Why are filmmakers so fascinated by Frankenstein?

The final version of the film "Frankenstein" directed by James Weil was mounted in 1931. Since then, 85 years have passed, but the completely demonic creation of the writer Mary Shelley continues to come alive on screens with enviable constancy. The very same book of the Englishwoman noted already 200-year-old anniversary. So why does her character inspire filmmakers so much from the day of the invention of cinematography?

Unhealthy curiosity to the horror of death

James Weil, the creator of the first picture of a monstrous monster, admits that the story, released from the pen of an Englishwoman, makes it possible to come close to the horror of death. At least, this feeling he felt after reading the script. A crazy thought flashed in his head: "It would be fun if it were plausible to show something impossible from a physical point of view."

Unhealthy curiosity about the mystery of death is not the only reason for director's mania. There are huge opportunities for creative expression. The creators of the paintings can demonstrate from the screen the quintessence of human obsession and how far you can go, trying to interfere with the naturalness of biological processes. What will happen if good intentions, fueled by scientific knowledge, lead to a deplorable result?

Variety of genres

There really is a place to turn around. The viewer sees both the doom of love, and the horror of death, and heroism, and disturbing prospects. The plot is so multifaceted that each time it can be played in a new way. Despite the fact that the public will never be satiated with a grim action, for today, based on the work of Mary Shelley, both animated films and grotesque comedies were shot.

How did the story about the monstrous monster originate?

No less interesting is the theme of creating a terrible monster. The film "Gothic", shot in 1986 by director Ken Russell, tells the story of the appearance of Frankenstein. On the shores of the Geneva Lake, all progressive writer's beau monde gathered in the person of Lord Byron, Percy Shelley (future wife of Mary Shelley) and John William Polidori, who later became the founder of the genre of works about vampires. There was also a single woman, Mary Goodwin, the beloved of Percy Shelley.

One night, Lord Byron threw a literary challenge at the audience. He asked each of his friends to come up with his fascinating story of ghosts. The most incredible story immediately came to mind the future Mrs. Shelley. According to the writer, an interesting basis for the whole book can serve as the idea of resuscitation of the corpse with the help of galvanism (muscle stimulation with electricity). From that moment, right up until the very birth of Frankenstein, Mary herself was in a state of obsession. She was ill with her future hero. These feelings were completely transferred to the inveterate scientist, who tried to deceive death.

Shocking plot

Now we are hard to surprise with shocking, almost incredible stories, but the Frankenstein monster will always stand alone. For two centuries of the existence of this character people have become accustomed to it. Looking back, one can only assume how much the work of Mary Shelley became a cultural shock for her time. The book, published in 1818, was met with contempt and indignation. Despite the fact that the aversion to a vicious monster so penetrated the minds of readers, they could not ignore the very idea of resurrecting a person from the dead. Since that moment, many scientists have wondered: where does humanity go and is the human mind really able to lead us to such deplorable consequences? Even today, we are terrified about this.

There was a powerful psychological background

Despite the fact that the scientific component of the problem, and the fears associated with it, prevailed in the society in the first half of the 20th century, the psychological element is the red thread of the first screen version of Frankenstein. Another version of the director Searle Dawley tells of a monster that emerged from a boiling cauldron. This gray-haired creature could not look at its own reflection in the mirror. A powerful scene of self-exposure reflects the whole essence of Frankenstein. Since then, filmmakers have followed this slippery path with varying success. Someone managed to win the confidence of the public, someone suffered in this arena of fiasco.

Continuation of a story

In 1935, the screens went on the continuation of the story. The film "The Bride of Frankenstein" reflects the female version of the monster, loudly yelling at the sight of its spouse. Until 1948, filmmakers Universal Pictures filmed two more sequels, which went even further. In the tape "Abbott and Costello meet Frankenstein" the viewer gets acquainted with three monsters at once. Then followed ten years of calm, which was interrupted by the sensational first in the world of color horror on this topic.

Success was replaced by failures

The next director, inspired by the idea of a film adaptation of the horrible monster, needed to surprise the audience at whatever cost. So there was a sentimental parody, created in 1974 by Mel Brooks. However, the picture "Young Frankenstein" did not win success with the public. Only 20 years later, director Kenneth Brana will return to the cult hero a pristine, gloomy appearance.

In two decades, the cult master Tim Burton will release a black and white animated film "Frankenvini". This story tells how a nerd boy tries to resurrect his dead pet. Modern TV versions abound with digressions from the main plot. For example, the series "Scary Tales" shows how Dr. Frankenstein suffers from drug addiction, and his heartless creation sheds the blood of innocent people on the streets of Victorian London. The monster so much tastes that it does not even stop to stop. Especially since the police in front of him is powerless.

The loudest failures

The level of pathos in some versions is off scale, which is why the filmmakers, daring to surpass the first screen version, suffer a deafening fiasco. The famous British director and screenwriter Kenneth Branagh so "fattened" his own ambitions, that he asserted himself to be a violent scientist. Even participation in the picture of the great Robert De Niro in the role of a heartless monster did not save the situation. She added fuel to the fire and bloated Shakespearean theatricality. That's why the tape "Frankenstein Mary Shelley" was sharply criticized by critics.

Even more ridiculous are the attempts to turn the monster into the savior of mankind in the film of Stuart Beattie, released on screens in 2014. According to the idea of the creators of the next version, the monstrous monster had to embark on the path of humanity, but the picture "Frankenstein" completely failed in a short time.

Recent screen versions

Something original and meaningful was tried to create David Cronenberg. The film "The Fly" emotionally exhausts the viewer. In this version, the scientist himself as a result of teleportation and mixing of genes is transformed into a monster. In 2015, the screen came out with the tape "Victor Frankenstein", in which the emphasis was laid on the cooperation of the scientist with his assistant hunchback. Critics have already hastened to accuse this version of frank plagiarism, suspecting direct parallels with the "Sherlock". Taking into account the modern tendency of cloning cells, the obsessed scientist still has not lost its relevance. Apparently, the viewer has to wait for the continuation.