Review of Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943) by Kevin B — 20 Oct 2014

The first and best of the monster mash-ups, Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man boasts Bela Lugosi in his only turn as the monster made famous by his professional nemesis Boris Karloff. Sporting the best bad B-Movie Frankenstein title until Hammer Studios brought to life Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell in the 70s, the film remains a showcase for the two stars--monsters AND actors. As a direct sequel to The Wolf Man and Ghost of Frankenstein, the results remain dodgy. As a battle royale with cheese, however, the far-from-dusty dust-ups always equal fun.

In this unrated continuation of the Universal franchise, Larry Talbot (Chaney) leaves Britain in search of a cure for the curse that causes him to transform into a werewolf with every full moon, going to the remains of Frankenstein's castle where he hopes to find there the scientific notes of Dr. Ludwig Frankenstein but inadvertently finds his daughter (Ilona Massey) and the monster (Lugosi).

The film puts nearly impossibly tasked screenwriter Curt Siodmak through the nearly impossible paces of pitting two legendary characters together in a somewhat believable manner in an unbelievable world of gods and monsters. His ploy works (add Talbot chips the monster from the ice to the synopsis above), but despite a career that began at Universal with The Invisible Man Returns and continued with Son of Dracula and House of Frankenstein The Wolf Man remains his screenwriting high point.

Bottom line: Fast and Furry-ous.