Underplayed Gems

Frankenstein (1931)

Frankenstein poster
Directed by
James Whale
Genre
horror film, science fiction film, monster film
Country
United States
Runtime
1h 11m
Rated
16
Rating
7.5 of 10 from 1,813 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
The 3D catalogue: film cases on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalogue in 3D

The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

More films like thisWatch the trailer

or watch the trailer on YouTube

How it feels

Dr. Henry Frankenstein, an obsessed scientist, builds a living being from stolen body parts. The creature he brings to life terrifies people and struggles with its own existence.

darksombertensecreepymelancholicatmosphericunsettlingslow-burn

What happens

Frankenstein is a 1931 American pre-Code horror film directed by James Whale and produced by Carl Laemmle Jr.. It is adapted from the 1927 play Frankenstein: An Adventure in the Macabre by Peggy Webling, which in turn was based on Mary Shelley's 1818 novel Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus. The Webling play was adapted by John L. Balderston, while the screenplay was written by Garrett Fort and Francis Edward Faragoh, with uncredited contributions from Robert Florey and John Russell. Frankenstein stars Colin Clive as Henry Frankenstein, an obsessed scientist who digs up corpses with his assistant to assemble a living being from body parts. The resulting creature, often known as Frankenstein's monster, is portrayed by Boris Karloff. The makeup for the monster was provided by Jack Pierce. Alongside Clive and Karloff, the film's cast also includes Mae Clarke, John Boles, Dwight Frye, and Edward Van Sloan. Produced and distributed by Universal Pictures, the film was a commercial success upon release, and was generally well received by both critics and audiences. It spawned a number of sequels and spin-offs, and has had a significant impact on popular culture: the imagery of a maniacal "mad" scientist with a hunchbacked assistant and the film's depiction of Frankenstein's monster have since become iconic. In 1991, the United States Library of Congress selected Frankenstein for preservation in the National Film Registry as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". As a published work from 1931, the film will enter the American public domain on January 1, 2027. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

More like this

This page is from Underplayed Gems. Not quite it? You can browse by genre, country and year, or take this one into the 3D catalogue and ask the Catbot for something closer.