FRANKENSTEIN (1931): It's Alive! at 95 - Celebrating the Universal Monster Classic

FRANKENSTEIN (1931) d. James Whale (USA)
BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1935) d. James Whale (USA)
SON OF FRANKENSTEIN (1939) d. Rowland V. Lee (USA)
THE GHOST OF FRANKENSTEIN (1942) d. Erle C. Kenton (USA)

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The legacy of Frankenstein is one of the most influential in the history of horror. Released by Universal Pictures in 1931 and directed by James Whale, the film helped define what audiences now recognize as the classic Hollywood monster movie. Drawing from Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley’s novel and filtered through several stage productions, the film transformed into a powerful visual and emotional experience that changed cinema forever.

THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES (1939) / (1959): A CLASSIC REBORN!!

THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES (1939) d. Sidney Lanfield (USA)
THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES (1959) d. Terence Fisher (UK)

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Though not the first fictional detective, Sherlock Holmes is arguably the best-known. Over 25,000 stage adaptations, films, television productions, and publications have featured the detective, and Guinness World Records lists him as the most portrayed human literary character in film and television history. Tonight, we’ll be celebrating two film versions of Arthur Conan Doyle’s celebrated sleuth’s oft-adapted tale, The Hound of the Baskervilles.

SON OF FRANKENSTEIN (1939) / YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN (1974) ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL!!

SON OF FRANKENSTEIN (1939) d. Rowland V. Lee (USA)
YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN (1974) d. Mel Brooks (USA

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From the moment the original Frankenstein from Universal Studios was released in November of 1931, the landscape of cinema changed forever as Mary Shelley’s creation became a household word overnight. Unsurprisingly for Hollywood, further adventures featuring the Frankenstein monster followed, some critically acclaimed, others derided, while the fan base grew, passed on through generations of horror fans.

THE COMEDY OF TERRORS (1963) Blu-ray review

The Comedy of Terrors (1963) d. Jacques Tourneur (USA)

After the success of The Raven, AIP attempted to tap the comic vein a second time but with decidedly diminished returns, both artistically and financially. The premise of a funeral home recycling its one coffin and occasionally helping the town’s populace into them is an amusingly dark one, but despite its terrific veteran cast, the comedy feels much more forced and mean-spirited, with Price’s tyrannical drunken lout snarking at underling Lorre and wife Joyce Jameson (who had memorably appeared opposite the two stars in “The Black Cat” episode of that year’s Tales of Terror).