Although Frankenstein is dead, the villagers believe the Curse of Frankenstein is to blame for their barren crops, and elect to blow-up the castle. But that only awakens the monster, believed to be dead and buried in a sulphur pit. Ygor escapes to the countryside with the monster to find Frankenstein's son. His plan is to trick the scientist into transplanting his own brain into the head of the monster...

Lon Chaney's brilliantly understated performance has him portray the monster as suitably vague; not innocent, but certainly naive. In one scene the monster recovers a little girl's lost ball by carrying her up on to a high roof to get it, thereby terrifying and outraging the locals. It is, of course, very reminiscent of that classic moment in the Boris Karloff 1931 Universal original Frankenstein.

Conversely, Bela Lugosi's Ygor, Frankenstein's surviving assistant, is almost blatantly over the top. In conclusion, however, Ghost of Frankenstein is a fast-moving and enjoyable piece of cinema. Fun is the name of the game with these Universal Classics.

7

Ty Power