Frankenstein (Universal film series)
[1] The series follow the story of a monster created by Henry Frankenstein who is made from body parts of corpses and brought back to life.Aided by his assistant, Fritz (Dwight Frye), Frankenstein succeeds in animating his monster (Boris Karloff), but, the confused creature escapes into the countryside and begins to wreak havoc.The film follows Baron Wolf von Frankenstein (Basil Rathbone) who, with his wife Elsa (Josephine Hutchinson) and son Peter (Donnie Dunagan), return to his late father's estate.They go to another small town to encourage the younger son of Dr. Frankenstein (Cedric Hardwicke) to continue his father's experiments, so that Ygor can have revenge against his enemies and his brain transplanted into the Monster's skull.A follow-up to both The Ghost of Frankenstein and The Wolf Man (1941), the film involves Larry Talbot who is brought back to life and is seeking a way to return to his death to escape his werewolf curse.The experiment coincides on the night of a full moon, leading Talbot to transform yet again as the Monster regains his strength and vision; both escape their restraints.At the castle home of Dr. Franz Edelmann, the doctor is visited first by Count Dracula and Larry Talbot who are trying to cure their vampirism and lycanthropy, respectively.In Florida, two railway baggage handlers make a mistake as they move a pair of crates belonging to a house of horrors museum, the museum's director, Mr. MacDougal (Frank Ferguson), demands that Wilbur (Lou Costello) and his friend, Chick Young (Bud Abbott), deliver them personally so that the crates can be inspected for insurance purposes.Lawrence Talbot (Lon Chaney Jr.) tries to warn Chick and Wilbur that the crates contain the bodies of Count Dracula (Bela Lugosi) and the Frankenstein Monster (Glenn Strange).[5] Florey had arrived in Hollywood in 1921 as a correspondent for the French Cinema-gazine and stayed on to serve as publicity for Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks.[7] Florey met with Universal's story editor Richard Schayer to discuss follow-ups which included adaptations of H. G. Wells The Invisible Man and Edgar Allan Poe's "The Murders in the Rue Morgue".[9] This led to Florey becoming cautious with Universal, who had only signed him with a contract to promised him to write and direct a film, but not specifically for Frankenstein.[11] Whale was offered to choose from 30 projects and opted for Frankenstein, leading Florey to direct Murders in the Rue Morgue with Lugosi, with whom he was still on good terms.[11][12] Whale then revised the Florey script and took parts of Balderston adaptation (including scenes of the Monster experiencing sunlight the first time and the drowning of the small girl).[12] Francis Edward Faragoh was brought in to submit a rewrite of the Frankenstein script and at Whale's insistence, added some mildly comic touches to the material.[22][23] The lack of a completed script led to actors receiving freshly written pages minutes before scenes were set up to be filmed.[25] Early versions of the script were written by Eric Taylor, and included elements not used in the film, such as the return of Basil Rathbone's character from Son of Frankenstein.[37] On July 31, 1946, an official merger began leading to the company now called Universal-International which only had Deanna Durbin, Abbott and Costello, Maria Montez and a few other actors remaining on their payroll.[41] Wyllis Cooper, the creator of the radio show Lights Out, submitted an original screenplay for Son of Frankenstein that was initially rejected.[21] This screenplay, which was dated October 20, 1938, involved Wolf, his wife Else and their young son Erwin arriving at Castle Frankenstein to claim their inheritance.[54][55] In the first decade of the 21st century, Universal paired with Imagine Entertainment and contracted Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini, who wrote the screenplay for American Splendor, to write a remake.[53] In June 2009, Universal and Imagine entered discussions with director Neil Burger and his writing partner Dirk Wittenborn,[53] and producer Brian Grazer was assigned to oversee the development of the remake.[57] By October 2017, it was reported that pre-production had begun when the creative team and studio decided to postpone the release in order to further work on the script with intentions being to improve the story.[59] The same month Condon stated that should Jolie decide to leave the project, he would be interested in seeing Gal Gadot play the titular character.[62] He stated: "That was a heartbreaker, really [...] the simplest way to say it is that I think The Mummy, and not to say anything against the movie, but the fact that that hadn't worked for them and it was the beginning of this whole reinvention of their monsters gave them cold feet at the end of the day.[66] In March 2020, Robbie Thompson was hired to serve as screenwriter, with the plot revolving around a group of teenagers who discover that a neighbor is creating a monster in their basement.
Frankenstein (disambiguation)FrankensteinBride of FrankensteinSon of FrankensteinThe Ghost of FrankensteinFrankenstein Meets the Wolf ManHouse of FrankensteinHouse of DraculaAbbott and Costello Meet Frankensteinhorror filmsUniversal PicturesPeggy WeblingFrankenstein; or, The Modern PrometheusMary ShelleyThe Wolf ManThe Spirit of the BeehiveYoung FrankensteinGhost of FrankensteinFrankenstein (1931 film)Colin CliveDwight FryeBoris KarloffBasil RathboneLon Chaney Jr.Cedric HardwickeHouse of Frankenstein (film)Frank FergusonLou CostelloBud AbbottBela LugosiGlenn StrangeRobert FloreyMary PickfordDouglas FairbanksDraculaH. G. WellsThe Invisible ManEdgar Allan PoeThe Murders in the Rue MorgueHamilton DeaneGarrett FortPaul WegenerJames WhaleJourney's EndFrancis Edward FaragohKurt NeumannOne More RiverR.C. SherriffJohn L. BalderstonEdmund PearsonDracula's DaughterSon of KongWilshire BoulevardThe Hollywood ReporterRoland V. LeeWyllis CooperGeorge WaggnerEric TaylorSaturday Evening PostCurt SiodmakJohn CarradineJ. Arthur RankDeanna DurbinAbbott and CostelloMaria MontezRobert ArthurRobert LeesJohn GrantHays officeLights OutDoctor Septimus PretoriusMae ClarkValerie HobsonFrancis FordReginald BarlowJosephine HutchinsonEvelyn AnkersIlona MasseyRowland V. LeeErle C. KentonRoy William NeillCharles T. BartonCarl Laemmle Jr.Paul MalvernJohn RussellWillis CooperW. Scott DarlingEdward T. LoweArthur EdesonJohn J. MescallGeorge RobinsonMilton KrasnerElwood BredellCharles Van EngerClarence KolsterMaurice PivarTed KentEdward CurtissPhilip CahnCharles D. HallJack OttersonJohn B. GoodmanMartin ObzinaBernard HerzbrunHilyard BrownJack P. PierceOtto LedererBud WestmoreThe Curse of FrankensteinTerence FisherThe MunstersMel BrooksGene WilderThe BrideClancy BrownJennifer BealsMartin ScorseseIndustrial Light & MagicanimatedImagine EntertainmentShari Springer Berman and Robert PulciniAmerican SplendorJacob EstesNeil BurgerDirk WittenbornBrian Grazer