Originally written May 2, 2018

While this isn’t technically the first screen adaptation of Frankenstein, it’s definitely the most famous one. There’s so much you could say about this movie, but I feel like it’s all been said by many other people already. So, I actually don’t want to go too in-depth here myself, because I don’t feel like I can add much to the conversation that hasn’t already been said. I just wanna give my personal feelings on the movie.

The first thing I want to say that I find interesting is just how iconic this movie is. Writing this review after seeing the movie is actually the first time I’ve ever seen the movie, and yet while I was watching it, it felt so familiar to me. I’m sure a lot of people have this experience with the movie, but it was just interesting how I knew what was going to happen at a lot of different points because of how many of the famous scenes have bled into pop culture over the years. I liked having this experience because while it was my first time seeing it, it felt like something I was rewatching for the tenth time. It’s interesting to see where all of these famous scenes became pop culture. One of the big reasons I think this is the case is simply because of the performances. Colin Clive as Dr. Frankenstein and Boris Karloff as the monster are just a fantastic team. Karloff’s look as the monster set the precedent for every incarnation since, and it’s his face that usually springs immediately to mind when people think of Frankenstein’s monster.

If you’re somehow not familiar with the story of Frankenstein, here’s the brief rundown. Basically, Dr. Frankenstein is obsessed with finding a way to create life. So, he and his companion dig around graves to obtain body parts. Little does Frankenstein know that the brain that he’s obtained is an abnormal one from a criminal, so it’s damaged. So, Frankenstein finds a way to create life from these body parts, but it soon becomes clear that this monster is too dangerous. And from there, I don’t want to “spoil” anything, even though you probably know where this goes.

I know this is a weird compliment to give, but I think the best testament I can give to Frankenstein is how watchable it is. When you’ve become so accustomed to modern movies, it can be really hard to wire yourself to watch older movies. I find this especially with movies in the black and white era, where I can watch them and “appreciate” them, but not necessarily “enjoy” them. However, I didn’t find this to be the case with Frankenstein. I found it to be genuinely engaging and entertaining, and so I think it’s an impressive feat how well it holds up all these years later. Granted, as far as horror movies go, it’s not really scary…but not many movies of this era were. The focus was more on atmosphere rather than jump scares or cringe factor or gore. I think it’s important to know that kind of thing going in, but as long as you can accept that fact, I think Frankenstein is a great watch, and I think it earns its status as a horror classic.

4.5/5