The Ghost of Frankenstein (1942)

User Rating:

5.9/10   

Director:

Erle C. Kenton

Writers:

Scott Darling (screenplay)
Eric Taylor (story)

Release Date:

13 March 1942 (USA)

Genre:

Fantasy | Horror | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

Stark Terror! Added Thrills! in a Spine-Tingling Experience !

Plot:

Ygor resurrects Frankenstein's monster and brings him to the original doctor's son, Ludwig, for help...

Plot Keywords:

Brain | Villager | Frankenstein's Monster | Sequel | Battering Ram

Cast

Cedric Hardwicke	...	Ludwig Frankenstein (as Sir Cedric Hardwicke)
Ralph Bellamy	...	Erik
Lionel Atwill	...	Doctor Bohmer
Bela Lugosi	...	Ygor
Evelyn Ankers	...	Elsa Frankenstein
Janet Ann Gallow	...	Cloestine
Barton Yarborough	...	Dr. Kettering
Doris Lloyd	...	Martha
Leyland Hodgson	...	Chief Constable
Olaf Hytten	...	Hussman
Holmes Herbert	...	Magistrate
Lon Chaney Jr.	...	The Monster (as Lon Chaney)

Runtime:

67 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) | Spain:13 | USA:Approved (PCA #8125) | Sweden:15 | Sweden:7 (re-rating) | Germany:12 | Finland:(Banned) (1948)

Filming Locations:

Universal Studios - 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California, USA

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

Boris Karloff, then acting in the hit Broadway show "Arsenic and Old Lace", had no interest in working on the film. Producer George Waggner wisely decided to retain Karloff's make-up out of fear that the public would not accept any change in the monster's appearance.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: The dramatic shadow cast by the monster's hand when first discovered by Ygor in the sulfur pit comes from a light source completely at odds with the overhead light shining down into the sulfur pit in which we see the monster encased.

Quotes:

[the monster is struck by lightning]
Ygor: The lightning. It is good for you! Your father was Frankenstein, but your mother was the lightning!

Movie Connections:

Edited into Mondo Lugosi (1987)

Great Universal Monster Fun!

The story picks up somewhat after Son of Frankenstein...Ygor...still alive somehow and the monster go in search of the second son of Frankenstein to recharge the monster and ultimately put Ygor's brain in the monster's body.. That at least is the plan. This is certainly not the best of the Frankenstein cycle but it is a lot of fun. Bela Lugosi again chews up scenery as the demented crook-neck Ygor...a malevolent and evil persona that has befriended the "innocent" creature, played with depth and great ability by Lon Chaney Jr. In point of fact...Chaney's Monster ranks closely to Karloff's for his ability to give the monster a third dimension so to speak. His scene with the little girl and her ball is a gem. Lionel Atwill is in this as a bad scientist(a familiar role for him) and again he is very winning in his portrayal. Evelyn Ankers is good in the female lead and Cedric Hardwicke is adequate in his role as the Frakenstein progeny, although somewhat lacklustre to be sure. All in all a good Frankenstein film!