Frankenstein [VHS]
by James Whale
![Frankenstein [VHS]](/images/Frankenstein-VHS-6300181286-L.jpg)
List Price:
Our Price: $4.49
You Save: $10.49 (70%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Category: VHS Video
See more movie releases
Buy this VHS video movie at online store in your country
Canada
Canada
VHS Tape Cover Information
Actor: Boris Karloff, Colin Clive, Edward Van Sloan, John Boles, Mae ClarkeDirector: James Whale
Writer: Francis Edward Faragoh
Writer: Garrett Fort
Writer: John L. Balderston
Writer: John Russell
Writer: Mary Shelley
Writer: Peggy Webling
Writer: Robert Florey
Edition: VHS Tape
Audio: English (Original Language), Analog
Format: Black & White, NTSC
Running Time: 71 minutes
Release Date: 1992-03-01
Audience Rating: Unrated
Publisher: Universal Studios
Studio: Universal Studios
VHS Movie Reviews of Frankenstein [VHS]
Movie Review: Still great, after all these years!
Summary: 5 Stars
One of those great Monster movies that captures everything, including the human depth (even in moments where it isn't intended), `Frankenstein' lives on, literally, as one of the greatest films in this genre.
James Whale (famed director) created a masterpiece when he constructed this brilliant fright-fest staring Colin Clive and Boris Karloff. The film truly carries with it the feel of horror, with the mood primed and ready for terror. The stormy nights, the creepy castle, the dark and sinister performances (Clive truly shows how genius corrupts the mind); everything adds up beautifully here.
And then there is Karloff.
For me, this is an iconic performance. There are few performances that will go on to be remembered forever, instantly recognizable. No matter who you are, how old you are, or whether or not you have even seen this film, the image of the monster is one that you will instantly recognize, and Karloff's name will never be forgotten because of that. The performance, behind all that makeup, is very impressive. It may not look like much on the outset, but there are surprising touches that make this a very astute performance. The way that Karloff plays off his character's brute strength while maintaining a layer of fear (he is like a caged and mistreated animal) is outstanding, and that moment with the little girl, by the water, the playfulness and childlike curiosity; it's just perfectly played.
The film, for me, speaks much louder than it may have initially intended. I made a few arguments when reviewing `King Kong' a while back, about how Peter Jackson's remake brought new layers of life to the original. What is great about `Frankenstein' is that it needs to remake to expound upon the issues presented. While it is obvious that this film is focused on being a `monster movie', it still raises some ethical questions.
You just have to look a little closer to see them.
The obvious one is that of aspiring to be godlike and the damage that power can bring to the mind, but the moment in the film that I found MOST chilling was the `happy ending' that was, surprisingly, an afterthought. As some may know, initially the monster was supposed to kill his maker (a bold statement in itself), but with pressure to create something more jovial in the end, they added a scene where Doctor Frankenstein is `recuperating' from the attack. The happy ending, for me, is the best route this film could have gone, because unwittingly almost they have added yet another layer of harsh realism to the film. The almost immediate disregard of the monster (now that he has faced his demise) is chilling because it showcases the fact that, as a whole, humans disregard life that isn't, well, human (or basically something they don't understand). I compared the monster to an animal earlier, and this comparison works with this theory because it is more socially acceptable (or should I say `forgettable') when atrocities or careless acts of ignorance are committed at the expense of an animal, but when faced on humans it is another story entirely. So, because the monster was something the people didn't understand, his life meant nothing, thus his demise was forgettable.
It was a rude awakening, even if the original intent was to snag a smile.
