In one scene, the Monster (Boris Karloff) walks through a forest and comes upon a little girl, Maria, who is throwing flowers into a pond. The monster joins her in the activity but soon runs out of flowers. At a loss for something to throw into the water, he looks at Maria and moves toward her. In all American prints of the movie, the scene ends here. But as originally filmed, the action continues to show the monster grabbing Maria, hurling her into the lake, then departing in confusion when Maria fails to float as the flowers did. This bit was deleted because Karloff - objecting to the director's interpretation of the scene - felt that the monster should have gently put Maria into the lake. This scene is restored in the videocassette reissue.Bela Lugosi was offered the role of the monster, but refused on the grounds that his character would not speak (though he eventually played the role in Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man(1943)). Lugosi also insisted on creating his own makeup for the Monster, but his design was rejected. According to film historian Richard J. Anobile, Lugosi was originally offered the role of Dr. Frankenstein by original director Robert Florey, but Carl Laemmle insisted that Lugosi play the monster. Test footage of Lugosi in Monster make-up was filmed by Florey on the set of Dracula (1931). Soon after, Florey was replaced by James Whale as director, and Lugosi was replaced by Karloff.
Those originally considered for the cast included Leslie Howard as Henry Frankenstein and Bette Davis as Elizabeth. Director James Whale insisted on Colin Clive for the role of Henry.
John Carradine turned down the part of the Monster because he considered himself too highly trained to be reduced to playing monsters.
After bringing the monster to life, Dr. Frankenstein uttered the famous line, "Now I know what it's like to BE God!" The movie was originally released with this line of dialogue, but when it was re-released in the late '30s, censors demanded it be removed on the grounds that it was blasphemy. A loud clap of thunder was substituted on the soundtrack. The dialogue was partially restored on the video release, but since no decent recording of the dialogue could be found, it still appears garbled and indistinct. The censored dialog was partially returned to the soundtrack in the initial "restored version" releases. Further restoration has now completely brought back this line of missing dialog. A clean recording of the missing dialog was reportedly found on a Vitaphone disc (similar to a large phonograph record). Modern audio technology had to be used to insert the dialog back into the film without any detectable change in the audio quality.
According to the TLC network program "Hunt for Amazing Treasures", a unique six-sheet poster for the original 1931 release, showing Karloff as The Monster menacing Mae Clarke, is worth at least $600,000 US and is possibly the most valuable movie poster in the world. The only known (original) copy is owned by a private collector.
Boris Karloff offered to remove his partial bridgework as part of the monster make-up process to create the sunken cheek look.
Ken Strickfaden, who created all the electrical effects for the movie, also doubled for Boris Karloff during the sequences that showed the million volt sparks playing over his body. The same machines were later used in the comedy Young Frankenstein (1974).
Child actress Marilyn Harris had done several takes of the drowning scene, none of which turned out quite right. Although wet and tired, she agreed to do one last take of the scene, the one that appears in the finished film, after director James Whale promised her anything she wanted if she would do so. She asked for a dozen hard-boiled eggs, her favorite snack. Whale gave her two dozen. The DVD commentary for the film suggests that Harris wasn't actually a good swimmer, quoting Harris as saying that she had only a couple of swimming lessons before filming and had never dived under water before.
The method of animating the creature is never discussed in Mary Shelley's novel. In the book, Frankenstein, narrating, refuses to divulge how he did it so no one can re-create his actions. However, the use of lightning to resurrect the monster has become the accepted methodology and appears in virtually every Frankenstein movie since.
According to The People's Almanac, at one point the movie was to have included a line of dialogue giving the Monster the name, Adam. The Almanac indicates that an early print of this film may have indeed been released with just such a scene, but that it was cut when audiences began referring to the Monster by the name Frankenstein.
John Carradine, who later played Dracula in the Universal horror films, once claimed he was considered for the role of the Monster.
The Monster in this film does not physically resemble Mary Shelley's character. It was make-up artist Jack P. Pierce who came up with innovations such as the Monster's flat head, the bolts through the neck, the droopy eyelids, and the poorly-fitted suit. Any future Frankenstein film that features any of these physical abnormalities is taking its inspiration from Pierce's make-up work.
The popular image of Frankenstein's monster as green-skinned was sourced in this film. Actually, Jack P. Pierce's monster make-up gave the monster yellow skin, one of the few consistencies from Mary Shelley's original description of the monster.
Some of the sets had originally been constructed for Paul Leni's The Cat and the Canary (1927) which Universal had produced four years earlier.
