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Son of Frankenstein

Play trailer Poster for Son of Frankenstein Released Jan 13, 1939 1h 39m Horror Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
95% Tomatometer 37 Reviews 72% Popcornmeter 2,500+ Ratings
Baron Wolf von Frankenstein (Basil Rathbone) is determined to prove the legitimacy of his father's scientific work, thus rescuing the family name from disgrace. With the help of Ygor (Bela Lugosi), a grave robber, Wolf successfully reanimates the monster (Boris Karloff) his father originally brought back from the dead. But when several villagers are killed mysteriously, Wolf must find the culprit in order to vindicate his creation, or face the possibility that he may be responsible.
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Son of Frankenstein

Son of Frankenstein

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Critics Consensus

Boris Karloff's final appearance as the Monster is a fitting farewell before the series descended into self-parody.

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Critics Reviews

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SMH Staff Sydney Morning Herald Amusingly entertaining with some "chilly" moments. Oct 14, 2020 Full Review Age Staff The Age (Australia) If the story has any value, it contains a rather unnecessary warning to medical men not to carry scientific curiosity too far. None of this detracts, however, from the quality of the acting. Oct 14, 2020 Full Review Times (UK) Staff Times (UK) Altogether a workmanlike essay in synthetic horror, and Mr. Rathbone enters with relish into the spirit of it. Oct 14, 2020 Full Review Duncan Bowles Den of Geek Works as a healthy reminder of how superb horror can be, balancing tragedy and humour and making me yearn for a return to using strong actors and plot to give the genre the respect it really deserves. Rated: 4/5 Oct 14, 2020 Full Review Basil Wright The Spectator The Son of Frankenstein is, in short, a missed opportunity for all save the most unsophisticated. Oct 14, 2020 Full Review Josephine O'Neill Daily Telegraph (Australia) The job of welding fantasy and everyday into one whole falls mainly upon Basil Rathbone, as Frankenstein; and he does it magnificently. No lesser actor could have succeeded. Oct 14, 2020 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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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 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 out of 5 stars 10/07/24 Full Review Dallas H I love watching the old Universal Monster movies like this one. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 10/06/24 Full Review Joel H I didn’t realize this before, but Young Frankenstein is essentially a comedic version of Son of Frankenstein. There are plot points and characters that are nearly identical to one another. I was also surprised that Frankenstein’s creature (portrayed by Boris Karloff) is more of a side character in this movie. Most of the story revolves around Baron Wolf von Frankenstein and Ygor, and Bela Lugosi’s portrayal of Ygor is compellingly creepy. In my opinion, viewers should skip Bride of Frankenstein and go straight to Son of Frankenstein after watching the original 1931 movie. It’s the better sequel. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 09/20/24 Full Review Andrew L Although the story isn't as strong as it's two predecessors. seeing Karloff, Lugosi, and Rathbone doing what they do best, make up for that Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 08/01/24 Full Review The H the little cute boy makes all the film Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 10/14/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Son of Frankenstein

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Cast & Crew

Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman 25% 55% Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman Watchlist Dracula's Daughter 64% 44% Dracula's Daughter Watchlist Bride of Frankenstein 98% 87% Bride of Frankenstein Watchlist The Wolf Man 91% 80% The Wolf Man Watchlist House of Frankenstein 55% 47% House of Frankenstein Watchlist Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis Baron Wolf von Frankenstein (Basil Rathbone) is determined to prove the legitimacy of his father's scientific work, thus rescuing the family name from disgrace. With the help of Ygor (Bela Lugosi), a grave robber, Wolf successfully reanimates the monster (Boris Karloff) his father originally brought back from the dead. But when several villagers are killed mysteriously, Wolf must find the culprit in order to vindicate his creation, or face the possibility that he may be responsible.
Director
Rowland V. Lee
Producer
Rowland V. Lee
Screenwriter
Wyllis Cooper
Production Co
Universal Pictures
Genre
Horror
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jan 13, 1939, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Sep 11, 2015
Runtime
1h 39m
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