Closely analyse the scene where Frankenstein brings to life his creation in James Whale's 1931 horror film Frankenstein showing the techniques used to create atmosphere and tension.

Closely analyse the scene where Frankenstein brings to life his creation in James Whale’s 1931 horror film Frankenstein showing the techniques used to create atmosphere and tension

Mary Shelly first created the book Frankenstein in 1818 when she was only 18 years of age. Then a play was written in 1823 and in 1931 the first of many Frankenstein films was made, starring Boris Karloff. Originally the creator of the monster was called Dr Frankenstein and through the film people perceived Frankenstein as evil, which he originally wasn’t, the creator and creature merged into one with one name. In the film Dr Frankenstein’s monster is brutal, vengeful, violent, aggressive and evil.

Dr Frankenstein makes the monster by sewing up different body parts from the bodies he had dug up from the graveyard and taken from people who had been murdered or executed. The brain that was used was an evil and deformed brain; this was their mistake in the creation of the monster because they wanted to get a clever un-deformed brain so that the monster would be clever and friendly. With the monster having an evil brain from the start, the monster would always be evil. This fitted in with contemporary science at the time because scientists at the time were investigating into biological determination. The scientists were looking into how the brain looked and worked. They thought criminals had deformed brains and clever people had un-deformed brains this is reflected in the film with Frankenstein. Also the scientists were researching into altering the shape of future generations through gene selection and artificial organs. This film launched the genre of horror movies because this was only the second horror movie ever made, an example of this is contemporary science showing how Dr Frankenstein brought to life a dead person.

What I expect from a horror movie is a lot of suspense and tension; this is done through lighting, sound and music. I also think there has always got to be evil in a horror movie and that is the bad guy in the movie. I expect there to be murders, mystery, things that make you jump and the totally unexpected to happen. Mary Shelly describes the night as “ a dreary night of November that I beheld the accomplishment of my toils,” she is trying to set a spooky night; also she gives us a bit of information so that we want to read on and find the rest. The sound effects that were used are echoes, thunder and rain. This is used to build up suspense it also sets the mood, the thunder makes the audience jump or be scared. The scene is set on the film by a wide shot on the tower on a hill this gave the effect that the tower was isolated and a p.o.v inside the tower which takes us straight into the story and shows us what the visitors are seeing for the first time. The lighting that was used is under lighting to create shadows that made things look either bigger or smaller. There are also flashes of lighting to lighten things up which helps add tension. The camera angle to put us in the scene is a wide shot this showed us where the place is set and gives us details of the mood that is set e.g. it shows the tower is isolated on a hill and the tower more looks like a prison than a house. A long shot is used inside the tower to show what is happening in the room also how objects and people are positioned in the room. Close ups are used on the gadgets to show us that they are there, which makes us interested in them. If a wide shot or long shot was used you wouldn’t take any notice of the gadgets.

Dr Frankenstein’s room is full of gadgets such as lightning catchers, switches, a few tables and chairs. The building is tall, round and there are only a few windows. It is an ancient building with stone walls, it is tall but thin this is used to make the humans look small and insignificant and the tall tower is used when creating the monster to make the monster seem closer to God. There is barely any furniture because it is a lab. In the lab the body is covered up in the centre this is done ...

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There are bars on the windows to make it seem that they are trapped. The people who are there are Elizabeth, Victor, Dr Frankenstein, Dr Waldman, Dr Frankenstein’s assistant and the monster. The gadgets are lightning catchers, electrical devices, conductors, pulleys, wheels, cogs, a storm detector, wires, chains, levers, live flames, sparks and static machines. They are there to show how high-tech this creation is and to impress the audience. The camera angles used to show how high tall the room is a tilt shot and a tracking shot. The other shots that were used are a long shot, close up, high angle, low angle and a p.o.v. to put us into the scene. They are there to put emphasis on things such as the amazing gadgets or important parts of the story line such as when the monster first moves its hand. The angles are used to make people look small. The effects are that it creates suspense and create a mood. They are also put there to make us scared because the camera angles draw us into the film. They show us how big objects are and they add to suspence and tension by making us feel tense and afraid. The lighting that is used is lightning, filter shot, flashes of light and under lighting. It is used to create suspense and tension by making the creature look scary. The sound effects are echoes, electrical tools and this gives us an effect of fear and anticipation.

The creation of the monster involves the use of gadgets. The storm detector was needed to show when to lift the monster on to the roof. After lifting the monster up onto the table and elevating it up through a hole in the roof. It was then shocked by lightning, to bring it to life. The table the monster is position on in the centre of the room this is to put emphasis on him and to show that this is the most important aspect of the film. Dr Frankenstein brings the monster to life. A low angle is used on the monster to make him look big and scary, this is created due to the bold features of the monster. A low angle, which gives the effect that, the audience are actually watching the table rise. A tracking angle is used to follow the monster up onto the roof but when the table is on the roof a low is used, we can’t see what is happening on the roof, this creates unpredictability, which creates suspense and tension.

The lighting is used on the monster, this is used to define the bold features of the face, and this lighting is low lighting. The people appear shocked, amazed and scared as if they don’t know what is happening, this influences the audience to feel the same way also this makes the audience feel insecure also because the camera angles and sound draw us into the film it makes the audience feel the same emotion as the people in the film. When the creature moves its hand a close up shot is used, this is to show that the monster is alive. When this happens the sound effects get louder, this is to increase the tension and suspense. The Dr Frankenstein shouts ‘ he’s alive, it’s alive,’ he then shakes around and he is restrained as if he was mad, this creates more tension due to Dr Frankenstein’s unpredictability and this scares the audience. In the novel we are slowly set into the scene but in the movie we are straight into the storyline this is due to that it would be boring if we were slowly set into the scene also this is a horror movie so there should be no moments where there isn’t tension.

In the novel and the movie there are differences this is because there are only certain things that you can do with a book but in a film you can do more for e.g. in a film you have sounds and you can have camera angles to add to suspense and tension. In the novel Dr Frankenstein doubts what he is doing (a moral dilemma) but in the film he is very excited by what he was doing. In the book Frankenstein’s room is described as a small candle lit room but in the movie it is a big tall room with high tech equipment. In the novel Dr Frankenstein is not evil and the monster is not really evil but in the film Dr Frankenstein and the monster are perceived as evil. This is because the film is a horror movie. In the novel there are less gadgets (if any) described but in the movie there are many gadgets this is because in a movie the audience want to shocked amazed and interested, these gadgets do all of these things. In the film Frankenstein is perceived as a loner but in the novel he has a loving family and background. This is because if Frankenstein came from a loving family we couldn’t see Dr Frankenstein as evil and evil is needed to create a good horror movie. In the novel, he doesn’t have an assistant but in the film he does. In the novel the monster is created without anybody there but in the movie there are witnesses to his creation, this is because in the film the director wanted to involve the audience, which makes them scared. James Whale needs to create tension, suspense, and unpredictability to create a good horror movie. He did this by using different lighting and camera angles. He used certain camera angles to put us into the scene such as p.o.v and long shot, this shows where things are and shows what’s happening in a certain areas. He used some shots for emphasis such as close up and extreme close up; this draws your attention towards something so that you notice it. Some of the shots he used were to involve us in the scene such as low angle, rolling shot, tracking this is to make us more scared because it makes us sense what we are seeing so therefore its makes us feel ‘mise-en-scene’. The lighting that James Whale uses is under lighting, filler lighting and there is flashes of lightning these are all used to create suspense from the same building in different ways.

Adam Downes