Movie clips are depicting the Monster’s birth in a different way than it is shown in Merry Shelley’s book “Frankenstein”. In the older movie version of “Frankenstein”, Victor is depicted as a crazy scientist. Unlike in the book, the scientist has a crippled helper and in the time of reviving the Monster he has spectators in his castle. Also, thunderstorms and rain ads to the effect of the crazy scientist. When electricity strikes and the monster become alive, scientist feels like God and yells “It’s alive” and “Now I know how it feels like being a god”. He is proud of his creation. In the book Victor’s Monster is described as a creature that’s skin is yellow and covers arteries and muscles underneath. “His hair is of lustrous black, and flowing; his teeth of pearly whiteness; but these luxuriance’s only formed a more horrid contrast with his watery eyes, …and straight black lips.” In the process of Monster’s creation in the book, Victor is working by himself, as he was hiding his creations from his family and friends for almost two years in isolation inside his apartment. In the book, when Monster gets alive, his mouth opens and his eyes and than it s body started to move, while in the movie his hands move first, when monster gets alive. Victor is by himself in the modern movie version, just like in the book. Also there is a detail of burning candle just like in the book, although they left out details of it raining hard. Victor is running around, as he gets excited about his masterpiece ready to get revived. In both movie versions Victor is excited about monster’s birth, but in the book he runs away from the monster, because it did not turn out to be as he imagined. In the modern movie version Victor is yelling: “It is alive”, when the monster opens his eyes.

These two different adaptations are different than the Merry Shelly’s book, because the director wanted to make it more exciting for the audience.

Marija Krasojevic

When we compare the scenes of  Frankenstein’s birth from the clips to Mary Shelley’s depictions, we see several differences. In the video clips we can see the excitement of Frankenstein anticipating the arrival of his masterpiece. In one video he has an assistant and audience to watch what he has created. I think that Frankenstein wanted to show his audience I have the power to bring something to life and you think I’m crazy now but wait and see.  In the other video, he is working alone and he constantly running around and he keeps screaming “live, live ,live.” however in the text Frankenstein was afraid of the the monster he has created and thought that this is not quite what he was imagining. He felt that he was ugly now. He doesn’t want to face the fact that he spent two years trying to create this beautiful thing and it came out so horribly wrong that he wants to run away.

I feel that they had changed the scene with the audience to capture the audience’s attention because we now feel as though we are there. To give the audience a way to connect to movie to themselves. Whereas the other video use the fast pace actions and electricity to build the suspense in the movie.  Often movies do not follow the novel completely due to the fact that they have thoughts on what might attract the audience watching the movie. So often for those who have read the novels are often disappointed of the changes made.

Sandy Cheng

Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein has been interpreted and done in many different ways with both similarities and differences to the original and to each other.  The first and most evident difference to me between the novel and each of the two clips was Victor Frankenstein’s reaction to creating the monster. In the novel Frankenstein calls his creation a “catastrophe” and is filled with horror and disgust from creating the monster. His intentions were to create a beautiful being with the best body features but instead he got a scary yellow skinned hideous monster that he says he wasted two years creating. In the 1931 film version, after successfully bringing life to the body Frankenstein refers to himself as a god and says that this is what it feels like to be god. He seems very egotistically proud of his creation unlike how Victor felt in the novel. In the 1994 film version of Frankenstein, Victor yells at the monster “Live! Live!” and when the monster opens it’s eyes Victor shouts “YES!” at the top of his lungs. This reaction is different than the other two in that it seems his happiness of his success is more about the fact that he was successful, and it doesn’t seem to get to his head as much as in the 1931 version. His happiness seems more pure and sincere, and less egotistical. Another difference between the two films Victor’s image and the process of the creation. In the 1931 version Victor looks just as you would imagine, in a white lab coat. The process in the 1931 version is also simpler and less active with Victor just turning one wheel. In the 1994 version, long haired and shirtless Victor  has to run around and pull a few ropes in the creation process. This depiction of the creation was a lot more of a work out.

Watching both clips I noticed there are many differences between the two and also Shelly’s original novel. The first I noticed was how much longer the creation of Frankenstein was exaggerated in both movies compared to the novel. The novel seems to focus more on the technicalities of the creation, materials and how the scientist will successfully bring the man back to life whereas the movies focus on how one man has the power to bring back life, both lengths are testimonial to how the director wants his audience to feel after watching the movie.

The second and most obvious attribute I noticed is the absence of words in Branagh’s rendition of the movie compared to Whale’s. The use of music and sound affects creates much more of a exciting experience and borderline scary, which I’m sure Shelly would be proud of. The tempo is fast and seems to speed up towards the end of the scene, the feeling it gives me from listening is adventurous, by the end of the scene I feel I have made it to the top of a mountain, ironically the scientist at the end of the scene is standing proudly on top of his creation. Whale’s rendition seems to focus on the scientist himself and how he single handed brought a dying man back to life, he even claims himself as God by the end of the clip. Generally Whale’s Frankenstein is not as exciting as Branagh’s and sways away from the novel itself.

