Comparing the Creation Scene in James Whale's 1931 Frankenstein and Kenneth Brannagh's 1994 Version
There are many similarities and differences between James Whale’s 1931
and Kenneth Brannagh’s 1994 Frankenstein. They differ in the way that
lighting, sound effects and camera shots are used to create tension
and suspense for the audience. Some similarities that occur are the
religious references which are present throughout the scenes. The
purposes of the scenes are also the same, to create tension, suspense
and to shock the audience; however they do this in different ways as
the audiences the two films were intended for are very different. It
would be easier to shock or scare a 1931 audience than one from 1994
as the special effects and camera techniques available in 1931 would
have been very limited. Where as in 1994 there were many special
effects and techniques available to use. Furthermore, James Whale’s
Frankenstein is more of a traditional horror film as it uses typical
iconography of the horror genre. Where as Kenneth Brannagh’s
Frankenstein follows Mary Shelley’s original novel more closely.
The establishing shot of the scenes in James Whales and Kenneth
Brannagh’s interpretations could not be more different in the way that
they create tension and suspense for the audience. James Whale uses
typical iconography of the horror genre; the scene opens with a high
angle, long shot of a very dark, quite daunting looking castle on top
a large hill surrounded by sparse trees and craggy rocks. The sound
effects used are quite limited, he does not use music to create
tension, unlike Kenneth Brannagh’s interpretation, instead the only
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...light from the window, this could
be seen as Jesus rising up to heaven as the monster appears to be
disappearing into the light.
In conclusion, I think that the ways in which James Whale and Kenneth
Brannagh have created tension and suspense for the audiences are very
different; they have done this by using sound effects, lighting
techniques and camera shots but in very different ways. However, the
films do have some similarities; they both make religious references
and their purposes are also the same, to create suspense and tension
for the audience. I thought that Kenneth Brannagh’s interpretation
was more effective in the way that he used the various techniques to
create tension and shock the audience. Although on the other hand,
James Whale’s interpretation would have had the same effect on a 1931
audience.
Frankenstein is a horror movie that tells the story of Dr. Henry Frankenstein’s experiment. In search for the fame and glory of playing to be god, he reaches a point where he is able to revive dead people. In this version of Frankenstein’s monster we see a selfish and careless scientist that created a creature with his intelligence. The way the character is shown reflects how ambitious someone can be to reach to be known in the world. This movie makes the people who are watching to feel empathy on the poor creature. This poor creature that did not want to live in a life where everyone is going to hate him for having a horrible aspect and not following rules that he has no idea about.
Both characters were similar in how they were ‘resurrected’ in each of their books. Frankenstein performed an experiment through a process involving galvanism to produce the Creature, and
In both The Martian and Frankenstein, the main characters Mark Watney and Victor Frankenstein have similarities that help offer a comparison of perspectives on the ethical situations that occurred in two different time periods. Both works had a plot centralized around a ‘monster’. The type of monster differed for each story but was similar in the sense that both monsters were created through an obsession. In Frankenstein the monster is obvious, but in The Martian Nick Watney is the monster created by his obsession for research. In the movie Watney asks to wait out the storm in order to collect more research. As the crew are walking to the shuttle to evacuate, Watney pauses to offer more ideas to prolong their stay on Mars and is promptly hit
Most Americans have some idea of who Frankenstein is, as a result of the many Frankenstein movies. Contrary to popular belief Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is a scientist, not a monster. The "monster" is not the inarticulate, rage-driven criminal depicted in the 1994 film version of the novel. Shelley’s original Frankenstein was misrepresented by this Kenneth branagh film, most likely to send a different message to the movie audience than Shelley’s novel shows to its readers. The conflicting messages of technologies deserve being dependent on its creator (address by Shelley) and poetic justice, or triumph over evil (showed by the movie) is best represented by the scene immediately preceding Frankenstein’s monster’s death.
James Whale's adaptation of the story of Frankenstein, while it is clearly and deservedly a horror classic, is tremendously less than it could have and SHOULD have been. There are unexplainable deviations from the novel, such as the fact that Dr. Frankenstein's name was, for some reason, changed from Victor in the novel to Henry in the film, and the film itself really only covers about a quarter to a third of one chapter in the book - that's how much has been left out. There was probably only about 5% or 6% of the full story included in this film, and I am willing to guess that the sheer magnitude of ignored material in the original story is at least as much of a reason that there were so many subsequent Frankenstein films (and Re-Animators and whatnot) as was the film's commercial success. This may, in fact, be one of those rare cases where the imitators may have just wanted to do it right, or at least tell the REST of the story.
