Bride of Frankenstein (Movie Monsters Series)

The Movie Monsters Series adapts the screenplays of classic black & white horror movies as books for young readers (the series was edited by Dr. Howard Schroeder in the Department of Elementary Education at Mankato State). In the case of "Bride of Frankenstein" Carl R. Green and William R. Sanford work from the screenplay of Garrett Fort. However, the prologue makes a rather interesting error in that it passes off the 1931 Universal Studios classic film version of "Frankenstein" as the plot for Mary Shelley's novel, with the creature dying in the flames of the old mill rather than disappearing into the frozen wasteland of the Artic. While it is true that Universal had to find a way to rescue the monster from his fiery death, the idea of creating a bride for the creature is still part of Shelley's novel. "Bride of Frankenstein" tells a even greater horror story that the original, because with all that went wrong the first time, such as the creature killing a young girl and almost killing his fiance Elizabeth, Dr. Henry Frankenstein wants to try to create life in his laboratory a second time. He is prodded on in this effort by Dr. Septimus Pretorius, who actually puts the "mad" in mad scientist more than Henry. Meanwhile, the creature is out in the world roaming about and manages to make a friend of a blind hermit living alone in the woods. Here is where the screenplay, as well as this novelization, captures the essence of Shelley's argument in her novel. Frankenstein's great sin was not in creating life, but in abandoning his creature after it was born. From the hermit the creature gets a sense of what it is missing and returns to its creator to demand it make a bride for the monster--or suffer the loss of his own beloved. As an adaptation this little volume is both concise and accurate, sticking to the essence of the film. Both the comic elements involving some of the locals and the monster's love of things dead are eliminated, and I would agree with the reasons for doing so. The reading level is certainly appropriate for the intended age group of elementary school students. The book is also illustrated with black & white photographs of the film, although, ironically, the title creature is seen only under wraps before her reanimation. Most people consider "Bride of Frankenstein" to be superior to "Frankenstein" as a film, but I believe it is important to see them both. Furthermore, if you truly love works of horror, you have to read the original novel sooner or later. I have taught not only the novel but the two films, because they set up interesting discussions and papers dealing with what Hollywood has done to Shelley's original vision of "the Modern Prometheus" (the novel's subtitle).