Shelley's tale of scientific hubris finally hits the silver screen (ignoring the odious Dawley short) in this monstrously entertaining adaptation. The set designers clearly took a page out of the German Expressionist playbook, creating a creepy atmosphere full of jagged angles and distorted perspectives. And of course, Karloff's now classic performance seals it. If you have any interest in classic horror flicks, this is a must.

While containing a few, and I mean a few, sequences with Mary Shelly's novel, it does feel incredibly dumbed down. However, this is a special effects and makeup masterpiece.

Not as good as "Bride," but Whale's stylish direction, the sets, the make-up itself and Karloff's remarkable ability to project a powerful performance beneath all that make-up, make this definitely worth a look.

this is what it feels to BE god!

While the story seems a little bit rushed compared to other incarnations, this is still the best. Karloff "the Uncanny" is amazing in his ability to produce such mixed feelings about the monster. Many recognizable cliches have been derived from Frankenstein's monster over the years, but this version is still able to maintain its originality.

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Fantastic classic movie. Great directing and the camera work is excellent for that time. It's alive!!!

I assumed it would be sort of campy and silly, but it's actually pretty frightening. Karloff screaming while the townspeople set the windmill on fire was a genuinely horrific moment.

Despite the great cinematography and spooky atmosphere, I don't think there's much to say about this one. Apart from the monster of the moment, none of the characters are interesting, pacing is off even for it's very short length, it isn't scary at all, and by the end, the film feels confused as to why it was even made.

Watching Frankenstein for the first time is an odd experience for most because the character and film have permeated pop culture to such an extent that you will already know much about the film sight unseen. It's an interesting and fairly engaging film, but it hasn't quite aged as well as the perpetual interest in the Universal Monsters would lead you to believe. It's worth seeing for horror buffs but decided non-fans of genre pictures can probably give it a miss.

Classic horror. Only 67 minutes long but gets a lot done in that time. Colin Clive and Boris Karloff are both great.

The sympathetic freak is a romanticist trope. Victor Hugo took the torch from Mary Shelley, and the trend carried on into the cinema of the silent era (such as Lon Cheney vehicles). So this early talkie is a bit of a latecomer in that respect, and besides its epigonism it's just not a very good movie. The plot is very contrived, and much of the acting is terrible, except the Baron's and memorably iconic Karloff's. The best scene is the one involving the little girl and the pond.

Sadly, the old movie effects aren't convincing enough to scare me, but it was somewhat tragic watching the monster act out of ignorance and self-defense and cause his own doom.

Compared to "Dracula", also released in 1931, this is a masterpiece! It's far more of an action/adventure than what we would consider "horror" today, but is elevated by quality ensemble acting, particularly Colin Clive as "Henry" Frankenstein, and a fast, exciting pace. Memorable scenes abound, whether the "It's Alive!" yell, Igor torturing the Creature, or Karloff drowning the girl. Also, while having little to do with with Shelley's novel, the story doesn't insult one's intelligence.

I thought the acting was good - except for Dr. Frankenstein's fiance, who is just annoying. Boris Karloff (as the monster) was particularly good. But again, there wasn't really much to it... seemed like there was very little closure to the story - although, I guess there are plenty of sequels to the provide it instead. Still, though, it was a fun watch.

classic!

It's so bad that it's actually pretty funny.

Watching this after "Airplane" might degrade ones score, need a rewatch,...

It hasn't been good in decades but it's become bad enough to be quite funny.

The now legendary, "It lives!" and the final act aside, this movie plods and the plot and it's message seem confused. Despite conventional wisdom this is not Whale's best work.

Thks movie is how early horror is done. Karloff is somewhat over the top at times but he plays his part exceptionally well. The sets are extremely well designed and the movie is paced excellently so that it never loses your attention. The story itself is wonderful and it still shines through today. Only a few things weren't explained as well as they should've been but it's easy to overlook them (unlike Dracula) since the film is so wonderfully done.

Historic.