The film's stories consist of "My Creation, My Beloved" - a descendant of Victor Frankenstein attempts to create the perfect man and woman. "Crawler from the Grave" - another Frankenstein descendant returns from the grave in the most unexpected way. "Madhouse of Death" - A private detective ends up in an old, dark house where a scientist is working on a very strange experiment. "Dr. Karnstein's Creation" - A mad scientist creates a monster that is a hybrid of Frankenstein's creature and the Vampire monster.
"My Creation, My Beloved" moves a bit slow, but it stays true to the original Frankenstein asthetic, and often shows a homage to the Hammer Film era. The cinematography and locations are atmospheric and a nice marker for what a classic horror fan wants. Although the story seems slightly unoriginal, it does give us a fun, alternative ending to the Frankenstein tale.
"Crawler From The Grave" moves a bit away from the more classic tale, but still manages to honor Shelley's characters. It does venture into more paranormal area with the cursed ring worn by Frankenstein. A more original tale, I thought it was interesting but I felt the absence of the monster making was crippling the entertainment value.
"Madhouse Of Death" was my least favorite of the four stories. It ventured too far to really show recognizable Frankenstein homage. On its own though, the concept and story choices are interesting and worthy. A total nod to late 30's and 40's horror noir, like The Monster Walks and The Return Of Doctor X. I just didn't get any real connection to Mary Shelley from this one. And there is a lot of cultural insensitivity in the film with a few characters, I know it is unintentionally present.
"Dr. Karstein's Creation" is a revisioning of the classic Frankenstein tale, and among the strongest of the four stories. There is an air of misogny that weighs on the entertainment value, but the story on a whole returns to a truer interpretation of the Shelley story and has some nice visual asthetics and creature design.
Overall "Tales Of Frankenstein" is a decent indie anthology that tries real hard to celebrate Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. It has its good moments and bad moments. The stories may not be original but Gluts' choices and perspective is. Low-budget indie fans will find plenty to like about this movie, however thriller and popcorn horror fans may be disappointed.
