Starring: Boris Karloff, Elsa Lanchester, Colin Clive, Valerie Hobson, Ernest Thesiger Directed By: James Whale Average Rating: Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated) Binding: DVD Format: Black & White, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC Label: Universal Studios Number of Items: 1 Picture Format: Academy Ratio Region Code: 1 Release Date: October 19, 1999 Running Time: 75 minutes Theatrical Release Date: April 22, 1935
Description: One of the most popular horror classics of all time and an acclaimed sequel to the original Frankenstein. The legendary Boris Karloff reprises his role as the screen's most understood monster who now longs for a mate of his own. Colin Clive is back as the overly ambitious Dr. Frankenstein, who creates the ill-faed bride (Elsa Lanchester). Directed by the original's James Whale (hislast horror film) and featuring a haunting musical score, The Bride of Frankenstein ranks as one of the finest films not only of the genre, but for all time.
Amazon.com essential video: It appeared, at the end of the epochal 1931 horror movie Frankenstein, that the monster had perished in a burning windmill. But that was before the runaway success of the movie dictated a sequel. In Bride of Frankenstein, we see that the monster (once again played by Boris Karloff) survived the conflagration, as did his half-mad creator (Colin Clive). This remarkable sequel, universally considered superior to the original, reunites other key players from the first film: director James Whale (whose life would later be chronicled in Gods and Monsters) and, of course, the inimitable Dwight Frye, as Frankenstein's bent-over assistant. Whale brought campy humor to the project, yet Bride is also somehow haunting, due in part to Karloff's nuanced performance. The monster, on the loose in the European countryside, learns to talk, and his encounter with a blind hermit is both comic and touching. (The episode was later spoofed in Mel Brooks's Young Frankenstein.) A prologue depicts the author of Frankenstein, Mary Shelley, being urged to produce a sequel by her husband Percy and Lord Byron. She's played by Elsa Lanchester, who reappears in the climactic scene as the man-made bride of the monster. Her lightning-bolt hair and reptilian movements put her into the horror-movie pantheon, despite being onscreen for only a few moments. But in many ways the film is stolen by Ernest Thesiger, as the fey Dr. Pretorious, who toasts the darker possibilities of science: "To a new world of gods and monsters!" Absolutely. --Robert Horton
BRIDE IS STILL SCARY I JUST WATCHED "THE BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN" FOR THE FIRST TIME (73 YEARS AFTER ITS MAKING). WHILE MOVIE MAKING HAS OBVIOUSLY TRAVELED LIGHT YEARS FROM THE TECHNIQUES USED IS THIS FILM, IT IS STILL A TRUE CLASSIC IN HORROR FILMDOM. ASIDE FROM JUST A FEW OUT OF FOCUS SHOTS LEFT IN THE FILM, SUCH AS THE TOUCHING OF HANDS IN THE "REBUFFED" SCENE, THIS IS STILL A CREEPY AND RATHER SCARY FILM THAT IS TRULY TIMELESS. IT WOULD HAVE BEEN NICE TO SEE A LITTLE MORE OF THE BRIDE..BUT MAYBE THE BEST WAS TRULY SAVED FOR THE END THIS TIME. I COULDN'T HELP BUT FEEL SORRY FOR THE BIG FELLA AS HE TRIED AND TRIED TO BEFRIEND MANY HE CAME INTO CONTACT WITH...BUT WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF A 7 FOOT SQUARE HEADED MAN-CREATURE HAPPENED UPON YOU? THIS IS A GREAT FILM. I WOULD PAY TO SEE THIS MOVIE ON THE BIG SCREEN.
First class movie making Bride of Frankenstein is one, if not THE best, Universal horror movie made in their golden era of the 1930's. A direct sequel to Frankenstein, but in nearly every way a better movie. This is a much more artistic work. Sure there is still some hammy acting and the not so special effects are, by comparison to today laughable.
However, as a movie, this has many things that most modern horror films lack. The cinematography is marvellous. There are dozens of moments in the film where I wished I could have stopped the DVD and taken a copy of the image on the screen. No more so than near the end when the bride appears. The lighting in this scene combined with the photography produces a marvellous almost surreal effect. It also has a few moments of great pathos, most noteably when the monster meets the blind hermit. Here we do get some fine acting by Karloff (which is how he is credited in the film) and O.P.Heggie who plays the hermit.
So whilst this doesn't have the blood and guts of a modern horror film, you are getting something completely different, that for its time was a remarkable piece of filmmaking. Even today 73 years after it was made it is ranked in the top 250 films of all time on the IMDB database.
Domestic dispute: Bride vs. Frankenstein Can a sequel outdo the original? Audiences, critics, and (more importantly) many of my friends seem to think so. And they all have a solid case. The Bride of Frankenstein is a remarkable continuation of the previous masterpiece.
It opens with a haunting murder scene. The visual setup is completely electrifying. Karloff still has his commanding presence. The entire cast does an outstanding job. The script is rich, witty, and has some powerful subtext. There are some underlying jabs at religion and society at large. It points out the violent nature of man and his intolerance of things unfamiliar. How love is blind and cannot be forced. I think the emotional complexity is what truly makes this film special. Plus the scene where the Bride comes to life is very dynamic.
I'll admit though, I wasn't real keen on the humor thrown in with this story. The mini-people in the glass jars seemed out of place, at least for me. I also preferred the idea of the silent monster, it added a level of suspense.
Overall, this is a complete classic horror movie that stands alone. It's indicative of how man interacts and deals with adversity, which has a raw power. This is proof that sequels can be a good thing. But when it comes to comparing...
Frank spanks The Bride, haha
An all time great horror classic One of the best horror movies ever made. A much more human monster is seen here with Karloff making friends, smoking a cigar and even speaking. All the supporting performances are just right, especially Lanchester in the title role and Thesiger. The humor, both dark and otherwise, adds another layer to this classic. Director Whale was at his peak here and he had the story and the cast to present his masterpiece with.
MY LOVE FOR THIS ONE NEVER ENDS IT HAS EVERYTHING WHERE DO I START? THIS MOVIE JUST IS A LOVEABLE ENJOYABLE JOURNEY THAT PACKS IT ALL,ANYTIME I CAN CATCH THIS ONE I STOP AND DO JUST THAT BORIS WAS EXTREMELY JUST WONDERFUL!!!! AND THE BRIDE..MAN SHE PLAYED HER PART TO THE EXTREME AND THAT CRAZY DOCOTOR WASNT BAD HIMSELF, SOMEONE MENTIONED THE BRIDE,IT WAS BETTER BUT IT WAS A EXCELLENT REMAKE OF THIS ONE THAT DIDNT LOUSE UP ITS REPUTWA.
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