Frankenstein (1931)

Directed by James Whale. Starring Colin Clive, Edward Van Sloan, Boris Karloff, Mae Clarke, John Boles, Dwight Frye, Frederick Kerr, Lionel Belmore.

Adaptation of Mary Shelley’s Gothic horror/science fiction novel is still a mesmeric, chilling gem. Director Whale’s command of tone and dramatic manipulation alongside Arthur Edeson’s shadowy photography elevate the classic story of the titular mad scientist (Clive) and his experiments in reanimating the dead—a jigsaw puzzle of human body parts, in this particular case. Clive hams it up splendidly and Frye’s stooped cavorting helped define the cliché of ghastly henchmen, but it’s Karloff in his career-defining role as the monster that walks away with the picture (er, lumbers away?), conveying animal brutality and lonely pathos without any intelligible dialogue. Even lacking the capacity to galvanize most contemporary crowds, it’s so pacy, stylish, and stuffed with iconic images/scenes that it’s bound to always excite any generation first discovering its stark primitivism and heartbreaking beauty. Produced by Carl Laemmle Jr., who also has a mothballed “message” for the audience at the beginning, as delivered by co-star Van Sloan.

90/100