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Old 02-27-2010, 12:53 AM
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roshiq roshiq is offline
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100 Years of Frankenstein in Cinema!

Although may be we all HDC Horror Classic lovers here already know about it but still I open this thread is for a little way to tribute & share the joy of Frankenstein's undisputed giant legacy in history of world cinema.

Mary Shelley's novel Frankenstein, and the famous character of Frankenstein's monster have influencing the popular culture for more than a century. The work has inspired numerous films, television programs, video games and derivative works.
Though in popular culture, people have tended incorrectly to refer to the monster as "Frankenstein", but the character of the monster remains one of the most recognized icons in horror fiction. Frankenstein is infused with some elements of the Gothic novel and the Romantic movement. It was also a warning against the expansion of modern man in the Industrial Revolution, alluded to in the novel's subtitle, The Modern Prometheus. The story has had an enormous influence across literature and popular culture and spawned a complete genre of horror stories and films.

Now, it has been almost exactly 100 years ago when our beloved Monster first made its appearance in celluloid arena. The story of Frankenstein was first brought to the screen in 1910, about 15 years after the invention of the new medium film. On January 17, 1910 J. Searle Dawley and his crew of actors began work on a new film in the Edison studios at Decatur Avenue and Oliver Place in the Bronx, New York City. It was to be the first motion picture adaptation of Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein". Written by Dawley and included and uncredited cast of Augustus Phillips as Dr. Frankenstein, Charles Ogle as the Monster, and Mary Fuller as the doctor's fiancée.



The film, which ran 12 minutes, was shot in just three days and was released a little over 2 months later on March 18, 1910. "Frankenstein" got moderate success. But this is one of the only Frankenstein films where the monster is truly created. All Frankenstein films that followed assembled body parts from various corpses to make the monster. In this film, Frankenstein uses chemicals and "potions" to create the monster. The "creation" scene was made by filming a monster-dummy burning, and then playing the footage backwards.
Although some sources credit Thomas Edison as the producer, he in fact played no direct part in the activities of the motion picture company that bore his name.
For many years, this film was believed to be a lost film. In 1963, a plot description and stills were discovered published in the March 15, 1910 issue of an old Edison film catalog, The Edison Kinetogram. In the 1950s, a print of this film was purchased by a Wisconsin film collector, Alois F. Dettlaff, who did not realize its rarity until many years later. Its existence was first revealed in the mid-1970s. Although somewhat deteriorated, the film was in viewable condition, complete with titles and tints as seen in 1910. Dettlaff had a 35 mm preservation copy made by the George Eastman House in the late 1970s, at which point it was reintroduced to film audiences.

For the ones who haven't seen the film yet:




The second adaptation entitled Life Without Soul was made in 1915 by director Joseph Smiley. Starring William A. Cohill as Dr. William Frawley - a modern-day Frankenstein who creates a soulless man, played to much critical praise by Percy Standing, who wore little make-up in the role. In this version the name Frankenstein was not used. The Monster kills his sister. He chases it across Europe and shoots it shortly before he dies of exhaustion.
The film was shot at various locations around the United States, and reputedly featured much spectacle. In the end, it turns out that a young man has dreamed the events of the film after falling asleep reading Mary Shelley's novel. This film is now considered a lost film.
There was also at least one European film version, the Italian Il Mostro di Frankenstein ("The Monster of Frankenstein") in 1920. The film's producer Luciano Albertini essayed the role of Frankenstein, with the creature being played by Umberto Guarracino, and Eugenio Testa directing from a screenplay by Giovanni Drivetti. his version includes a confrontation between Frankenstein and his creation, a scene apparently taken from the novel. Unfortunately no copies of this film exist anymore making it impossible to reconstruct the full plot of Testa's movie.

Source: Wikipedia, Newyorkcity100yearsago.blogspot.com, FrankensteinFilms.com.
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