The
Bride of Frankenstein
Edited by Emma
Westwood
Introduction by Sara
Karloff
Midnight
Movie Monographs
Electric
Dreamhouse (imprint of PS Publishing)
Published
January 2023
194 Pages
Black and
white illustrations
Hardback
ISBN:
ISBN 978-1-78636-880-5
RRP: £20
Review by Adrian Smith
The
Bride of Frankenstein (James Whale, 1935) is
frequently referred to as the greatest horror film ever made, something which
Emma Westwood, the editor of this new collection of essays, would not disagree
with. In building on the incredible work done on the original Frankenstein (1931)
whilst bringing in the dark humour of The Old Dark House (1932), along
with key cast member and fellow Brit Ernest Thesiger, director James Whale
delivered incredible imagery, dark themes and iconic performances. In doing so,
he was establishing the comedy-horror template that would be utilised so
effectively for decades to come (An American Werewolf in London (John
Landis, 1981) owes it a great debt, for one). It also became perhaps the first example
of a sequel being superior to the original, which is still something that does
not happen very often. So how did this happen? What is it about The Bride of
Frankenstein that has ensured its legendary status for almost one hundred
years?
That
question is something that this fascinating collection of new essays addresses
from a number of angles. This new addition to the Midnight Movie Monographs
series from Electric Dreamhouse (previous entries have included books devoted
to Spirits of the Dead (Roger Vadim/ Federico Fellini/ Louis Malle,
1968), Plan 9 from Outer Space (Ed Wood Jr., 1959) and Horror Express
(Eugenio Martín, 1972)) presents twelve different chapters covering the
production, censorship, the astonishing hair, makeup and costume design, the
pioneering use of sound, readings of sexuality, the many films over the years
which draw on elements of Bride of Frankenstein, including my own
personal horror-comedy favourite Bride of Re-Animator (Brian Yuzna,
1990), an examination of star Elsa Lanchester herself, and much more. Who
exactly is ‘the Bride of Frankenstein’? is another question to be mulled over;
after all, shouldn’t the film have been called ‘The Bride of Frankenstein’s
Monster’?
Whether
you have a passing interest in the Universal horrors or if The Bride of
Frankenstein is your favourite film, this new monograph, with a foreword
from Sara Karloff, daughter of Boris, will cause you to think about the film
differently, and brings great wit and insight to this endlessly fascinating
film from Hollywood’s golden age of horror cinema. In hardcover with a wealth
of imagery and a terrific cover design, this is a beautiful book for any
serious cinema lover’s library.
You can order a copy direct
from PB Publishing by clicking here.