Bride Of FrankensteinIt does seem redundant to re-open a tale that was both justified and satisfied and it is always a risk to mess with the originality of it which is why for the most of the time the sequels doesn't work as the expectations are way too high but somehow they have managed to cleat out all of these problems and it is equally just as good as the first one was. James Whale keeps it smart and uses his fame and the legacy of it perfectly and squeezes out the best from all of it. Boris is as always amazing in it and this time it seemed like more of his show and he gets enough range and stage to perform what he did on The Frankenstein in a small time; if you remember that girl that he kills while playing with her, similarly he has another encounter in here with a blind man which is the highlight of the movie. Bride Of Frankenstein is fast pacing, to-the-point and exhilarating with a gripping screenplay and has a stellar performance to mesmerize the audience.

I've been watching all the old Universal monster movies to get read for Halloween. Yesterday, I watched Bride of Frankenstein and it was a lot better than I remembered from the last time I watched it. In my opinion, I think it's better than the original 1931 classic. It continues the story right where the original leaves off without being too repetitive, like most sequels. It really advances the story like the monster meeting a blind man and befriending him. The man teaches the monster how to talk. Meanwhile, a doctor named Pretorius comes to Henry and wants to work with him in creating a mate for the monster. Henry refuses, but Pretorius teams up with the monster and kidnaps Elizabeth to get Henry to do what they want. If you want a good decent old school sequel, you'll love BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN!!!

I loved the original. This movie sucks! Crappy acting, dialogue, story, sets, music, cinematography, no horror, humor is garbage.Take a look at the sets. Clearly this was all done in the studio. It's just too clear and phony. The dialogue and acting was trash. I hate humor in horror movies. And if it's going to be in there, then limit it. I'd rather watch Young Frankenstein, much better movie. Why the hell is Frankenstein monster speaking? What is that? I must admit, I caught this on public television, Sengoli or whatever his name is, and missed a few sections, but I saw most of the movie. This movie is a failure. Watch the first, an incredible film, and leave it at that. Here are some highlights from the first film: Dr Frankenstein screams "It's Alive", When the monster is seen walking for the first time, When Igor is whipping the monster and you realize who the real monster is, when the father is carrying the dead daughter into town, when the monster is burned at the mill. If you want more, watch the first again, then again. All these and more were captured in the original movie, some by design, some by accident. It's called movie magic. We don't see anything like that in Bride. Do not see this movie. As my title describes it, inferior film making. And definitely do not see the Robert Deniro version, a freaking joke.Long live the original Frankenstein. 10 stars.My rating for Bride, for blasphemy is 0.

Bride of Frankenstein was the last and the best of the superbly great James Whale/Universal Studio horror films of the 1930's and is hands down the best of all Frankenstein films (which go as far back as 1910) and is certainly one of the true quintessential's of classic black and white cinema. Brilliantly conceived from the ground up by the versatile and uniquely talented British film director James Whale and as far as horror films go in that era (31'-35') - Whale was in a league of his own.I find The Bride to be superior in every way to the original Frankenstein film (also directed by Whale and starring Karloff) more money, more experience, more inspiration and more creative freedom seem to be the key reasons. Every aspect of this uniquely brilliant film is of exemplary quality: casting, make-up design, script writing, lighting, photography, set design, musical score and most importantly inspired and imaginative direction, an absolute tour-de-force of talent and conviction from all involved. It's hard to drive home with words, just how colorful, entertaining and downright ingenious this ultra-classic film is. With The Bride the gangs, mostly, all back: Colin Clive energetically reprises his role as Dr. Henry Frankenstein, a 17 year-old Valerie Hobson replaces Mae Clarke in the role of Elizabeth Frankenstein, Dwight Frye is back as a character very similar to Igor - just not a hunchback this time and the best for last, the dynamite performance of Ernest Thesiger as Dr. Praetorius. What Thesiger does for this movie can not be understated, he's beyond brilliant in his role as the evil and manipulative Doctor Septimus Praetorius and every scene he's in he has full command of. He's supremely confident in his evil ways and it's always a delight to watch him plot, scheme and blackmail to get what he wants. His performance is often mentioned for it's "arch effeminacy", "waspiness" and overall flamboyance - in any case this wickedly colorful and off-kilter performance surely must put him in the top ranks as the ultimate mad scientist. A type of role meant for master thespians only. Simply put, Dr. Praetorius is one of the best and most entertaining film characters ever devised.As stated earlier the casting is brilliant in all the main roles, as well as several side characters such as, Una O'Connor, E.E. Clive, O.P. Heggie and Dwight Frye. Karloff's take on the Monster is among the best of his career, offering an infinitely more compelling performance the second time (of three) around; that and the "Monster Makeup" crafted by the masterful hand of Jack Pierce never looked better. When factoring in every aspect of this most iconic of make-up designs such as, the singed hair (monster's shouldn't sport BANGS!!!, as was seen in the first film), the multiple head claps, and the fact that Karloff's face was simply as bit fuller four years after the first film, which seemed to vantage the overall balance and effect of the famous monster make-up. Like I said "iconic" is the word, and having seen other actors portray the character over the years, the make-up definitely never looked better than when Karloff wore it.Like every other facet of this movie, the effects are TREMENDOUSLY FINE, much like the Jack Pierce make-up design, Kenneth Strickfaden's electrical gear is as iconic, as it is immediately identifiable. Frankensteins laboratory never looks or sounds any better than it does in this film and once it's electrical machinery begin to fire up and shot sparks and smoke - the laboratory itself qualifies as a character in and of itself. Some of the most electrifyingly lurid visuals ever committed to film happen during it's glorious high-voltage finale, which would have been impossible without Strickfaden's spectacular spark-spewing electrical apparati. Truly wicked a sight to behold.What about it's music? An early cinematic musical masterpiece is what composer Franz Waxman created for The Bride, said to be the first all-original film score featured in a horror film and after all these years it's still one of the very best. Waxman's music is all it Needs to be, When it needs to be and then some. My favorite aspect of the score is the ultra-exotic high-pitch 3-note motive that represents the Bride herself. This film is famous for a number of reasons, one of which is it's innovative lighting and photography, handled through varying degrees of sobriety by the great John Mescall. I've read articles that state that this film, from a lighting perspective, is one of the most beautiful films ever - I couldn't disagree on that point. You'll see some of the best looking tilted axis camera shots ever created, near the end of the film inside doc's lab; followed by an amazing montage comprised of shots involving both Dr. Frankenstein and Praetorius and, of course, all the amazing electric machinery found therein - running wide-open, crackling and spewing sparks all over the place. Some of the stand-out scene's of The Bride, include: first and foremost the amazing finale in the laboratory, Praetorius's picnic in the crypt, "the bottle sequence", the blind old hermit scene and when the monster is tracked down and lynched by angry villagers - among others, there's never a dull moment with the Bride of Frankenstein. It's feverishly creative monster-movie-making of the highest order.In the end, few films can match the level of creativity and the overall air of intrigue that this film possesses and what that all equals up to, is the most charmingly fascinating 75 minutes you're likely ever to see - not a bad effort for a film as vintage as 1935. And after seeing it on Blu-ray I can say without the slightest hesitation, that The Bride has aged beautifully, downright regally over the past 81 years. For that matter really having aged scarcely at all, because The Bride is a beautiful, timeless, work of art.