In October of 2012, Universal released a new Blu-ray box set of some of its most famous monster movies. It's not as complete as the series of DVD box sets that came along a few years back, but for those longing to see these classics in high-def, it's worth looking into. (I did not receive a press screener, so these comments are simply based on the quality of the films themselves.) The new set comes with eight films on eight discs.Dracula (1931)Dracula is perhaps my favorite of the monsters, perhaps because of his style. He's the least animalistic and vulgar, and the most likely to get invited to a swanky dinner party. No one has ever come close to matching Bela Lugosi's portrayal of the ultimate vampire. He had those beady eyes, those creepy long hands, the accent, a lot of class and a slight hint of camp. Thankfully director Tod Browning cast him instead of Lon Chaney, whom Browning had worked with extensively and had originally envisioned in the role. The critical consensus on Dracula is that it's slow and stagy. And they're right. It was one of Browning's first sound pictures after a long career making dozens of silent films. The production, overseen by Carl Laemmle Jr., was based on the play (which Lugosi had performed on stage) and not the book. The thinking was that plays were more "cinematic" and better suited to the new talkie format. Even at 75 minutes, Dracula can be rather dull. But, of course, the good outweighs the bad.
Frankenstein (1931)Director James Whale gave this film a touching, almost childlike humanity that made audiences almost identify with the monster. Frankenstein came a few months after Dracula, and the studio was originally interested in having Lugosi play the monster. But Lugosi apparently turned it down, claiming that it took no acting talent to play a grunting, shambling beast.
The Mummy (1932)Far from featuring a mindless, bandage-clad monster shambling around and moaning at people, this first entry in the series is more an intricately lit, atmospheric chiller where the biggest shock comes from entering an eerily decorated room. Boris Karloff stars as the 3700-year old Imhotep, brought back to life despite a terrible curse on his tomb (he stole a sacred scroll and tried to resurrect the dead). Now free again, he seeks to revive the body and soul of his sweetheart, currently reincarnated as Zita Johann. Karloff plays his romantic angle with just a touch of pity. His elegant physique serves him just as well here as it did in Frankenstein. Graceful and tall in his robe and hat, his face reveals just a hint of wrinkle make-up. When seen in close-up, the lines deepen and become dry and continuous like the desert itself. Celebrated cinematographer Karl Freund, who had worked with Fritz Lang on Metropolis, F.W. Murnau onThe Last Laugh and Tod Browning on Dracula, made his directorial debut with this film, and the artful, gentle way it is lit and shot reveals a great future.
The Invisible Man (1933)Claude Rains stars as Jack Griffin, the scientist who invents the invisible serum. We don't actually see him until the end, so it was actually his voice that made his movie debut. It's a memorable performance. A good deal of the credit for the success of The Invisible Man goes to director James Whale. Whale had a tender curiosity towards his creatures. He liked to explore what it was like to be different and horrifying in an ordinary world. He really spent a lot of time imagining what it would be like to be a Frankenstein monster or an invisible man. In one scene, the invisible man explains that it's difficult to go down stairs because you can't see your feet. The movie takes place in winter, in order to present the greatest challenge to the invisible man, who must remove his clothes in the freezing cold to be completely invisible. The Invisible Man is a wonderful, insightful, goofy, bizarre look at a strange case.
Bride of Frankenstein (1935)Bride of Frankenstein is one of the greatest of all horror films. It's not very scary, exactly, but it's crazy and funny, perfect for Halloween. The movie begins with a great scene, as Mary Shelly (Elsa Lanchester), Lord Byron, and Percy Shelly pass the time indoors during a thunderstorm. Mary pricks her finger, and is horrified at the sight of her own blood. Byron points out that her book Frankenstein, set his teeth on edge. She continues the story, about another monster... this time a bride. Once again, it is Whale who makes the film special. His affection for the bizarre, his wonderful sense of humor, and his appreciation for the feelings of the monster above all, make Bride of Frankenstein a classic, much better than the relatively straightforward original.
The Wolf Man (1941)Descended from the most fastidious and intricate of silent film actors, Lon Chaney Jr. was a surprisingly warm and down-home actor with lots of aw-shucks appeal. Wearing his heart on his sleeve, he was very good at showing inner torment -- such as that of a man who changes into a wolf by night. Chaney's big break, The Wolf Man (1941) ultimately lacked the vision of more inventive filmmakers like Browning or Whale; he was saddled with the studio director George Waggner. Still, it's a good, solid film, held together by Chaney's appealing performance and great supporting players like Lugosi as Bela the gypsy who turns into a wolf, Maria Ouspenskaya as Bela's mother, and Ralph Bellamy (who had just finished His Girl Friday) as one of his usual milquetoasts.
Phantom of the Opera (1943)I haven't seen this one, but it's a strange addition to the box, a color feature that is not nearly as well-known or as well-loved as the 1925 silent version (see The Phantom of the Opera).
Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954)Creature from the Black Lagoon is an effective "B" picture that benefits from the heavy censorship of the 1950s. It prefigures films like Invasion of the Body Snatchers and I Married a Monster from Outer Space in that it uses a "harmless" genre to tap into people's real-life fears and insecurities. In this case, the "Gill Man" represents an army of teenage boys, living in a repressed and introverted society, who are too awkward and half-formed to succeed with girls. When a team of scientists venture into the Amazon to investigate a fossilized claw, the Gill Man falls in love with the expedition's lone female (Julie Adams), while the human males fight over whether or not to kill the creature or capture and study it. As directed by Jack Arnold, the film suffers from silly stretches of dialogue and wooden acting, but the underwater footage is still beautiful, and Adams radiates a strong, sexy screen presence.
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