Featured: The Shared Universe Of Universal’s Classic Monsters – InSession Film

With the modern retelling of H.G. WellsThe Invisible Mancoming out, its a good time to recognize the early success of Universal Studios of creating the first sharted world in Hollywood. Before Marvel and DC Films, there was a string of horror, sci-fi, and thriller pictures from 1923sThe Hunchback Of Notre Dameto 1956sThe Creature Walks Among Us.It wasnt planned, but the standard for the genres was inserted that other studios would have to follow up on and established the careers of Boris Karloff, Lon Chaney Sr. and Jr., Bela Lugosi, Claude Rains, Edward Van Sloan, and Colin Clive.

After The Hunchback Of Notre Dame,Universals second and final major silent horror film was 1925sThe Phantom Of The Opera.Both starred Lon Chaney Sr. in the main roles as Quasimodo and The Phantom with the full support of Universal head Carl Laemmle. Laemmle met Phantomauthor Gaston Leroux and bought the rights to his novel almost instantly and the young, charismatic Irving Thalberg pitched Hunchbackto Laemmle as part horror, part love story, and part spectacle with extravagant production design. Thanks to these two films, Chaney Sr. became a top-billing star.Phantomwas more noted because of the famous reveal of The Phantoms horrid face (this is not musical by any means) and the massive construction of Soundstage 28 to purposely build the Paris Opera House. Yes, young people, they had to build these massive structures.

In the midst of the Great Depression, Universal came out with some of their peak works that remain on the top of iconic horror characters in cinema. In 1931, bothDraculaandFrankensteinwere released. Laemmles son, Carl Jr., had taken over as head of the studio, Garrett Fort wrote both scripts, and Frankensteinintroduced us to director James Whale, who later be immortalized in 1998sGods And Monsters.WithDracula,Lugosi got the role based on his success with the play version years earlier, but the concern was for a full-length supernatural movie an audience had never seen, as well as Carl Jrs. lavish spending (which got him and his father thrown out of Universal years later). The massive success led to several spin-offs includingDraculas DaughterandSon of Draculaand made Bram Stokers creation thequintessential vampire for later films. On a side note, a Spanish version was made simultaneously on the same sets with Carlos Villaras in the titular role.

With Frankenstein,based on Mary Shelleys novel and Peggy Weblings play, the mad scientist story came alive thanks to Colin Clive playing the titular character who digs up dead bodies with his hunchback assistant Fritz to bring back alive a human using electrical powers. Of course, it works, leading to the famous line by Frankenstein, Its alive! While it was a massive success, the scene involving Frankensteins monster and the little girl got the film cut or banned outright in some states, as well as another line by the mad doctor, In the name of God? Now I know what it feels like to BE God! Sounds silly, but felt very blasphemous to many. But what James Whale does in crafting such a beautiful, yet sinister picture is made with such care and does not feel totally grotesque. Whale would direct the sequelBride of Frankenstein,but had no part inSon of Frankensteinnor inGhost of Frankenstein.

Also released this decade was the originalThe Invisible Man,also directed by Whale and starring Claude Rains, who would later star inthe sound remake ofPhantom of the Opera,and Gloria Stuart, who would gain her biggest role more than 60 years later in Titanic.Before Brendan Fraser and Tom Cruise,The Mummycame out in 1932 with Boris Karloff playing the Egyptian high priest Imhotep wrapped like a mummy who calls himself Ardath Bey when free and endangering others. The discovery of King Tutankhamuns tomb and the supposed curse of those who disturbed it inspired the idea and would be followed with four sequels in the 1940s and get a comedy injection inAbbott And Costello Meet The Mummyin 1955.

The last noted 1930s horror film isWerewolf of London,starring Henry Hull as a wealthy English botanist who is bitten by a werewolf while in Tibet that later changes him slowly when he returns back home. In 1941, a separate werewolf picture was made that added another layer to the monster universe,The Wolf Man.Lon Cheney Jr. plays a man who returns home following the death of his brother and seeks to reconnect with his father, played by Claude Rains. When the man saves a young woman from a wolf attack and is bitten, the legend consistently recited in the film turns on him. The next slate of films were sequels and crossovers, such as 1943sFrankenstein Meets The Wolf Man,1945sHouse of Dracula,which includes Frankensteins monster and the Wolf Man, and four Bud Abbott and Louis Costello films where the comics meet up with each of the horror figures. Spoiler alert: they still couldnt answer to whos on first.

The last original story for the monster universe was 1954s Creature From The Black Lagoon,a black-and-white 3D feature about a geology expedition gone awry when the creature, the Gill-man, comes out to attack the humans who have invaded his habitat. 3D may have been an early fad, but it played a major role in the success of the film. The following year, it would have its sequel, Revenge Of The Creature, and the final of the trilogy which is considered the last of Universals Classic Monsters series, 1956sThe Creature Walks Among Us.Of note, Henry Mancini (The Pink Panther) would score all three films and would be a major influence on Guillermo del Toros The Shape of Water.

Universal would remake a few of these classics withThe Mummytrilogy (1999-2008) andVan Helsing(2004), and now is in the middle of the reboot era. The Tom Cruise-Russell Crowe version ofThe Mummywasnt liked, we know about Elizabeth Moss fear of her deceased, abusive ex in the reimaging ofThe Invisible Man,and on its slate are the remakes ofFrankenstein, The Invisible Woman,and a spinoff ofDraculacalledRenfielddirected by Dexter Fletcher. Instead of the comic book trend, Universal is going into their docket of horror legends and, considering the massive success of Jordan PeelesGet OutandUs,people do want great horror films that are not slasher flicks. The next decade could be a bankroll of hits for Universal.

P.S. Right as I finished writing this, I just came upon a 2+ hour documentary narrated by Kenneth Branaugh about the stories behindDraculaandFrankensteinat Universal. So, if you see my writing a shite, just watch this.

Follow me on Twitter: @brian_cine(Cine-A-Man)

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Featured: The Shared Universe Of Universal's Classic Monsters - InSession Film