As exceptional as James Whale's original Frankenstein was, it was pretty unambitious compared to his surreal and comic sequel (which he famously preferred). Though not particularly scary by anyone's standards today, Whale nevertheless brought artistic legitimacy to horror for the first time (outside of Eastern Europe, at least) by loading his film with subversive religious imagery like the iconic crucifixion of one of history's most famous monsters, bizarre asides like the bottled experiments of Dr. Pretorius, and of course the fact that this Production Code-Certified film is, at its heart, entirely about necrophilia.
As exceptional as James Whale's original Frankenstein was, it was pretty unambitious compared to his surreal and comic sequel (which he famously preferred). Though not particularly scary by anyone's standards today, Whale nevertheless brought artistic legitimacy to horror for the first time (outside of Eastern Europe, at least) by loading his film with subversive religious imagery like the iconic crucifixion of one of history's most famous monsters, bizarre asides like the bottled experiments of Dr. Pretorius, and of course the fact that this Production Code-Certified film is, at its heart, entirely about necrophilia.