Thirdly I notice the Creature’s body and face is left a mystery in both clips but particularly Branagh’s film, it is to create suspense for the viewer. By revealing his face at the end of the clip we are more convinced by what a miracle the scientist has done without actually proclaiming himself as God.

Sarah Boateng

Frankenstein written by Mary Shelley is one of the earliest examples of science fiction. After watching two clips, I feel that James Whale and Kenneth Branagh both have successfully adapted Shelley’s novel for a film. Compared to Shelley’s original story, although both directors made some changes to convey different aspects, both films contain powerful images which enhance the story and create a lasting impression on the viewers. The creation scene of the creature is one of the most significant scenes in the book, and also the important scene that contains the main different interpretations between the novel and the films. In Shelley’s Frankenstein, as the creature opens his eyes, Victor is horrified by his creation, which leads him to flee instantly and refuse to make further contact. Shelley focuses on the terrifying nature of  Victor’s creation and how he immediately regrets it as the creature comes to life. In Whale’s and Kenneth’s adaptations, the horrified emotional state Shelley interprets in her book is weakened a lot. Whale represents Frankenstein as excited and thrilled to see his creation, yelling “It’s Alive! It’s Alive” madly, and adding “Now I know what it feels like to be a God.” Branagh’s interpretation brings elements from Shelley’s and Whale’s depiction together and takes the physical intimacy between Frankenstein and the Creature to a whole new level. In Branagh’s creation scene, Victor is excited to see his creation coming to life at the beginning, his emotional state changes very quickly as he realizes the horrifying nature of the creature and wonders “What have I done?” Branagh conveys both the excitement and the regretful emotions of Victor in the same scene. Another interesting aspect of the scene, which is a new addition to Shelly’s depiction, is how Branagh represents the creation scene similar to a child’s birth from a womb.

I’m responding to this clip: It’s Alive! – Frankenstein (2/8) Movie CLIP (1931) HD.

The clip begins with Frankenstein asking his “audiences” to examine the lifelessness of his experimental subject as if he’s a grand magician that is going to pull a rabbit out of an empty hat. Then with a nod of one of his audiences’ head, and a roaring of the thunder, Frankenstein begins to perform his operation frenetically with his assistant. And after observing the fingers and hand movements of his “masterpiece,” Frankenstein begins to exclaim “IT’S ALIVE” in ecstasy several times and ends the clip with the line “NOW I KNOW HOW IT FEELS LIKE TO BE GOD!!!”

The settings: The roaring of the thunder and the flickering of the light throughout the clip certainly have added some dramatic elements to the scene. Just like in many other movies, thunder and lightning usually serve as forebodings of some catastrophes. In the book, we have “dreary night,” “the rain pattered dismally against the panes, and my candle was nearly burnt out.” We can conclude that the setting in the clip is faithful to the text, which is gloomy and gruesome.

The audiences and the assistant: There are 3 audiences and one assistant in the clip, but we have only Frankenstein in his lab in the text! Which is quite a big difference. This change though, will be used to support an even bigger alternation between the clip and the book–the attitude of Frankenstein towards his creation

Frankenstein’s attitude: In the clip, Frankenstein feels pretty good about his “masterpiece.” In fact, he is proud of it. He feels so good about it that he has to invite some audiences into his laboratory to witness the operation. Yes, of course, what he has succeeded in doing is quite remarkable even in 2016, so it’s very understandable that he says: “NOW I KNOW HOW IT FEELS LIKE TO BE GOD.” In the text though, Frankenstein holds a very different attitude towards his work: 1. he works alone in his laboratory 2.he is a little bit scared of his own creation 3. he is a little disgusted by his own creation. Frankenstein is so agitated by his own work that he has to leave the laboratory to avoid looking at it again after seeing it moves for the first time, and stays away from it for the rest of the night. I think we can conclude that Frankenstein deems it as a “masterpiece” in the clip, and sees it as a failure in the text.

This book actually reminds me of a Japanese animation series that I watched when I was young. I didn’t watch a lot of cartoons but this series is my favorite. And here are the corresponding clips that I have thought of:

So in short, these two boys live in a world where alchemy is a real thing. Their mother died, they tried to get their mom back by using alchemy even when everybody in their world knows it is forbidden to create living organisms with alchemy. But of course, they do it anyway. And this is what they get.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZEkfe2SIc-M

By Fanliang(Dave) Cen

There were multiple differences between Shelley’s Frankenstein and the film adaptations of Frankenstein. In the book, feelings felt by Victor Frankenstein upon creating the monster seemed to be different than those portrayed by him in the movie. For instance, the level of fear felt by Frankenstein in the book seemed much greater than that in the movie. In Shelley’s version, Victor Frankenstein was constantly worried about the monster he had created and the destruction it could potentially cause. He also feared that the monster would hurt him and his loved ones. In contrast, the film versions both showed Victor as being very enthusiastic and happy with regards to Frankenstein’s creation. From the moment the monster began moving, ran around the room, bursting with energy. Regardless of the fact that both film clips were short, there was no indication that Victor Frankenstein feared his monster.

