No monster has become quite the staple of pop culture quite like Frankenstein. That is, Frankenstein's monster. Boris Karloff's portrayal of the character in the 1931 film has become the creature's definitive form. The gigantic lumbering monster has appeared in countless sequels, adaptations and parodies and yet, this isn't even close to the character in the source material. The monster from Mary Shelley's novel is much more...human, ironically. He's much less of a zombie and is mostly just a man who has been brought back to life. The film version of Frankenstein's monster is simply that, a monster. I believe this is why we acknowledge this version as our definitive version of the character. The ideas and characters in the novel are much more complex and wouldn't make the kind of monster movie audiences of the time would have wanted. The monstrous form that the film version of Frankenstein took was such a great character on its own, although distinctly different from the monster he is based on, and thus is remembered fondly as one of cinema's great movie monsters. The film Frankenstein is a much more accessible version of the story as well and reaches audiences through different avenues. We know Frankenstein has the film version because that is what gets more exposure. I'm sure there are many who don't know that Frankenstein isn't the monster's name or even that the entire story is based on a book.
I agree with everything that you said about the Frankenstein monster. I agree that Boris Karloff's monster has become the definitive form of the monster that everyone has grown to love. But, I thought that the monster from his movie was more human-like. I did not look at it in the way he acted but in his look. I thought that in Mary Shelley's novel the monster was more hideous and more monstrous looking than that of the monster in Boris Karloff's movie. Boris' monster, to me, had more human looking features. That is just my opinion though, and the next person might not agree with me.
ReplyDeleteI'd agree that the Boris Karloff's portrayal along with the ease of access that film has is what lead to the monster being dubbed Frankenstein by the public. This is only further instigated by commercial value that the monster has during Halloween, where we see costumes and decorations labeled Frankenstein, hitting us from a very young age the misconception of the monster's identity.
ReplyDelete