Son of Frankenstein (1939)

Director:

Rowland V. Lee

Writers:

Mary Shelley (suggested by the story written in 1816)
Wyllis Cooper (screenplay)

Release Date:

13 January 1939 (USA)

Genre:

Sci-Fi | Horror | Drama

Tagline:

The black shadows of the past bred this half-man . . . half-demon ! . . . creating a new and terrible juggernaut of destruction !

Plot:

Wolf Frankenstein, son of Henry Frankenstein, returns with his wife, to his fathers estate to claim his inheritance...

Plot Keywords:

Laboratory | Inspector | Storm | Frankenstein's Monster | Scientist

Cast

Basil Rathbone	...	Baron Wolf von Frankenstein
Boris Karloff	...	The Monster
Bela Lugosi	...	Ygor
Lionel Atwill	...	Krogh
Josephine Hutchinson	...	Elsa von Frankenstein
Donnie Dunagan	...	Peter von Frankenstein
Emma Dunn	...	Amelia
Edgar Norton	...	Benson
Perry Ivins	...	Fritz
Lawrence Grant	...	Burgomaster
Lionel Belmore	...	Lang
Michael Mark	...	Ewald Neumüller
Caroline Frances Cooke	...	Mrs. Neumüller (as Caroline Cooke)
Gustav von Seyffertitz	...	Burgher
Lorimer Johnston	...	Burgher (as Lorimer Johnson)

Runtime:

99 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

Finland:K-15 (2004) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Finland:(Banned) (1955) | Spain:13 | South Korea:12 | Norway:16 (1955) | Norway:16 (cut) | Finland:(Banned) (1939) | USA:Approved (PCA #4987) | Sweden:7

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

Makeup artist Jack P. Pierce estimated it took four hours to transform Boris Karloff into the monster.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the climactic fight with the monster, after his artificial arm is torn off the inspector draws his gun, a revolver. He then proceeds to fire ten shots in quick succession, without the chance or ability to reload.

Quotes:

Baron Wolf von Frankenstein: I should turn you over to Inspector Krogh!
Ygor: No! Krogh no want dead man, Ygor is dead!
Baron Wolf von Frankenstein: What are you talking about?
Ygor: They hanged me once, Frankenstein... they broke my neck.
Baron Wolf von Frankenstein: Hanged you... well, why did they hang you?
Ygor: Because I stole bodies... they said...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in La orgía de los muertos (1973)

Soundtrack:

Sailing, Sailing, Over the Bounding Main

Surprisingly Good Sequel

Usually the third film in a series shows signs of decline either in quality or inventiveness. Even the third 'Godfather' was significantly less than its predecessors. Universal's 'Frankenstein' series that began in the early 1930's was no exception and showed some wear by the end of the decade when 'Son of Frankenstein' was released. Under the sensitive direction of James Whale, the original 'Frankenstein' was a classic, and, in the first sequel, 'Bride of Frankenstein,' Whale even managed to better it. However, while Whale was not involved with 'Son,' the third installment turned out to be a surprisingly good movie even if it failed to match the two preceding films. Perhaps the major reason for the success of 'Son' was the casting of Basil Rathbone as Wolf Frankenstein, the original Baron's son. Rathbone is a fine strong actor, and his characterization certainly exceeds Colin Clive's somewhat colorless portrayal of his father in the preceding films. Rathbone holds the viewer's attention throughout as he becomes immersed in the legacy of his father and fails to comprehend the consequences of what he is doing. Boris Karloff returns for a third time as the monster. Although he does a fine job, there is less opportunity for the actor to show the range of emotion in this film that he displayed in 'Bride.' Another aspect of 'Son' that raises it above the ordinary is the set and lighting design, which owes a debt to German expressionism. The sets have bold diagonals in their construction, and the cameraman has lit them to cast equally bold shadows against bare walls and create abstract patterns that often recall 'The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari.' The lighting and design of one particular section of a cave under the Frankenstein laboratory could have been blown up and framed as an expressionist photograph. Although it does not reach the heights of the Whale films, 'Son of Frankenstein' is a worthy successor and an engrossing film in its own right.