universal studios did something wonderful for classic horror fans. they released their classic horror movies into little box sets featuring a series of movies from each character. there is a set on dracula, the mummy, the wolf man, etc. a couple years ago i bought the frankenstein one but only now have i seen all the films within the set. i had seen "frankenstein" and "bride of frankenstein" previously. it's been so many years since i saw "bride of frankenstein" that i re-watched it, then continued on in the series.

normally with horror films, as the series goes on the story gets weaker and weaker and you wonder why the hell do you even bother continuing to watch the degrading quality of work. i would say that in the case of frankenstein, the spirit is still there within each film enough to enjoy them. in the beginning there is always the scientist reluctant to bring the monster back to life but somehow throughout the course of the film they do just that. the townspeople hate the frankensteins and want to destroy the monster. in the end, the monster is killed (or so you think) and the scientist regrets what they did or something like that. that's the basic plot of a frankenstein film.

when i re-watched "bride of frankenstein", it was like watching it for the first time. i hardly remembered a thing. i was surprised to see how little of the bride is actually shown. in "son of frankenstein", it's not about the monster and mrs. finally liking each other and having a kid. no, it's about dr. frankenstein's son who goes on to take his father's place reluctantly, like the parody film "young frankenstein" where the grandson takes his grandfather's place reluctantly. in fact, i was constantly amused to find bits in the series that is parodied by mel brooks. "ghost of frankenstein" is more like "son of frankenstein part two" as this time another son of frankenstein becomes the reluctant giver of life. for this film, we also have one of frankenstein's teachers help out. the final film in the set, "house of frankenstein" is the most bizarre in that it tries to cram in as many horror figures as possible into the story. there's a mad scientist, frankenstein, dracula, the wolf man, and a hunchback in love with a gypsy. it's actually a sequel to "frankenstein meets the wolf man", so there is a gap in the set. once scene in particular shot out at me in "house of frankenstein":

daniel: even a man who is pure in heart and says his prayers by night
ilonka: may become a werewolf when the wolf's bain blooms and the moon is full and bright

i know those words very well. they are said at the beginning (though slightly altered) of one of my favorite cradle of filth songs, "queen of winter, throned". though i would have known them already if i had seen any other films in "the wolf man" series. i think this needs to be my next set to tackle as the universal set includes the missing "frankenstein meets the wolf man" film.