FRANKENSTEIN is the "shocker of the season," 1931

 

HOLLYWOOD IN PERSON
By Molli Merrick
The Montana Standard, Nov. 10, 1931

"FRANKENSTEIN" as made by Universal is proving the shocker of the season. A preview audience made up of stoic press members were a bit pale about the gills when the film reached its conclusion. When it was previewed in Santa Barbara one hears strange tales of fainting women, irate men and sobbing children.

None of these things deterred Carl.Laemmle Jr. from showing Frankenstein exactly us was. It is the studio's contention that 'Dracula"—famous for its horrific content, went over big. "Dracula" pales into insignificance in view of the ghoulish qualities of this Mary Shelley story.

Colin Clive is one of the handsomest of the English acting contingent but the film contains no sex-appeal whatsoever. Its plain blood-curdling grand-guignol material nnd you are warned about it before it unfolds, Boris Karloff as the monster does a magnificent piece of acting' and his make-up surpasses even the expert work of this kind by Lon Chaney. But ye sadists will have a very, very pleasant evening of it, what with the digging up of dead bodies, torturing of the living, the hangings, drowning of an unsuspecting 4-year-old in a peculiarly romantic manner, and final burning and crushing of the monster himself in a finale that is just "booful" if you're given to that kind of entertainment.

When there was a brief torture scene in "Moby Dick" I remember quite a loud howl of protest. And when Lon Chaney made "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" public spirit ran high over the flogging scene. But times, apparently, have changed and we may devote five or seven reels to such gay themes without protest.

Paramount is planning to film the  "Portrait of a Man With Red Hair'" by Hugh Walpole—a tale which has a sinister torture chamber as one very important angle of the plot. In fact, that room and what goes on in it, explains the man with red hair, so it would be difficult to eliminate it from the picture.

Perhaps gang-war pictures accustomed us to bloodshed and cruelty. If so, the new cycle of Hollywood horrors will carry on the good work. Since producers arc making them on the strength of previous box-office records of like things, there's no argument as to the public's acceptance of them.