Wednesday, February 11, 2009

The Bride of Frankenstein (1935) *****

One of the first true sequels and the first sequel that is superior to the original film, The Bride of Frankenstein picks up right where the original film leaves off. The monster (again played by Boris Karloff) is not dead and is still terrorizing the village as Dr. Frankenstein (Colin Clive returning) recovers from his fall from the windmill. His rest is short lived as Dr. Pretorious (played with relish by Ernest Thesiger) approaches Frankenstein about merging his creation experiments with his own and creating a mate for his monster.

James Whale returns to direct and once again gives us an amazing array of sights to behold (including Pretorius's experiments). Karloff gets to speak in this one and gives us one of the best lines in film history as his monster becomes even more sympathetic than in the last film. A great achievement with a story that not only builds on the original, but expands it into new territory. A classic horror picture.

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