Friday, September 13, 2024

House of Frankenstein

House of Frankenstein (1944)

Runtime: 71 minutes

Directed by: Erle C. Kenton

Starring: Boris Karloff, Lon Chaney, Jr., J. Carrol Naish, John Carradine, Anne Gwynne

From: Universal

Even if it’s not Jason Voorhees, a horror picture still had to be discussed on the evening of Friday the 13th. One featuring Frankenstein’s Monster, Dracula, The Wolf Man & Boris Karloff as a stereotypical mad scientist sounded at least more promising than the movie’s antecedent-Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, viewed last October and left me lukewarm. 

It is, although it can be rather segmented at times. Karloff and his hunchbacked friend escape from jail via circumstances. Circumstances also led them to Dracula’s body, part of a traveling horror exhibit. They also encounter the body of Frankenstein’s Monster and The Wolfman, in the spot they landed at due to the conclusion of Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man. Karloff has a rather Grand Guignol plan for exacting revenge on those who stopped his attempts to carry on the work of Dr. Frankenstein. While Larry Talbot is rather fatalistic about his fate, Daniel finds a love in… well, the old term was “Gypsy” but I hear they say it's a slur (and Lord knows it has negative connotations now anyhow) so instead the proper term is “Romani.”

The picture is not that frightening even in comparison to the rest of the franchise. Be that as it may, it still had nice sets & matte paintings which set the mood, as did the rainy/foggy scenes. Most importantly for me, not only was it nice to see Karloff, Lon Chaney, Jr., John Carradine, and J. Carrol Naish (as Daniel), they were all in an entertaining yarn only 71 minutes in length. It’s not the best movie featuring those Universal Monsters nor is it the best usage of them; foreknowledge of this may set your expectations in check and thus enjoy this as a tolerable horror sequel which still provides entertainment & the appropriate vibes.

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