Universal Horror

"Universal Horror" is a bit of a misnomer, as this documentary also covers horror films, especially of the early 1930s, from other studios, including "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" (1920 and 1931/32, Paramount), "Island of Lost Souls" (1932, Paramount), "King Kong" (1933, RKO) and "Mystery of the Wax Museum" (1933, Warner Bros.), as well as a host of silent films from Weimar Germany and elsewhere--dating as far back as "The Red Spectre" (1907, Pathé), which is compared to a scene in "Bride of Frankenstein" (1935) and concluding with Abel Gance's 1937/38 remake "J'Accuse!" Attention, of course, is also given to some of the Dracula, Frankenstein, Mummy and Wolf Man films of Universal, as well as other studio entries, such as "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" (1923), "The Phantom of the Opera" (1925), "The Cat and the Canary" (1927), "The Old Dark House" (1932), "The Invisible Man" (1933), "The Black Cat" (1934), "The Raven" (1935) and others.

Examining so many films doesn't allow time for too much in-depth analysis, but as the relatively lackluster and derivative video documentaries devoted to single films also available on Universal home video collections, e.g. "The Frankenstein Files" (2002) and "Monster by Moonlight" (1999), demonstrate, more time doesn't equal better insight. Having already read David Skal's book "Hollywood Gothic," for instance, I don't care for more than his brief statement in this documentary for his rather spurious argument that the Spanish-language "Dracula" is technically superior to its English-language counterpart, both having been produced by Universal in 1931.

Kevin Brownlow is the best in the business of making documentaries on classic cinema, and I especially enjoy when he's provided more length than here, as in the mini-series format for his programs on silent cinema in the U.S. ("Hollywood" (1980)) and Europe ("Cinema Europe: The Other Hollywood" (1995)), or when he narrows his focus and examines fresh material, as in the use of discarded footage in "Unknown Chaplin" (1983). Regardless, "Universal Horror" moves briskly from film to film, providing a few interesting comparisons and background tidbits for each along the way. For example, clips of "The Golem" (1920) and "The Magician" (1926) are shown to demonstrate the influence on "Frankenstein" (1931), "The Mummy" (1932) is referred to as essentially a remake of "Dracula" (1931) and examples of Bauhaus architecture are compared to the style's adoption in "The Black Cat." The performances of Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff and the makeup work by the likes of Jack Pierce are praised, too, and the special effects behind "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde," "The Invisible Man" and "King Kong" are explained. "Universal Horror" is surely worth a look, especially if one only wants a feature-length introduction to the golden age of horror cinema.

I acquired this via an imperfect VHS copy culled from a U.K. TV screening (which was followed, as per the closing announcement, by one of the very films it dealt with i.e. James Whale's sublime THE OLD DARK HOUSE {1932}), rather than any of the "Anniversary Edition" DVDs on which it has been featured (since I never got around to upgrading them)! Given his reputation as a film restorer, Brownlow is well-known for his love of Silent cinema, so it is somewhat surprising to find him involved in this valediction to the Golden Age of Horror (which it is, since he does not exclusively treat the Universal Studios product) though, not that a considerable amount of time is devoted to the genre efforts which emanated from that pre-Talkie era.

Therein, however, lies the documentary's chief problem: while I loved the fact that such masterpieces as Paul Leni's Silent THE MAN WHO LAUGHS (1928) and Michael Curtiz's Warners-produced MYSTERY OF THE WAX MUSEUM (1933) were discussed in some detail (more predictably, we also get Paramount's magnificent 1931 version of DR. JEKYLL AND MR. HYDE and RKO's no-less-startling KING KONG {1933}), this resulted in a number of Universal films being either not given their due or omitted entirely! The appraisal of the second phase of their heyday proves especially skimpy: considering that we would get various SE DVDs over the next few years of Dracula, FRANKENSTEIN (both 1931), THE MUMMY (1932), et al, where their histories are exhaustively illustrated, one would have liked this to delve deeper behind the scenes of some lesser but still classic stuff such as the atypical 'prestige' production TOWER OF London (1939), seen briefly in the opening credits and then never again, THE MUMMY'S HAND (1940), which is completely neglected, and the troubled FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE WOLF MAN (1943), again, mentioned only in passing!

