Details
Movie Description
James Whale's BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN, the sequel to his classic FRANKENSTEIN, is considered one of the best horror films of all time. After the Monster (Boris Karloff) is trapped in a windmill fire, Dr. Henry Frankenstein (Colin Clive) assumes that the fiendish murderer has perished...but he's not dead yet. Rising from the rubble, the Monster is on the loose again--lonely and misunderstood, and killing those who cross him. Frankenstein wants to forget his creation, but the evil Dr. Pretorius (Ernest Thesiger) has a diabolical plan to create a mate for the Monster, and Frankenstein must comply or else.
Synopsis
THE BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN, a masterly mix of horror and black comedy, is the first in a series of sequels to FRANKENSTEIN (SON OF FRANKENSTEIN, HOUSE OF FRANKENSTEIN). In the wry prologue, Mary Shelley (Elsa Lanchester) resumes her gothic tale after the face-off in a burning windmill between Henry Frankenstein (Colin Clive) and his horrific creation, the Monster (Boris Karloff). Presumed dead, the fiend rises again, immediately dispatching two villagers and wandering into the forest. Meanwhile, at chez Frankenstein, the archly villainous Dr. Pretorius (Ernest Thesiger) arrives, demanding to see Henry "on a secret grave matter."
In a touching scene, the Monster, chased by countless angry mobs, finds brief respite with a blind hermit (O.P. Heggie) who befriends him and teaches him to speak. Mad-as-a-hatter Pretorius blackmails unwilling Henry into creating a female monster, culminating in another gorgeously filmed laboratory scene of lightning, flying kites, and whirring gizmos. Once the lightning-streaked, big-haired, white-robed Bride (Elsa Lanchester again) walks, how will the Monster react; who will live and who will die? Horror fans will delight in Whale's superb camera work of sweeping crane shots and canted angles, the cavernous, shadowy sets, and the atmospheric Franz Waxman score.
Film Notes
THE BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN was added to the Library of Congress National Film Registry in 1998.
Boris Karloff is credited in the film as just Karloff.
Several actors in BRIDE also appear in other Whale horror films: Ernest Thesiger (Dr. Pretorius) appeared in OLD DARK HOUSE as the bizarre Horace Femm; Una O’Connor (Minnie) appeared in THE INVISIBLE MAN; and Dwight Frye (Karl) played a laboratory assistant previously in FRANKENSTEIN but was named Fritz.
Various cuts of the film run between 73 and 90 minutes. Frequently missing from prints are the murder of the burgomaster by Frankenstein's Monster and pieces of the prologue featuring Elsa Lanchester as Mary Shelley. The burgomaster sequence is often cut because of the negative light it shines on the Monster. The film was remade in 1985 as THE BRIDE, with Sting as Frankenstein and Jennifer Beals as the Bride.
"I've been cursed for delving into the mysteries of life!"--Henry Frankenstein (Colin Clive)
"To a new world of gods and monsters."--Dr. Pretorius (Ernest Thesiger)
This quote gave rise to the title of the 1998 film about director James Whale, GODS AND MONSTERS.
"She’s alive! Alive!"--Frankenstein
Industry Reviews
"...A rarity....The movie doesn't hesitate to go too far....It's a kick..."
Los Angeles Times - p.F24 - Mark Chalon Smith (08/02/1991)
"...The best of the Frankenstein movies -- a sly, subversive work..."
Chicago Sun-Times - p.5 - Roger Ebert (01/03/1999)
"...BRIDE is a bridge to all fright films that trawl for giggles and screams..."
Entertainment Weekly - Entertainment Weekly Staff (01/11/2002)
"Universal's horror crown jewel."
Entertainment Weekly - Chris Willman (05/07/2004)
Quotations
"The monster demands a mate!" -- marketing line for the film
"I've been cursed for delving into the mysteries of life!" -- Henry Frankenstein (Colin Clive)
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