Summary of Frankenstein [VHS]
"It's alive! Alive!" shouts Colin Clive's triumphant Dr. Frankenstein as electricity buzzes over the hulking body of a revived corpse. "In the name of God now I know what it's like to be God!" For years unheard, this line has been restored, along with the legendary scene of the childlike monster tossing a little girl into a lake, in James Whale's Frankenstein, one of the most famous and influential horror movies ever made. Coming off the tremendous success of Dracula, Universal assigned sophomore director Whale to helm an adaptation of Mary Shelley's famous novel with Bela Lugosi as the monster. When Lugosi declined the role, Whale cast the largely unknown character actor Boris Karloff and together with makeup designer Jack Pierce they created the most memorable monster in movie history: a towering, lumbering creature with sunken eyes, a flat head, and a jagged scar running down his forehead. Whale and Karloff made this mute, misunderstood brute, who has the brain of a madman (the most obvious of the many liberties taken with Shelley's story), the most pitiable freak of nature to stumble across the screen. Clive's Dr. Frankenstein is intense and twitchy and Dwight Frye set the standard for mad-scientist sidekicks as the wild-eyed hunchback assistant. Whale's later films, notably the spooky spoof The Old Dark House and the deliriously stylized sequel The Bride of Frankenstein, display a surer cinematic hand than seen here and add a subversive twist of black comedy, but given the restraints of early sound films, Whale breaks the film free from static stillness and adorns it with striking design and expressionist flourishes. --Sean AxmakerHorror VHS Video
VHS Video Movies
- Action & Adventure
- African American Cinema
- Animation VHS Video
- Anime & Manga
- Art House & International
- Classics VHS Video
- Comedy VHS Video
- Cult Movies
- Documentary
- Drama VHS Video
- Educational
- Fitness
- Gay & Lesbian
- Horror VHS Video
- Kids & Family
- Military & War VHS Video
- Music Video & Concerts
- Musicals & Performing Arts
- Mystery & Suspense
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Special Interests
- Sports VHS Video
- Television VHS Video
- Westerns VHS Video
Movies most talked about in Universal Monsters Classic Collection [VHS]
![Classic Monsters Collection [VHS] Image](/images/Classic-Monsters-Collection-VHS-B00000K14A-X.jpg)
Classic Monsters Collection [VHS]Universal Studios; Release date: 2000-08-29; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Price in other shops:
![The Classic Monsters Collection (Dracula, The Wolf Man and Frankenstein) [VHS] Image](/images/The-Classic-Monsters-Collection-Dracula-The-Wolf-Man-and-Frankenstein-VHS-6303128661-X.jpg){kind=small}
The Classic Monsters Collection (Dracula, The Wolf Man and Frankenstein) [VHS]Universal Studios; Release date: 1996-08-06; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $14.96
Price in other shops:
![House of Horrors [VHS] Image](/images/House-of-Horrors-VHS-6303129161-X.jpg){kind=small}
House of Horrors [VHS]THE CLASSIC COLLECTION; Universal Studios; Release date: 1997-09-16; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $49.99
![Captive Wild Woman [VHS] Image](/images/Captive-Wild-Woman-VHS-630312917X-X.jpg){kind=small}
Captive Wild Woman [VHS]Universal Studios; Release date: 1997-09-16; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $1.99
Price in other shops:
![Mad Ghoul [VHS] Image](/images/Mad-Ghoul-VHS-6303129153-X.jpg){kind=small}
Mad Ghoul [VHS]Universal Studios; Release date: 1997-09-16; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $9.99
Price in other shops:
![Monster & The Girl [VHS] Image](/images/Monster-The-Girl-VHS-6303129188-X.jpg){kind=small}
Monster & The Girl [VHS]Universal Studios; Release date: 1997-09-16; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $9.96
Price in other shops:
![Man Made Monster [VHS] Image](/images/Man-Made-Monster-VHS-6303129145-X.jpg){kind=small}
Man Made Monster [VHS]Universal Studios; Release date: 1997-09-16; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $39.77
![Tower of London (1939) [VHS] Image](/images/Tower-of-London-1939-VHS-630252587X-X.jpg){kind=small}
Tower of London (1939) [VHS]Universal Studios; Release date: 1997-09-16; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $19.85
![The Raven [VHS] Image](/images/The-Raven-VHS-6302526140-X.jpg){kind=small}
The Raven [VHS]MCA Universal; Release date: 1997-09-16; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $11.95
Price in other shops:
![Black Cat [VHS] Image](/images/Black-Cat-VHS-6302526191-X.jpg){kind=small}
Black Cat [VHS]Universal Studios; Release date: 1997-09-16; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $36.99
Similar VHS Movies
Abbott & Costello Meet FrankensteinABBOTT & COSTELLO; Release date: 2000-08-29; DVD
Best price: $13.29
Price in other shops:
FrankensteinLions Gate; Release date: 2004-10-26; DVD
Best price: $7.70
Price in other shops:
The Ghost of Frankenstein / Son of Frankenstein (Universal Studios Frankenstein Double Feature)UNI DIST CORP. (MCA); Release date: 2007-07-24; DVD
Best price: $8.22
Price in other shops:
Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man / House of Frankenstein (Universal Studios Frankenstein Double Feature)UNI DIST CORP. (MCA); Release date: 2007-07-24; DVD
Best price: $8.51
Price in other shops:
Creature From the Black Lagoon (Universal Studios Classic Monster Collection)UNI DIST CORP. (MCA); Release date: 2007-07-24; DVD
Best price: $8.49
Price in other shops:
The Invisible Man (Universal Studios Classic Monster Collection)UNI DIST CORP. (MCA); Release date: 2000-08-29; DVD
Best price: $8.24
Price in other shops:
The Bride of Frankenstein (Universal Studios Classic Monster Collection)KARLOFF,BORIS; Release date: 1999-10-19; DVD
Best price: $7.69
Price in other shops:
The Mummy (Universal Studios Classic Monster Collection)Universal Studios; Release date: 1999-09-28; DVD
Best price: $7.73
Price in other shops:
The Wolf Man (Universal Studios Classic Monster Collection)MCA; Release date: 1999-11-02; DVD
Best price: $8.54
Price in other shops:
Dracula (Universal Studios Classic Monster Collection)UNI DIST CORP. (MCA); Release date: 1999-12-21; DVD
Best price: $8.17
Price in other shops: