I don’t enjoy movies in the horror genre but I do love the classics. The best ones are from the 1930’s. Below is a list of the movies that I watched during this year’s scary season.
The Raven (1935) This one features Bela Lugosi as a crazy, vindictive doctor. He mutilates Boris Karloff and uses him to torture the woman he loves and her fiancé. I am not a huge fan of Edgar Allen Poe but I really enjoyed the way that they brought Poe into this story. A Poe obsessed maniac makes a fun villain. I give this one three and a half scary crows.
The Bride of Frankenstein (1935) The original Frankenstein is my favorite classic scary movie. It is the gold standard to which all others are compared. I can’t believe I have never watched this perfect sequel. “To a new world of gods and monsters.” If you get stuck on the science, it’s a stupid movie. Like all monster movies, it requires you to suspend disbelief. I love the monster and his bride. It’s not as good as the original but I rate it four solid bolts on the neck.
Dracula’s Daughter (1936) I can understand what they were trying to do. The story was fine but it didn’t go very deep and wasn’t very engaging. The female vampire was cold and aloof. That was supposed to be part of the Dracula character but it also made her uninteresting. The best character was Van Helsing who appears often in the classic monster movies. I give it two bites to the throat.
Werewolf of London (1935) This movie was fine. The story was good but the acting and the production were weak. It was hard to watch a wolf man from the classic era that was not Lan Chaney Jr. The main character was completely obsessed with his work and as a result couldn’t connect with the people who he loved. That is scarier than any werewolf. This one gets a single fuzzy full moon.
Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943) I love the original Frankenstein. I love Lon Chaney as the wolf man. This movie is like peanut butter and chocolate… well, it’s generic peanut butter and chocolate. The chocolate is waxy and the peanut butter is kind of dry and chalky. It’s good but didn’t meet my expectations. Maybe my expectation were too high. Bella Lugosi was’t great. His Frankenstein was weak. I had to check the credits to confirm that it was even him. I liked the movie and would watch it again. The next time, I will have lower expectations. I give it two and a half full moons and one bolt in the neck.
Son of Frankenstein (1939) This one is fantastic. It isn’t just a trite extension of a legendary franchise. The story picks up after the original movie ends and brings some American Frankensteins to the original laboratory. Bela Lugosi is brilliant as Igor. He is so easy to hate and at the same time, he is impossible not to love. Basil Rathbone is the son of Frankenstein and he is so good at what he does. On a scale of 1-5, this one gets four electrocuted monsters.
The Mummy’s Tomb (1942) I will admit that this is the first of the classic Mummy movies that I have watched. It’s fine but the Mummy is not my favorite classic monster. They try real hard to include a love story but it doesn’t really go anywhere. The Mummy exists to facilitate revenge and has no autonomy other than being a vehicle for vengeance. It’s actually kind of sad. I felt bad for that poor old mummy. I will rate this movie a one rotten bandage.