One of the first film franchises, Universal Classic Monsters made stars out of Dracula, the Mummy and the Invisible Man. Which '30s movie is best?
Before the MCU or the DCEU, the very first shared cinematic universe was the Universal Classic Monsters. Starting withThe Phantom of the Opera in 1925 and ending withThe Creature Walks Among Us in 1956, these films gave rise to beloved creatures like Dracula, the Frankenstein monster, and the Invisible Man.
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In the past decade, Universal's revival of these monsters has generated new interest in the earlier films. From Leigh Whannell'sThe Invisible Man toKaryn Kusama's forthcomingDracula, these characters are being updated for modern audiences.Many of the most iconicUniversal Monsterscame to life in the 1930s, and their stories reached new heights in the 1940s with dozens of crossover films.
Marketed as a sequel to 1931'sDracula,Dracula's Daughter starsGloria Holden in the title role. Holden playsCountess Marya Zaleska, a vampire who hopes that she can live a normal life by destroying her late father's body. When this doesn't work, the Countess seeks the help of a psychiatrist.
As her cravings increase, Dracula'sheir lures the psychiatrist's wife to Transylvania, giving the movie a lesbian subtext. The only actor from the original film toreturn forDracula's Daughteris Edward Van Sloan, who playsProfessor Von Helsing (a slight alternation from his previous role as Van Helsing). Despite Holden's alluring performance, the trudging plot and overabundance of dialogue keep this feature from being as entertaining as it could be.
The first Hollywood mainstream film to star a werewolf,Werewolf of London sees Henry Hull playing a hairy, hungry beast six years before Lon Chaney Jr. shined inThe Wolf Man,another Universal film. Thetone and special effects make-up in bothmovies are similar. In the 1935 film, Hull plays Wilfred Glendon, a botanist attacked by a werewolf during a trip to Tibet.
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Glendon returns to London, where he fendsoff his wolfen cravings with the help of themariphasa plant. When Glendon runs out of blossoms, all bets are off in this Stuart Walker-directed movie, which co-starsWarner Oland as Dr. Yogami, a fellow botanist.
German cinematographerKarl Freund's second feature as a director stars English actorBoris Karloff as an ancient Egyptian mummy named Imhotep who is accidentally brought back to life by a team of archaeologists. One of many Universal films starring Karloff,The Mummy established many of the tropes that would come in later films centered around Egyptian mummies, including the problematic othering of Eastern culture.
Imhotep searches for his long-lost love in the film, who he believes has been reincarnated into a woman living in the present. The Mummy was a major success upon release, leading to numerous sequels, reboots, and remakes.
Go here to see the original:
Every Universal Classic Monster Movie From The '30s, Ranked (According To Rotten Tomatoes) - Screen Rant
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