Frankenstein (1931)

Director: James Whale
Starring: Colin Clive, Mae Clarke, Boris Karloff

Synopsis:
A mad scientist attempts to create life by assembling a man out of the parts of the dead, only to lose control of his creation once his experiments succeed.

Impressions:
This is a landmark film and its significance to both cinema history and pop culture is reason enough to give it a watch. I'm not going to judge it as an adaptation of the original story because it has very little to do with the original story. I'm also not going to compare it to other adaptations of the story. If I go farther and strip away the historical and cultural significance of the film, to be brutally honest, it's not that great of a movie. It's watchable, yes, and the central pair of Colin Clive and Boris Karloff as Frankenstein and the monster are pretty good, but everything else is only so-so. A lot of tropes get established here and I do think it's an important piece of our heritage, but I wasn't as impressed as I'd like to be for film of its reputation. Maybe I was just having an off day when I saw it. Give it a watch and judge for yourself.

Rating:
Watch It