in the new attire of sheepskin vest, and the wooden arm of Police Inspector Krogh (played by Lionel Atwill). And then of course there is the devious Ygor (played brilliantly by Bela Lugosi), who has now befriended the monster in the most sinister of alliances and – much to the indignation of Frankenstein's son Wolf (Basil Rathbone) – has started to use him to commit cold-blooded acts of murder on those who have wronged the broken-necked shepherd. This final chapter in the Karloff Frankenstein trilogy ends, like Bride, in spectacular climax, where Wolf swings down on a dangling chain, Tarzan style, and kicks the monster into a bubbling pit of sulphur, thereby saving his abducted son.
Karloff did actually appear in one more Universal Frankenstein movie, and that was House of Frankenstein (1944), in which he played the ruthless and murderous Dr Niemann, who escapes from prison with his hunch-backed assistant and revives the Frankenstein monster (this time played by Glenn Strange) from an icy tomb (along with the Wolfman). However, as brilliant as he was at playing this mad scientist, I must admit that when I see Karloff's name in the credits of a Frankenstein movie, I do feel a little disappointed that he is not actually playing the creature himself, and I am sure this sentiment is also shared by many other Karloff fans. This longing for yet another Karloff Frankenstein monster only attests to just how impressively superb and stunning he was at portraying Mary Shelley's immortal creation, bringing a deep pathos to the role which, in my opinion, has never been equalled.
Thank you, Mr Karloff, for your brilliant Frankenstein Monster Trilogy.
It wasn't just the stunning visual appeal of Karloff's Frankenstein monster that started my deep fascination with Universal horror movies; it was their customary eerie, foggy landscapes, their sprawling gothic castles, their unforgettably eccentric characters (Dr Pretorious from Bride of Frankenstein and Ygor from Son of Frankenstein, to name but a few), and of course their compelling storylines. And, boy, did I love all those torch-brandishing villagers, marching through the misty woods in search of the monster (a recurrent scenario in most Universal monster epics). In presenting these brilliant horror stories, Universal evoked a unique kind of Never-Never land, electrified by the darkest of characters and creations.
I loved the very first Frankenstein film (1931) featuring Karloff as the monster, but I loved the two sequels he starred in even more. In my view, Bride of Frankenstein (1935) is the greatest horror movie sequel ever made, surpassing even its predecessor in terms of sheer breathtaking entertainment. The added ingredient of giving the monster the power of speech was an interesting aspect, and even though I read that Karloff himself was very much against this, there is no doubt that a verbally capable monster gave an greater character depth to Frankenstein's creation. After the newly created bride's shrieking rejection of her monstrous spouse-to-be at the climax of the film, the deep pathos that Karloff so brilliantly injected into the monster reached its zenith, and we really empathise with the creature's utter despair as, yet again, he is rejected and shunned, this time even by one of his own inhuman type. Talk about a kick in the face! The final insult. Small wonder then that, at the end of the film, the spurned monster becomes so fed up with his incessantly negative existence that he reaches for the lethal lever that every mad scientist's lab has, and uttering the immortal words, "We belong dead," blows himself, his patched-together bride and the nefarious Dr Pretorious sky high.
In Son of Frankenstein (1938), Karloff returns as the monster for the third and final time (a great shame, in my opinion, as I could have gone on watching him as the monster in sequel after sequel, so consummate was he in this role), having somehow survived the climactic lab explosion in Bride. Whenever I think of Son, two endearing images instantly spring to mind: the monster clad in the new attire of sheepskin vest, and the wooden arm of Police Inspector Krogh (played by Lionel Atwill). And then of course there is the devious Ygor (played brilliantly by Bela Lugosi), who has now befriended the monster in the most sinister of alliances and – much to the indignation of Frankenstein's son Wolf (Basil Rathbone) – has started to use him to commit cold-blooded acts of murder on those who have wronged the broken-necked shepherd. This final chapter in the Karloff Frankenstein trilogy ends, like Bride, in spectacular climax, where Wolf swings down on a dangling chain, Tarzan style, and kicks the monster into a bubbling pit of sulphur, thereby saving his abducted son.
Karloff did actually appear in one more Universal Frankenstein movie, and that was House of Frankenstein (1944), in which he played the ruthless and murderous Dr Niemann, who escapes from prison with his hunch-backed assistant and revives the Frankenstein monster (this time played by Glenn Strange) from an icy tomb (along with the Wolfman). However, as brilliant as he was at playing this mad scientist, I must admit that when I see Karloff's name in the credits of a Frankenstein movie, I do feel a little disappointed that he is not actually playing the creature himself, and I am sure this sentiment is also shared by many other Karloff fans. This longing for yet another Karloff Frankenstein monster only attests to just how impressively superb and stunning he was at portraying Mary Shelley's immortal creation, bringing a deep pathos to the role which, in my opinion, has never been equalled.
Thank you, Mr Karloff, for your brilliant Frankenstein Monster Trilogy.
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