One of my favorite subgenres of film is Classic Horror. It is such a specific genre, but they are so good. In particular, I love the ones coming out of Universal in the 1930s through 1950s. What I enjoy most about the genre is the extravagant characters, amazing set design, and the themes.
The characters in these films are truly larger than life and nothing short of iconic. Bela Lugosi's Dracula is over-the-top in the most amazing ways. His voice and his costume will live in the halls of cinema for eternity. In the same movie, Edward Van Sloan's Dr. Van Helsing is also great. In 1931's Dracula you can truly feel these two great characters battling wits. My two favorites of this genre are James Whale's Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein. Boris Karloff's monster is one of the most tragic figures in all of film and is played by Karloff to perfection. Not to mention, the make-up design by Jack Pierce is synonymous with the character. Additionally, you have Colin Clive's ambitious and mad Victor Frankenstein, Dwight Frye's Igor-prototype Fritz, and in the …show more content…
While the other elements date the film, the core ideas of the films are timeless. Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein deal with what it means to human, who are the true monsters in the world, and where the line should be drawn in scientific endeavors. The Wolf Man shows the horror of not being in control of your own body and unwillingly doing things that are out of your control. It truly depicts the tragedy of a man who wants to live life, but cannot stop doing unspeakable crimes. The Brute Man is a great film that should be considered up there with the rest, which shows that (similar to Frankenstein) humans are the real monsters. Additionally, The Invisible Man depicts a man driven to insanity by his own scientific endeavors. These films deal with very human, very real topics in a very over-the-top
The characters in these films are truly larger than life and nothing short of iconic. Bela Lugosi's Dracula is over-the-top in the most amazing ways. His voice and his costume will live in the halls of cinema for eternity. In the same movie, Edward Van Sloan's Dr. Van Helsing is also great. In 1931's Dracula you can truly feel these two great characters battling wits. My two favorites of this genre are James Whale's Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein. Boris Karloff's monster is one of the most tragic figures in all of film and is played by Karloff to perfection. Not to mention, the make-up design by Jack Pierce is synonymous with the character. Additionally, you have Colin Clive's ambitious and mad Victor Frankenstein, Dwight Frye's Igor-prototype Fritz, and in the …show more content…
While the other elements date the film, the core ideas of the films are timeless. Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein deal with what it means to human, who are the true monsters in the world, and where the line should be drawn in scientific endeavors. The Wolf Man shows the horror of not being in control of your own body and unwillingly doing things that are out of your control. It truly depicts the tragedy of a man who wants to live life, but cannot stop doing unspeakable crimes. The Brute Man is a great film that should be considered up there with the rest, which shows that (similar to Frankenstein) humans are the real monsters. Additionally, The Invisible Man depicts a man driven to insanity by his own scientific endeavors. These films deal with very human, very real topics in a very over-the-top