Alex K
Universal ushered in a new era of horror when this film went into production. After their 1935 horror film The Raven was deemed so grotesque that it almost killed the genre entirely horror made a comeback. Universal quickly put this sequel into production under the direction of Rowland V. Lee. In fact it was out into production so quickly there wasn't even a fully finished script just a brief draft by Wyllis Cooper, that was added to by Lee. The third in Universal's Frankenstein series this film picks up many years after 1935's Bride, and concerns the Baron Wolf von Frankenstein who returns to his father's ancestral home and discovers the monster is still very much alive. In an attempt to restore his father's legacy Wolf decides to restore the monster to its full power however, the hunchback Ygor has plans of his own for the monster. There's a lot good to be said about this film, it's heavily atmospheric and features excellent Expressionist production design. Frank Skinner's iconic score would also later be used in Universal horror films throughout the following decade. Lee's direction is solid, he's not the artist that James Whale was, but I think he still manages to create a good deal of tension even if the film is too long. The driving force behind this film isn't so much the story as it does occasionally drag but the characters and their dynamics. Basil Rathbone, who was a 2 time Oscar nominee at this point plays his role with a level of entitlement and narciscissm of the gentry class of the times that adds layers to his role and to his characters motivations. He feels like he's entitled to do what he's doing because of the knock his father's reputation did to his own personal social station. This leads to many tense encounters with Ygor, played with delicious malevolence by Bela Lugosi in one of his finest portrayals. Ygor is on the opposite end as the Baron in terms of social standing, but he's highly intelligent and cunning, but because of his station the Baron underestimates him at almost every turn. In the middle of all this is Inspector Krogh played by Lionel Atwill one of his few heroic roles in horror films, the one armed Inspector who suspects that the Baron is up to his father's old tricks. Krogh represents the working class in this tale. Each of these three characters is portrayed intelligently but possessing a different kind of intellect and when they face off it's when the movie is at its best. This is also the final time Boris Karloff would play the monster, while it's not as sympathetic a turn as his previous appearances were Karloff had a knack for this creation and his screen presence always captured subtle nuances of movement that would be lost in later portrayals. The makeup by maestro Jack Pierce is of course excellent. It's not as solid a sequel as Bride but it was the last time the franchise would attempt to really be about something before becoming just monster movie fun (which is totally fine I actually like the following film better) but Son of Frankenstein still draws on some deeper themes that are worthy of being explored.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
01/24/25
Full Review
Elvis D
The Bride Of Frankenstein había terminado de adaptar la novela de Mary Shelley, pero la fama del monstruo hizo que decidieran continuar la historia con esta tercera película. No había exactamente necesidad de hacer otra película, pero al menos pudieron hacer una tercera película que está a la altura de las anteriores. La película se enfoca en el hijo del doctor original, dando a entender que ha quedado descendencia antes de la conclusión de la película anterior. Es a partir de esta película que se comienza a abordar el legado de Frankenstein como una maldición que ha afectado a los miembros de la familia. Boris Karloff se mete por última vez en la piel del monstruo, mientras Bela Lugosi introduce Igor como otro de los monstruos que quedarían grabados en la cultura popular. Hay que reconocer que Igor se ha vuelto otro de los mejores personajes que Lugosi llego a interpretar. Igor es la nuevamente maestra que controla al monstruo y manipula a Wolf para conseguir sus objetivos. Aun con la ausencia de James Whale como director, la película ofrece una muy buena dirección con planos fascinantes. Además, esta película tiene una duración más larga que sus predecesoras y ofrece una grata historia que está bien elaborada sin muchos errores. Son Of Frankenstein es sin duda una estupenda película que supo continuar la saga y pudo haberla concluido dignamente. Mi calificación final para esta película es un 9/10.
Rated 4.5/5 Stars •
Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars
01/04/25
Full Review
Jay W
On paper, there is no reason why this movie should be as good as it is. This isn't directed by James Whale, the director of the first two. The original Henry Frankenstein actor, Colin Clive, had passed away. They are no longer even pretending to be adapting anything from Mary Shelly's original work. And all the other Universal Monster Movies severely drop in quality by the third entry. But despite it all, if you are only going to watch one Frankenstein movie, this is the one I recommend.
The story follows, as the title would suggest, the son of Frankenstein. The man with the coolest name of all time, Wolf Frankenstein. He is played by Basil Rathbone, the man who would be best known for Sherlock Holmes. He does an excellent job in the role, being both sympathetic but also a bit vindictive and maniacal. He really captures the spirit of both the book Frankenstein and the Colin Clive portrayal of the character.
Karloff returns as the monster for the final time, and this is finally the film where Ygor is introduced. The previous ones had assistants, and even hunchbacks, but this is the first one with Ygor. He is played by the iconic Bela Lugosi. Him together with Karloff make for the best villainous duo of any of the Universal Monster movies.
This movie is well worth your time, give it a watch this next Halloween, you won't regret it.
Rated 4.5/5 Stars •
Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars
11/21/24
Full Review
Blu B
A Horror Classic and a good ending to one of the greatest if not the greatest horror trilogy ever made. It is the weakest of the three though but that really speaks to the quality of the series. The editing is solid and everything else is really well done about it. It's significantly longer than the others but it doesn't really feel like it. Basil R. is really good as the son and Karloff is just as good as ever. Legosi as Igor is very memorable also and I can see why he's more remembered than Fritz. Exploring the son and how the sins of the father carry and overshadow him and the family legacy is a very interesting subject to explore and this does a great job doing that. The cinematography really does a great job capturing the gothic style Whale used in the other two and is the one aspect that is just as strong as the others. It's very moody, atmospheric, and memorable. Where this struggles is the fact that it basically repeats what the others did recylcling the same ideas. Also, they get rid of all the character of Karloff so he's back to not talknig which is a big letdown. Basil R. is a good character to fill in that gap and very likeable too. But Igor ironically takes a lot of the spotlight and so does the Monster. It feels like sometimes Igor's revenge quest overshadows the son and Monster. Add all that together and there is a sense of deja vu watching it and takes away some of the suspense. The direction and the fact it's still copying the others along with a good new character in the sn helps quite a bit though. It really needed to do a better job tying all 3 stories together in the middle as it can feel like it forgets one or the other at points. It does tie together well enough in the end though and makes perfect sense. Anyone who is a fan of horror, the previous ones, the direcotr, or any actors in this will like this a lot.
Rated 4.5/5 Stars •
Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars
10/13/24
Full Review
Ted B
3.0 stars. So what are the chances that if you have to make a third movie sequel to a series, that it will be as good as the first two? In this case, I think they did a good job.
First, you have to collect two big names in horror films (Karloff and Lugosi) from that era (the 1930s). And for support, you throw in Basil Rathbone (a veteran from mystery and horror films, who would go on to star in the Sherlock Holmes series) and Lionel Atwill (who had played supporting roles in the first two films of the series).
The plot was also unique from the series. There was a role reversal in that the Son of Frankenstein was only trying to clear his father's name, and in the process was bullied into creating the same sin as his father. I liked the series plot twist.
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
10/07/24
Full Review
Dallas H
I love watching the old Universal Monster movies like this one.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
10/06/24
Full Review
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