Son Of Frankenstein

Son of Frankenstein is the third of the original Universal Frankenstein movie series, it was released in 1939 and starred Boris Karloff as the monster, Bela Lugosi as Ygor, and Basil Rathbone as the son of Frankenstein. This was also the last of the Frankenstein movies to feature Karloff as the Monster as he felt that the movies had run their course and were beginning to be a parody of themselves. Son of Frankenstein however was widely popular and helped to revitalize Universal's horror movie output. Son Of Frankenstein is about the song of Frankenstein Wolf Von Frankenstein, who was raised in England and never knew his father. He returns to the village of Frankenstein to inherit his father's castle and notes. He comes with his wife and his young child. The village does not welcome him with an open heart, as most see him as a harbinger of doom, and feel that the whole family line is cursed. As he is exploring his fathers laboratory he discovers that Ygor, a man who was hanged for the crime of grave robbing, who survived and had a broken neck, was living in the laboratory, but he was also not alone, as he found that the monster also still lived, and was Ygor's friend. Wolf Von Frankenstein inspired by the idea that his father was not a monster and that his work could be saved and that the "monster" didn't have to be a mindless killer, sets about helping to restore the monster back to life and health. Ygor helps him with this task. However the monster under the control of Ygor of course begins to murder people, and Frankenstein descends into madness, and the inspector is suspicious of Frankenstein and fears that he is following in his father's foot steps. This all leads up to the thrilling climax as Frankenstein must show off against his father's creation. I will honestly say that this is my favourite of the original Universal Frankenstein series, and I find it has one of the best story lines and some of the best character acting. It is always a treat to see Karloff and Lugosi on screen together. The critics mostly agree with my high opinion of this film. Another thing I appreciate about these old movies is that when they credit Mary Shelly's work they say that they are "suggested by the book Frankenstein by Mary Shelly" and don't go on to pretend to be adaptations of that original work, a lot of time I feel that it is dishonest for a movie like say Kubric's The Shining to play itself off as a movie adaptation of a book, when in reality it is just suggested by that book, and not really a movie version of the book....I know I have kind of went off on a tangent here, but I really do appreciate that level of honesty. Would I recommend this movie? Yes, without a doubt, definitely in my opinion the strongest of the Frankenstein series by Universal. It helps to have watched the original movie, though Bride isn't necessary to see before this one, in fact Son actually can stand alone with just the basic knowledge of the Frankenstein story to give you the back story that is talked about, but it is strong enough in story to stand on its own. Definitely a must see for any horror fan, as I feel it is important to know and appreciate the classics. Honestly, even today this movie has aged well and stands up and stands out in the deep sea of horror movies. So hunt down a copy and watch it for yourself.