Prometheus, the titan who in mythology stole fire from Zeus to give it to humankind, was also considered a creator of men and their simulacra (in one of the many variations of the myth). From this starting point, Mary Shelley would shape her most famous work. The countless cinematic adaptations have largely distorted the original story, and perhaps the two films that come closest to the novel are Kenneth Branagh’s 1994 version and, paradoxically, Mel Brooks’s 1974 parody Young Frankenstein, where, towards the end, we find a learned, articulate creature, as in the book. Already in the silent era, filmmakers attempted adaptations. The first, from 1910, was directed by J. Searle Dawley for the Edison Kinetogram. Also predating sound is Il mostro di Frankenstein by Eugenio Testa (1921), considered the first Italian horror film. But it was with the Universal cycle that director James Whale immortalized Boris Karloff, first in Frankenstein (1931) and then in its sequel The Bride of Frankenstein (1935) (featured image). From there on – through Hammer productions, Bela Lugosi taking over from Karloff, Japanese kaijū monster films, Paul Morrissey’s 3D extravaganzas, and countless parodies – the myth of Frankenstein has continued to inspire moving images for more than two hundred years.
In a world traversed by light and darkness, a man defies nature to create the unnatural. The Creature is born, and with it, a tragedy. Guillermo del Toro reinterprets Mary Shelley’s masterpiece with the tragic grace of a Miltonian parable: the focus shifts from the act of cr...
Between German Expressionism and Gothic fantasy, the film immediately established itself as an archetype of cinematic horror.
A Hammer production starring Christopher Lee as the creature. The film also appears in Kubrick’s Lolita, in the drive-in scene.
Shot in 3D and produced by Carlo Ponti, an over-the-top chapter that mocks the myth with morbid parody.
A sublime parody shot on the original 1930s sets. Today, at 99, Brooks is preparing a prequel series titled Very Young Frankenstein.
A bizarre, grotesque comedy featuring a young Jeff Goldblum as a journalist on the hunt for a scoop.
A biopic of sorts focusing on the final years of James Whale, director of the Universal classics.
