The Ghost of Frankenstein

1942

1h 8m

IMDb RATING

5.8/10

163

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3 Videos

39 Images

Horror

Science Fiction

Frankenstein's unscrupulous colleague, Dr. Bohmer, plans to transplant Ygor's brain so he can rule the world using the monster's body, but the plan goes sour when he turns malevolent and goes on a rampage.

Directors

Erle C. Kenton

Writers

Scott Darling(screenplay by)

Eric Taylor(original story by)

Mary Shelley(characters by)

Stars

Cedric Hardwicke

Ralph Bellamy

Lionel Atwill

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Videos3

Photos39

Top cast

Cedric Hardwicke

Dr. Ludwig Frankenstein …

Erik Ernst

Dr. Bohmer

Ygor

Elsa Frankenstein

The Frankenstein Monster

Janet Ann Gallow

Cloestine Hussman

Barton Yarborough

Dr. Kettering

Doris Lloyd

Martha the Housekeeper

Chief Constable

Adolph Hussman

Magistrate

Villager at Council Meeting (uncredited)

Lionel Belmore

Councilman (uncredited)

Chet Brandenburg

Villager (uncredited)

Colin Clive

Dr. Henry Frankenstein (flashback) (uncredited)

Harry Cording

Mob Leader (uncredited)

George Eldredge

Constable (uncredited)

Directors

Erle C. Kenton

Writers

Scott Darling(screenplay by)

Eric Taylor(original story by)

Mary Shelley(characters by)

All cast & crew

Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

User reviews1

Review

Featured review

5/10

Your father was Frankenstein. Your mother was lightning. Of course the problem with the Frankenstein sequels, of the Universal Studios kind, was that they had to follow the genre firework that was "Frankenstein (1931)" and the monolithic titan that followed that one in 1935, "The Bride of Frankenstein". These are tough acts to follow - still are actually! "Son of Frankenstein (1939)" managed very well, it had Basil Rathbone in it and Bela Lugosi giving great horror oomph as Ygor. Boris Karloff bowed out as the monster after that one, leaving an iconic legacy and an insistence that the monster didn't speak. The result of Karloff's (ahem) request has proved divisive amongst Frankenstein fans, does it need a voice for personality, or is it better off as a lumbering rage machine only?. Point being that in this one, he gets a voice, courtesy of Lon Chaney Junior's stint in the role, and it's not exactly a success. Ghost of Frankenstein represents the start of the decline of the franchise, a noticeable drop in quality across the board. It's like Universal caught the cash cow disease and decided that quantity and not quality was what mattered. They would eventually team up the bolted necked one with "Abbott and Costello", with fun results, but the horror aspects began to wane here in 1942. Lugosi is on hand for some more Ygor mischief, Cedric Hardwicke and Lionel Atwill as scientists with opposite ideals are reassuring presences, while Evelyn Ankers is sexy and costumed with a great eye for detail. At just 67 minutes in length the film thankfully doesn't have time to be boring, though action is in short supply, so hooray for castle destruction and fire unbound!. While Woody Bredell and Milton R. Krasner, via their photographic lenses ensure Gothic atmosphere is consistently ripe. Right, it's time for Universal Monster Tag Teams next... 5/10

John Chard03 Oct, 2015