Despite the different feelings felt by Victor Frankenstein in Shelley’s version of Frankenstein and the film clips, his level of surprise towards the creation of the monster seemed the same. In the book, Frankenstein was thrilled that he was able to create such a monster. Although he did fear the monster, he still was amazed at the idea that he did something so profound by himself. Similarly, the film clips also showed Victor Frankenstein filled with joy at the fact that his creation was alive and came to life. Therefore, although there may have been different levels of excitement felt by Victor Frankenstein when his monster came to life, he was still surprised in both the book and the films that he created something that came to life, on his own.

The portrayal of the birth of Frankenstein from the clips and Mary Shelley’s novel are displayed completely differently. In both clips, the scientists are extremely excited throughout the scene of Frankenstein’s birth. In the clip by James Whale once Frankenstein moves his arm revealing life, the scientist is so enthusiastic to the point that he believes he knows what it feels like to “be God.” This reveals his pride in his creation of Frankenstein. In the clip by Kenneth Branagh, the scene of Frankenstein’s birth reveals enthusiasm as well through his choice of background music. The scene displays the scientist’s excitement when Frankenstein opens his eyes after the sparks caused by the machinery. In Mary Shelley’s novel however, Victor, the scientist, feels automatic anxiety by Frankenstein’s appearance once he has come to life: “I had worked hard for nearly two years, for the sole purpose of infusing life into an inanimate body. For this I had deprived myself of rest and health. I had desired it with an ardour that far exceeded moderation; but now that I had finished, the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled my heart.” In this scene it almost looks as though the scientist regrets his hard work and invested time in the creation of Frankenstein. Thus, both clips reveal a more prideful scientist whereas in the novel the scientist is displeased with his creation.

Both clips were described the same feeling to me, which I can see how excited Frankenstein was when he was experimented to pull a dead monster back to the world. But in the novel, he was fearful and nervous. This experiment was his dream, he spent almost 2 years on his dream to verify he could do that and he was not crazy. In fact, the beauty of the dream vanished. He could not accept his art as a monster and he just wanted to run away, then he understood he was wrong. The thing he had done was so contra-natural. I don’t see this picture on these two clips, especially the James Whale’s clip, in his clip, I saw an enthusiastic scientist and how he satisfied with his experiment when monster was alive. Also he had three sane spectators and one assistant. This additional scene made me feel that Frankenstein was more like a crazy scientist, everything he had done is just to highlight his success. It’s totally different from Mary Shelly’s novel. In the novel, the experiment was only doing by Frankenstein from the beginning to end, and he kept it as the secret. By contrast, I prefer to Kenneth Branagh’s clip than James’s clip. The scene was closer to novel,” I saw the dull yellow eye of the creature open; it breathed hard, and convulsive motion agitated its limbs” (35). It’s exactly what I see in Kenneth’s clip. Frankenstein was screaming when the monster opened his eyes. However, both clips had their own style to describe how Frankenstein feels after he succeed bring a monster back to life.

I remember reading Frankenstein back in senior year of high school and in addition to, watching the Kenneth Branagh’s version of Frankenstein, so this felt a little nostalgic. Frankenstein is a classic horror story, with many adaptations based off of Mary Shelley’s original novel. Depending on the adaptation, some small details might be changed or it can be a loosely interpretation. One of the most important scenes of Frankenstein is the birth of the creature. Before senior year, I have never read or watched Frankenstein, but like most others, I think of a mad scientist in a laboratory pulling a lever that drives electricity into the monster. I was quite shocked to find out that it was not as dramatic in the novel. I realized most people think of that idea due to the movies. In Shelley’s novel there is only one sentence that describes Frankenstein actually creating the monster right in the beginning of chapter 5. However in James Whale’s and Branagh’s films, the process of the creature coming alive is a few minutes long. There is no description of a crazy laboratory with electricity, wires, liquid, etc. in the novel. In addition, another key difference between the novel and the movies is that in Shelley’s book, Frankenstein is terrified and runs out of his laboratory once the creature comes alive, but in the movies, Frankenstein is bouncing off the walls with excitement. In Whale’s version, Frankenstein is shouting to the people around him (another difference) that he is like God. In Branagh’s film, Frankenstein see the creature’s eyes open to signal his birth, which is similar to the novel, but in Whale’s film, Frankenstein see the creature’s hand move. Overall, both films changes how Frankenstein the scientist feels after the birth of his creation completely and I believe that changes the message that Mary Shelley was trying to send to her readers.