Review of Bride of Frankenstein (1935) by Cassandra M — 11 Aug 2007

Forget 'The Godfather II'. Forget 'The Empire Strikes Back'. This is THE greatest example of a sequel surpassing the original. Coming four years after the original 'frankenstein' in 1931, James Whale was originally reluctant to make a sequal but changed his mind after being allowed to make the film more on his own terms.

No other director has ever managed to blend horror, comedy and pathos as successfully Whale. The film features some of the most memorable scenes in cinema history notably the monster's encounter with a lonely hermit and the introduction of 'The Bride'.

The film has it all: superb casting, tremendous sets and make up, memorable dialogue ("To a new world of Gods and monsters") and a brilliant score by Franz Waxman. Boris Karloff must surely be one of the greatest actors to ever appear on film.

He manages to improve on his characterisation of the Monster, due mainly to the addition of dialogue ("Friends, good!"), and, unlike in the first movie, actually makes us feel sorry for the Monster.

Colin Clive returns as the reluctant Doctor F, Una O'Connor makes a wonderful addition as the twittering and hysterical Minnie, but it is Ernest Thesiger who steals the film with his hillarious performance ("Have a cigar.

They are my only weakness") as the sinister Dr. Pretorious. Although Elsa Lanchester appears as the Bride for only about 2 minutes at the film's finale, it will be the role for which she is forever associated.

The film is regarded as the high point of the Universal horror series and stands as a testament to the genius of James Whale.