What are commonly called bolts on the neck of the monster are in reality electrodes.
The film was banned in Kansas upon its original release on the grounds that it exhibited "cruelty and tended to debase morals".
A 20-minute test reel, starring Bela Lugosi as the monster and directed by Robert Florey, was filmed on the Dracula (1931) sets. This footage has not been seen since 1931 and is now considered lost. Only a poster, featuring the vague likeness of Bela Lugosi as a 30 feet colossus, remains.
The set design of the windmill sequence was inspired by a building in Los Angeles that housed a local bakery, Van de Kamp, which displayed a large windmill as its corporate logo.
Actor Edward Van Sloan, who played Dr. Waldman in the film, appeared in the now-lost test reel with Bela Lugosi as the Monster. In an interview conducted shortly before his death, Van Sloan remembered that Lugosi's makeup resembled The Golem, with a large broad wig and "a polished clay-like skin." Unfortunately, no footage of the test or any photographs of Lugosi in this makeup are known to exist.
The movie's line "It's alive! It's alive!" was voted as the #49 movie quote by the American Film Institute (out of 100).
Carl Laemmle Jr. offered James Whale a list of 30+ film adaptations he could direct and Whale picked this one. Whale said he did so because he wanted to get away from the war pictures with which he had so far been associated. Ironically, Whale is now, by far, best-remembered for his four horror films.
The casting of the monster was the most difficult aspect of the casting process. James Whale happened to spot Boris Karloff in the Universal commissary and passed him a note offering a screen-test, which Karloff jumped at. Karloff later joked that he was offended by being viewing as such an ugly character, since on the day that Whale spotted him, he was wearing his most elegant suit and thought he was looking handsome.
Edward Van Sloan (Dr Waldman) also makes an uncredited appearance as himself in the film's prologue, in order to warn audiences of what follows.
The monster make-up design by Jack P. Pierce is under copyright to Universal through the year 2026, and licensed by Universal Studios Licensing, Inc.
By the time the ending of the film was changed, allowing Henry Frankenstein to live, Colin Clive was no longer available for additional scenes. For the shot of Henry in long shot in the bedroom behind his father, he was played by another actor; tradition has long held that it was future cowboy star Robert Livingston filling in for him.
Dr. Frankenstein's first name is Henry, while his best friend's name is Victor Moritz. In the novel, the doctor's name is Victor Frankenstein, while his best friend is Henry Clerval.
Boris Karloff is considered a late bloomer in Hollywood. Frankenstein (1931) premiered when he was 44 years old.
During production there was some concern that seven-year-old Marilyn Harris, who played Maria, the little girl thrown into the lake by the creature, would be overly frightened by the sight of Boris Karloff in costume and make-up when it came time to shoot the scene. When the cast was assembled to travel to the location, Marilyn ran from her car directly up to Karloff, who was in full make-up and costume, took his hand and asked "May I drive with you?" Delighted, and in typical Karloff fashion, he responded, "Would you, darling?" She then rode to the location with "The Monster.".
Extant copies of the 1938 re-issue trailer show The Monster rising from the operating table and stalking away after strangling Dr. Waldman. In the finished film there is a dissolve from The Monster still on the table choking Waldman to The Monster descending the tower stairs.
>>> WARNING: Here Be Spoilers <<<>
SPOILERS: At the climax, the Monster carries Dr. Frankenstein up the mountain side and through the mill. At the insistence of James Whale, Boris Karloff actually carried Colin Clive in these shots, which were filmed for hours over several days. The 41-year-old Karloff had physical difficulties due to moving in the padding, make-up and heavy boots with lifts. He badly injured his back carrying Clive, who was nearly the same size as Karloff. Back problems continued to plague Karloff throughout the remainder of his life.
SPOILERS: The screenplay originally called for Henry Frankenstein to die from his fall from the burning mill. When Universal decided for a happy ending (see "Alternate versions"), Colin Clive was in England, so his stand-in was used for the far shot of him recuperating in his bed, with his fiancée at his side.
Cast of Frankenstein
Colin Clive as Henry Frankenstein
Mae Clarke as Elizabeth
John Boles as Victor Moritz
Boris Karloff as the Monster
Edward Van Sloan as Doctor Waldman
Frederick Kerr as Baron Frankenstein
Dwight Frye as Fritz
Lionel Belmore as Herr Vogel, the Burgomaster
Marilyn Harris as Little Maria
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