Welcome to the Sherdog Mixed Martial Arts Forums forums.
You are currently viewing our boards as a guest which gives you limited access to view most discussions and access our other features. By joining our free community you will have access to post topics, communicate privately with other members (PM), respond to polls, upload content and access many other special features. Registration is fast, simple and absolutely free so please, join our community today!
If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact contact us.
CLASSIC FILM 101: Frankenstein (1931) and The Mummy (1932)
Following the success of Universal Pictures’ 1931 horror classic Dracula, the studio began turning out what we now know today as the Monster movies. While Warner Brothers had the gangster film, Universal was the proud kings of horror, and they couldn’t possibly have followed Dracula up with a better film: The classic 1931 horror tale that introduced the world to the ultra-terrifying Boris Karloff: Frankenstein.
While the story of the film was loosely taken from the Mary Shelley story, the film itself was heavily influenced by the Expressionist films from Germany. This brought a magnificent atmosphere to the film, and that coupled with the sheer terror of Boris Karloff as “The Monster” made for one hell of a scary film.
The plot is rather simple: A scientist and his assistant piece together a man’s body and bring it to life with the brain of a murderer. It’s a nice sci-fi story, but as soon as the creature comes to life, the film transcends your run-of-the-mill sci-fi film and becomes a wonderful horror film. When the monster raises his hand while the thunder is crashing outside and Dr. Frankenstein starts going nuts. . .there just aren’t many moments in film more iconic and memorable than that.
Unfortunately for Dr. Frankenstein, it’s not a happy ending for him. Bringing the monster to life wasn’t the end of his journey but rather the beginning, because after he is brought to life, the monster does what he is programmed to do thanks to the criminal brain inside of him: Kill. He is stronger than five men and knows nothing but hate and anger, and while Dr. Waldman tries to stop him, the monster rages through and escapes the castle and into the world.
It’s outside, away from the castle, that possibly the most controversial scene in the film takes place. At the time of the film’s release, the scene in which the monster encounters the little girl by the pond was censored. It looks as if he’s bonding with a human as they both throw flowers into the lake. When he runs out of things to throw, though, the monster, not knowing any better, picks up the little girl and hurls her into the lake. The scene has since been restored, but at the time of its release, that was a VERY controversial scene and was censored almost immediately.
The film was hugely successful upon its release and spawned many sequels/remakes, the best no doubt being the 1935 Bride of Frankenstein, which some people even prefer to the original. Not only did Universal have another hit horror film, they also had a new star, and even though he wasn’t credited in Frankenstein, everybody would know his name forever afterward: KARLOFF.
Following the success of Frankenstein, Karloff next appeared in the classic tale The Mummy, which chronicled the rebirth of the mummy Imhotep, played here by Karloff. He is brought back to life after a sacred chest is opened and a spell is cast, and after the initial expedition in Egypt, Imhotep returns in hopes of reuniting with his lost love, the also dead Princess Anck-es-en-Amon.
While The Mummy isn’t as much of a horror film as Dracula or Frankenstein were, Karloff’s presence is enough to make anybody afraid. As I talked about in my last thread, many audience members were reported to have fainted during the initial screenings of Dracula in part because of how terrifying Bela Lugosi was. Karloff was able to have the same impact on audiences, and the close-ups of him in this film as he used his powers make a lasting impression on anybody.
Now I’m going to be honest: I’m not exactly crazy about this movie. That’s not to say it’s a bad film, because it absolutely isn’t. However, like I said: It wasn’t that much of a horror film. There were times where it was very dull, the saving grace of course being Karloff. I think Frankenstein was the MUCH better film, but they’re both great examples of the presence Karloff had on screen, and with Frankenstein and The Mummy each coming out within a time-frame of a little over a year, everybody knew that, even though Lugosi was still the man, that there was a new terror in the horror genre.
And because they were brought to my attention in previous threads, I’m going to post for you all to watch two reviews of each film from CineMassacre.
FRANKENSTEIN:
THE MUMMY:
__________________
Ken Shamrock
http://www.veoh.com/videos/v6540593wHy8TKRZ?confirmed=1
That’s all for this edition of Classic Film 101. Now I'm far from finished with the horror genre; however, there will be a change of pace next week as I introduce the woman who is unquestionably the greatest actress to ever grace the screen: The charming and talented Katharine Hepburn. Come back next week when I introduce her film debut in the 1932 melodrama A Bill of Divorcement and her first of four Oscar-winning performances in 1933's comedy-drama Morning Glory.
Thank you for reading.
__________________
Ken Shamrock
http://www.veoh.com/videos/v6540593wHy8TKRZ?confirmed=1
Love those reviews. Educational, yet still manage to add some humor.
"One thing that Made The Mummy special is that it had no sequels.........not unless you count The Mummy's Hand, The Mummy's Tomb, The Mummy's Ghost, and The Mummy's Curse."
That part cracks me up every time.
__________________
Still a proud supporter of Takanori Gomi, Rich Franklin, Andre Arlovski, Wanderlei Silva, and Mirko Crocop.
Have you seen the other Mummy movies? I know they don't have Karloff, but they seem more like traditional horror films.
Just Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy
I've never really seen the other Mummy films anywhere, either. I don't recall them airing on Turner Classic Movies, they're not at my library, and they're certainly not at Blockbuster.
I'm open to seeing them, but it's going to have to happen under the right circumstances (i.e. TCM broadcasting them).
__________________
Ken Shamrock
http://www.veoh.com/videos/v6540593wHy8TKRZ?confirmed=1