Indeed, of the myriad sequels to the original Universal monster movies, unsurprisingly, the only two to receive the requisite attention (since they are among the very best the studio turned out) are the second and third Frankenstein outings (with some on-set clowning relating to the latter being intriguingly shown in color!), with the maligned-but-irresistible 'monster mashes' or their subsequent spoofing at the hands of comic duo Abbott & Costello hardly being addressed at all! That said, we do get to learn some new anecdotes (at least, speaking for myself) including the now-lost MGM effort London AFTER MIDNIGHT (1927), directed by Tod Browning and starring Lon Chaney, having apparently inspired a vicious murder and that, similarly, the Bela Lugosi/Boris Karloff vehicle THE RAVEN (1935) was singled out as being representative of the "degenerate" level to which Horror had sunk. Also, I had always wondered why Edgar G. Ulmer never worked again for the studio during this time after the first Karloff/Lugosi teaming in THE BLACK CAT (1934), which we are also told was among their most commercially successful ventures, and this was because the director fell in love with a woman who was married to the Laemmles, the family that ran Universal!

Needless to say, the documentary is fascinating and makes for a thrilling catalog of some of the most memorable moments not only in horror but movie history, with interjections from several historians, buffs (who watched these pictures in their childhood when they first emerged), relatives of the people who made them and, in a handful of cases, among the very few remaining survivors from that era – actresses Lupita Tovar (Mina in the renowned alternate Spanish-language version of Dracula), Fay Wray, Gloria Stuart and screenwriter Curt Siodmak. However, as I said, I missed hearing about a good many titles (like, say, Universal's first stab at the "Wolf Man" myth in WEREWOLF OF London {1935}, the just-as-seminal 'mad doctor' flick THE INVISIBLE RAY {1936} – once more starring Karloff and Lugosi – but also strictly 'B' stuff such as the "Inner Sanctum" series or the unlikely "Jungle Woman" and "Creeper" franchises) that, in the long run, I feel one is better off reading a book on the subject if he is to get 'the full story'!

This documentary, about the unique horror franchises that came out of Universal studios during the 20s and 30s, pretty much ending with the Wolfman in 1941, really is universal, in that the documentary makes ties from the Universal films to the German silents that were their forerunners, and even ties the Universal monsters to subliminal guilt some felt over WWI, embodied in its often deformed survivors. Maybe this guilt is one reason isolationism held the U. S. from entering WWII until it was almost too late? But I digress.

The film analyzes in detail the Dracula, Frankenstein, Invisible Man, and Mummy franchises, and talks a little about the Wolfman. They entirely omit any discussion of Creature from the Black Lagoon, probably because that was the 50s, and after the nuclear bomb and the Nazis who is really afraid of a giant fish anyways? The documentary mentions that the production code and the loss of Universal by the Laemmles is what really ended the classic cycle of horror at Universal, because the new owners just never got the hang of making horror with the same insight into the public's subliminal fears like the films from the 20's through 1936 did.

Commenters include author Ray Bradbury, who says he drew some of his inspiration from these films, and James Karen, giving his boyhood memories of seeing these films in the theater as a child. He had no ties to anybody at Universal, but just seems like someone who is young at heart. He is still with us and soon to be 94. Film critic David Skal gets annoyingly enthusiastic, but maybe horror is his passion. He is being shot in a room full of horror memorabilia, but, hey, maybe he has rooms in his house each dedicated to all different kinds of film including anime? Boris Karloff's daughter Sara, Gloria Stuart - once a Universal contract player, and Carla Laemlle also talk about their experience in and around the sets of these famous Universal horror films.

Horror films from other studios are also mentioned such as Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde as well as Mystery of the Wax Museum and King Kong.

This film does a very thorough job of discussing Universal horror films in general, and ends with a bit of a mystery, almost sounding like a curse. Carl Laemmle Jr., head of Universal at the time the Laemmles went into bankruptcy, came down with an undiagnosable illness and lived the rest of his life as an invalid. A chilling end to a chilling and fascinating documentary.

It only makes me wonder, how can a studio make such a great documentary filled with thorough understanding of their own film history, and then treat that film history so shabbily? Probably Paramount and Universal are the two worst studios about giving no care at all to their catalogue of classic films.

this is an extremely interesting documentary detailing the early years of the Universal horror films. as well as featuring the most well-known films (dracula, frankenstein, wolf man &tc), it also details a plethora of other, less known films.

it would be great if this were the 1st part of a series documenting the horror film, continuing on until the present day. especially if the other films were both as entertaining and intelligent as this.

A pretty good documentary on Universal's first wave of horror films from 1931 to 1939. It starts off with silent horror films which inspired the studio and filmmakers and gets into detail about Universal films like "Dracula" (the English AND Spanish versions), "Frankenstein", "The Mummy", "The Invisible Man", etc. etc. They have some great interviews with people who saw the movies in their original runs (the best are from Ray Bradbury and James Karen), clips from the films themselves, a VERY cool color home movie showing Karloff in his green makeup as Frankenstein and some non-Universal horror like "King Kong" and "Mystery of the Wax Museum". As a fan of old Universal films there was nothing new here but I was entertained. If you're a newcomer to those old films this is a good place to start.