Frankenstein (1931)

Opening

"a little unkind to present this picture without a little friendly warning"

"deals with the two great mysteries of creation: life and death"

"it might even . . . horrify you"

"now's your chance to [pause] well, we've warned you."

Credits

Disembodied eyes circle around a burry face

The creature . . . . . . . .. . ?

Film

Starts at funeral, silhouetted figures, some looking a bit monstrous, cross, skeleton.

"Down--down, you fool!"--Frankenstein to Fritz--the funeral party leaves the gravedigger to work.--fade to tapping the grave down, lighting a pipe

They start to dig, bells of clock ringing; skeletons, crucifixes with bodies in background.

"He's just resting, waiting for a new life to come"--sense of resurrection not explicit in book

move to gallows--Igor hesitant to go cut the rope; "Here I come"--Victor paying no attention. "We must find another brain."

Goldstadt Medical College (sign) --students giggling in operational theater--"one of the most perfect specimens of the human brain" as opposed to "degenerate characteristics" matching case history of brutality. Class dismissed, skeleton bouncing in background of shot. Fritz gives monstrous grunt and goes in, walking like ape. We see hunchback, then he's scared by the skeleton. Drops the brain at sound, takes abnormal one.

Portrait lit by candle--"Victor Moritz" visiting Elizabeth--letter from Henry--"My work must come first" "Prying eyes" and the secret. "The very day we announced our engagement" she learned of experiments. Victor hints at his unrequited love for her. Promises to go to Henry's professor.

Elizabeth "I'm coming with you." They visit professor with chemicals in front, skeletons in back--describes Frankenstein's desire for more perfect bodies for experiment; Victor; "What are the lives of a few rabbits and dogs?" and the professor explains--this is Dr. Waldman, who has a foreign accent. Elizabeth asks for help.

Storm and castle , Fritz on top, Frank in lab. Fritz rappels down to him. "All the electrical secrets of heaven--and this time we're ready." "No blood, no decay--just a few stitches" "and here's the final touch"--the brain, eye-like instruments in background. "One final test" with the switches. Knocking at the door. Henry says not to let them in.

Again, Elizabeth is the only one who can influence the men. Henry talks to them.

"Henry, you're inhuman. You're crazy." "Crazy, am I? We'll see whether I'm crazy or not. Come on up."

Like the introduction: "You're quite sure you want to come in?" Henry orders Victor to sit, asks Elizabeth and W more nicely. It's about the ultraviolet ray--Henry says there's a color beyond it, "the great ray that first brought life into the world ." He has done animal experiments, then a human heart.

"That body is not dead--it has never lived ." Comes from graves, gallows.

"Quote a good scene, isn't it --one man crazy, three very sane spectators!"

They uncover the creature and sent him up to the roof. Much waiting.

Hand moves hanging over the side. "It's alive, it’s alive" "In the name of God, now I know what it f. . . .[obscured by thunder]"

Baron: "I have two eyes, and pretty good ones at that "--Baron doesn't understand why Henry's hanging around elsewhere with a good house and woman. It's another woman, he says. Burgomaster enters to ask when the wedding will be. "The village is already prepared" Calls Henry "the very image of his father"

Baron complains that he's kept waiting. "There is another woman--and I'm going to find her."

To Henry with Waldman, who tells him to keep the creature under guard. "Have you never wanted to do anything that was dangerous?" asks Henry. Waldman tells him to look facts in the face: " the brain must be given time to develop"--then "the brain that was stolen from my laboratory was a criminal brain." "Oh, well--after all, it's only a piece of dead tissue." "I believe in this creature." "My father--never believes in anyone." "Wait till I bring him into the light."

Creature walks in backwards, then turns around.

Walks towards Henry, huge shadow on wall. Henry motions to sit. "You see! It understands." Opens skylight. Creature looks up, stands up, reaches for light and tries to grab it. H turns it off. Creature gestures longingly, Henry tells him to sit.

Fritz run in with torch, teases the creature. They tie him up. Great show of writhing with shadow against the rope. Fritz whips him. "Oh, come away, Fritz. Leave it alone." But Fritz goes after him with the torch.

Fritz's screams. H and W run down. The creature has hung Fritz with the whip. Waldman tells H to kill it like "any other savage animal." They plan the injection. It works and takes effect to interrupt strangling. Knocking. Eliz and father are coming. They carry creature back downstairs.

Baron: what a "sort of place for my son to be"--he gets too frustrated too quickly, starts criticizing impatiently. "This place seems to drive everybody crazy." "Perhaps you know what all this tommyrot's about."" He whines his way up the stairs. Elizabeth goes to Henry, who faints. They lie him down like the creature.

Waldman promises to "painlessly destroy" the creature so Victor leaves.

Cut to Waldman working on the creature. Writes of dissection in notebook. Picks up scalpels. Creature's eyes open, and he chokes Waldman, then gets downstairs pretty rapidly--learning to walk. Goes outside

Cut to Elizabeth and Henry--he says it's like heaven. E: "You are not to think of those things anymore." They agree to get married soon. They kiss.

Cut to three-generation orange blossoms unglassed by the baron. "Thirty years ago, I placed this on your mother's head, Henry"--hopes Henry's son will repeat it, too. This is wine from baron's grandfather, whose wife wouldn't let him drink it. "Give the servants some champagne--this stuff's wasted on them." Orders them back to work after a sip .

Cut to big wedding party cheering in the streets. Baron goes out to see the crowd, which he describes contemptuously. He has made them happy with beer. They dance.

Cut to creature with dad and Maria with cat. "Daddy, won't you stay and play with me a little while." "I'm too busy." Creature goes to her. "Who are you? I'm Maria. Will you play with me?" Takes his hand. "Would you like one of my flowers?" He smells it and smiles with little grunt. She divides up flowers. "I can make a boat. See how mine floats." He smiles and does it. Then throws her in, sees her sink, gets upset and runs for help. Looks at hands in confusion.

Back to happy dancers.

Inside to Henry and Elizabeth: "But you shouldn't be here." They go through the house, and she orders wedding party women away. Elizabeth is having all manner of worries. Where's the doctor. "Something is going to happen. I can feel it." "You're just nervous." "Something's coming between us. I know it." "If I could just do something to save us from it."

E begs Henry not to leave at news of Waldman's murder. He locks her in the room and runs upstairs!

Growl from the creature. Men hear the screams.

Maria's dad carries her through the town to lead the mob. They gather outside the Baron's house. Burgomaster: "I'll see that justice is done. Who is it?"

Cut to inside. Henry says that E is in a daze, just looks at him. " There can be no wedding while this horrible creation of mine is still alive. " "I leave her in your care. Whatever happens, do you understand? In your care."

Burgomaster orders the search: "The fiend must be found!" They light torches and set out with dogs, women weeping on the side of the street. They keep marching into the night.

They find injured man who points them on. Henry gets separated from the mob. Mob calls for him. We see creature waiting behind boulder. They face down, wrestle. Creature knocks him down, drags him. They release the dogs, who run to windmill. Creature carries Henry up. They look through bars of wheel at each other. Henry tries to escape but creature drags him back. creature throws rag Henry onto the windmill and to the ground. Creature looks on as Henry is out cold, not necessarily dead. They set fire to the windmill. Creature screams in panic, tries to ward off flames. Beam falls on him and pins him, crowd and dogs yelling, great sound contrasts.

Cut to maids in house whispering, knocking on big door. Baron answers. "If you please, Herr Baron, we thought master Henry could do with a glass of his great-grandmother's wine." "Here's to a son to the house of Frankenstein!"

The End--closing credits include Karloff.