Since the beginning of time man has been infatuated with the idea of pushing the human body to its limits. The Guinness Book of World Records, the Olympics, the Space program, and more are all dedicated to celebrating Humans that push these boundaries. In the age of technology and scientific advancement ideas that once seemed like science fiction are now a reality. In order to push these constraints to human evolution, ethics and morals have been pushed aside. In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein a scientist, Victor Frankenstein, plays God by bringing his creature to life. When Frankenstein realizes the full extent to what he’s done, he abandons the monster. The monster then seeking revenge, killing all who Victor cares for. In Ishiguro’s Never Let
The creature starts learning that many people in the town react when they see him and he is not like them but doesn’t fully understand why at this point in the novel. When other humans see the creature, they become scared, agitated, and violent towards him. People in the society and town helps educate him to understand that he is not a human being. Much as John in The Elephant Man, he learns and realizes that he is different from other people by society. John has a severely deformed appearance that contributes to his alienation by society. Similar to the creature in Frankenstein, John is referred to as a “creature” and a “freak” throughout the film. The police officer even says, “Freaks are one thing. There are no objections to freaks. But
Frankenstein Over Time Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein is impressive, entertaining, and fascinating, so it is no surprise there have been so many films and artworks influenced by her novel. Many of which have put their own spin to the horror novel, especially the character of the creature that remains one of the most recognized icons in horror fiction. However, there have been critics who argue modern versions and variations have lost the horror and passion that is an essential to the creature. The start of the Creature is bound to be one book. However, public impression of the Creature has changed severely since the publication of the original novel, leading to diverse styles and plot lines in its diverse film adaptations.
In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Victor Frankenstein and the monster that he creates are very similar. For example, Victor creates the monster to be like himself. Another similarity is that the anger of both Victor and the monster is brought about by society. One more parallel between Victor and the monster is that they both became recluses. These traits that Victor and the monster possess show that they are very similar.
Man has always been driven to create. We constantly shape the world around us by inventing stories of heroes and monsters, by crafting complex but passionate ideals about good and evil. Some relish in the power that this manipulation of reality wields; others are more innocent in that they are simply yielding to a universal longing for something in which to believe.
Frankenstein is a fictional story written by Mary Shelly. It was later adapted into a movie version directed by James Whales. There are more differences than similarities between the book and the movie. This is because, the movie is mainly based on the 1920’s play, other than the original Mary Shelly’s book Frankenstein. A text has to be altered in one way or the other while making a movie due to a number of obvious factors. A lot of details from the book were missing in the movie, but the changes made by Whales were effective as they made the movie interesting, and successful.
Many people consider The Bride of Frankenstein to be better than the original Frankenstein. This is because the sequel to Frankenstein had a musical score whereas the original Frankenstein never had one. The fact that the original lacked background music and the sequel had a wonderful music score is the biggest difference between the two movies when it came to sound. In The Bride of Frankenstein, music was used as a way of hinting things to the audience. Music would become faster and louder right before something big was about to happen and it would slow down and sound sweet in parts that were supposed to show the good, gentle side of the monster. The music also filled space in between scenes and made the film flow better.
First, to illustrate the events of the story a writer uses particularly well thought out and descriptive vocabulary. This is done to help the reader visualize the image in the author's mind. But in Mary Shelly's, "Frankenstein", she has gone far beyond this, she not only paints a picture in the mind of the reader, but the words written actually place them in a state of mind. A great example of this is when she wrote, "I saw the dull yellow eye of the creature open; it breathed hard, and a convulsive motion agitated its limbs." As a result of passages like this, "Frankenstein" has captivated it's readers for roughly two centuries. In addition it has not only taken hold of the literary minds of the world, the story has also found itself on to the big screen. Mary Shelly's crowning achievement has inspired about fifty movies. Unfortunately, a vast quantity of the motion picture created does not follow the theme of the original story. They branched out from it and portrayed the creation as an inarticulate, rampaging monster when initially he was a confused and vengeful genius. What ever the form "Frankenstein has taken root in our society and its here to stay.
goes into a different direction by having Fritz steel a brain from the local university.
Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and Robert Louis Stevenson's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde are two horrific tales of science gone terribly wrong. Shelley?s novel eloquently tells the story of a scientist, Victor Frankenstein, who creates a living monster out of decomposed body parts, while Stevenson?s novel describes the account of one, Henry Jekyll, who creates a potion to bring out the pure evil side to himself. Although the two scientists differ in their initial response and action to their creations, there are strong similarities between their raging curiosity to surpass human limitation, as well as their lack of responsibility concerning their actions. These similarities raise an awareness of human limitation in the realm of science: the further the two scientists go in their experiments, the more trouble and pain they cause to themselves and to others.