Frankenstein

Frankenstein

So, to finish off the first "week" of movies (really it's been three...), I've continued the scary movie trend with the 1931 Universal Studios classic Frankenstein.

Now... where have I seen this story before? Unlike The General which was much more difficult to pinpoint where it popped up in pop culture (get it? popping up in pop culture? never mind...) the story of Dr. Frankenstein and his monster is everywhere (and I was much more familiar with the story before and after I saw the 1931 version). I've seen the Kenneth Branagh version with Robert De Niro as "The Creature" (it was bad, don't see it), the parody Young Frankenstein with Gene Wilder (which was recently adapted into a Broadway musical that flopped), and the very weird but very awesome movie Frankenhooker (yes, it's exactly what it sounds like) that a friend turned me on to. The movie is referenced in other favorites of mine like Better Off Dead when John Cusack's character makes the Van Halen singing burger, and is the inspiration for Anthony Michael Hall's character to make a woman out of a computer in Weird Science. I've read part of the original Mary Shelley novel Frankenstein (I am ashamed that I have not yet written in this blog that I have read an entire book, I promise I have). Heck, I've even written my own Frankenstein short story parody called The Doctor about the creation of the Coolest Man Alive [If I'm feeling courageous, I may post it. Hell, no one reads this, I can post whatever I want! I will post it! I WHILL! (Hot Rod reference. Classy thing to do on a blog writing about prestigious movies. I will write a defense of Hot Rod as the best movie ever though one of these days and post it. Cool beans.) Moving on...].

So what's so great about the 1931 filmic particular telling of the Frankenstein story? Other than the fact it's old?

Well, in my opinion there are many reasons why this movie is great because, although it has been tough competition this "week", I may have to declare Frankenstein my favorite movie from the list thus far.

Here's Why Frankenstein Is Great (In My Opinion, If You Give a Damn)

#1) It's only 70 minutes long. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, that's an hour and ten minutes for those of you who don't have your calculators on you. This may seem like an incredibly stupid and shallow reason to put in defense of why a movie is great, but hear me out. By making a movie short, it forces a filmmaker to cut the fat and make the movie as tight as possible, and whoo-boy! This movie was tight! There was not a scene that did not progress the plot, and no scene went on for too long. This movie did not need to be longer than 70 minutes, and it didn't need to be shorter than 70 minutes, to quote goldilocks it was "just right". Especially considering the fact the film was an adaptation (a loose adaptation, but an adaptation nonetheless), it's trimness and leanness is even more impressive. 

It shows that the screenwriter had to be creative to really make a movie inspired by an old book fit a new medium and a new audience. The point of this movie is not about the scientific revolution, because that wasn't relevant and didn't fit. What did fit, was a fear and fascination with crime and criminals. 

**Note: The lesser, worse filmic adaptation stuck too close to the book, was stale, and lasted for a grueling two hours and three minutes. Even if 1931's fascination with criminals still isn't relevant today, the creativity (like the creativity of the original book, even though the scientific revolution isn't really happening anymore) that went into its creation shows. That is something the Kenneth Branagh version lacks.

#2) It's still scary. Okay, it isn't terrifying or gross like what qualifies as a scary movie today, but I still found myself on the edge of my seat when Frankenstein SPOILER ALERT killed the assistant Fritz. END SPOILER ALERT. The most powerful and scariest moment for me was after SPOILER ALERT Frankenstein had accidentally killed the little girl, Maria, thinking she would float like the flowers. The moment that got me was when her father was carrying her dead body through the streets, in the midst of celebrating Frankenstein's wedding. END SPOILER ALERT. The contrast was just so powerful and moving and terrifying. And it made Frankenstein scary not by showing his scary face (which isn't as scary anymore as it probably was back in the day since his image is everywhere, I'm sure I've seen his face on a t-shirt somewhere), but it made him scary by showing what he had done. 

Now, I must note here that I'm really not an expert on scary movies at all. I've seen a few, but have generally stayed away from scary movies because... well... I don't want to be scared, honestly! So, I'm trying to step up my scary movie stamina by starting with the oldies, that I'm already familiar with, before I move on to The Silence of the Lambs which appears later in my list. I liked Frankenstein because overall it wasn't very scary at all, but it still had its moments that made me sit on the edge of my seat and biting my nails a bit. Silence of the Lambs will have me clawing at the ceiling, I'm sure.

Well, I feel like this blog post has out-worded its welcome, so I'm going to end it, even though I feel like I could always write more about Frankenstein. 

COMING SOON: The next "week" of movies: The Year of 1939 (and one from 1949). First up: the four hour epic, Gone With The Wind.