Overview
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Release Date:
13 March 1942 (USA)
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Tagline:
Stark Terror! Added Thrills! in a Spine-Tingling Experience !
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Plot:
Ygor resurrects Frankenstein's monster and brings him to the original doctor's son, Ludwig, for help...
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User Comments:
The Ghost Of Frankenstein (1942) ***
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Crew believed to be complete
Additional Details
Runtime:
67 min
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1
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Sound Mix:
Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
During breaks in filming,
Lon Chaney Jr. would often treat child cast members to ice cream.
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Goofs:
Revealing mistakes: The dramatic shadow cast by the monster's hand when first discovered by Ygor in the sulfur pit comes from a light source completely at odds with the overhead light shining down into the sulfur pit in which we see the monster encased.
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Quotes:
Chief Constable:
[
the Monster recognizes Ludwig] He seems to recognize you Doctor.
Dr. Ludwig Frankenstein:
[
referring to the Monster] I never saw this...man before in my life. I know nothing about him.
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FAQ
How many Frankenstein movies did Universal Studios make?
Why did they replace Wolf von Frankenstein with his brother Ludwig?
Is "The Ghost of Frankenstein" based on a novel?
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I have something of a love-hate relationship with this film. It was only the second in the Frankenstein series I had watched: shown on Italian TV in the summer of 1989 as part of a late-night show hosted by 2 oddly endearing monster puppets(!), I managed to tape the transmission and saw it again a few days later, enjoying it a great deal both times. However, when I caught up with it again on DVD 12 years later, its charm had ebbed considerably and I felt it was a very routine effort all around with little of the high style which had marked the three previous entries in the saga; viewing it, by way of Universal's double-feature DVD, paired as it was with the magnificent SON OF FRANKENSTEIN (1939) - which, up to that point, I had never watched in its entirety! - certainly didn't help matters any! So, this time I decided to reverse the formula, as it were, and watched GHOST prior to SON - and it worked, as I found much to like in it all over again! In fact, now I would rate it above the even more contrived monster bashes HOUSE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1944) and HOUSE OF Dracula (1945) - as here we still have the luxury of one monster for the entire duration. Of course, the film doesn't remotely measure up to the irreproachable quality of its predecessors and the reduced budget is quite evident, but the formula seems to work all the same - even if the end result is relatively discreet, particularly when compared to SON's ornate set design and its overgenerous running time.
The brain transplant plot is interesting enough and one actually wonders why it wasn't utilized earlier since the abnormal brain given to the monster clearly is behind its anti-social, criminal behavior (though, in all fairness, it was never given much of a chance by the suspicious, unfriendly townsfolk!). The cast, as always, is first-rate although the performances aren't: Cedric Hardwicke clearly wishes he was elsewhere (it was unfortunate as well that when the titular ghost appears, it does so in Hardwicke's persona and unmistakable voice!); Ralph Bellamy and Evelyn Ankers are no great shakes as the romantic leads; Bela Lugosi (who returns as evil shepherd Ygor), fails to repeat the character's essential repulsiveness since here he has no opponent to equal Basil Rathbone in SON; Lon Chaney Jr., in his sole stint as the monster, is only fair (he's best at demonstrating the creature's strength - controlled by Ygor - but his scenes with the little girl, intended to bring its emotive powers to the fore, aren't as interesting and result only in being sappy); also, for those who know about his fate, I can't help feeling that Lionel Atwill as the once-great doctor brought down by a scandal and reduced to the level of assistant - albeit a duplicitous one - to his former student (Frankenstein) is basically playing himself here! The lack of a proper budget (forcing the use of standing sets and musical cues from THE WOLF MAN [1941]!), however, doesn't preclude some effective shadowy lighting throughout or a fiery climax which is so well done that Universal would recycle sections of it into the finale of HOUSE OF Dracula!!