:03:05
There are no rules. The only rules
are those of the imagination.
:03:08
Whale had an extraordinary imagination.
:03:10
There are some imaginations which are
best left to go do their own Gothic thing.
:03:16
This isn't science.
It's more like black magic.
:03:21
When Universal unleashed
the original Frankenstein in 1931,
:03:24
it found a new formula
for box-office magic.
:03:29
In a stunning portrayal, Boris Karloff
was catapulted to international stardom.
:03:34
James Whale, well-regarded
for his British stage work,
:03:36
had been imported to Hollywood
for his ability to direct dialogue.
:03:40
Ironically, as movies were learning
to talk, it was a silent performance
:03:44
that made the Hollywood careers
of both Karloff and Whale.
:03:48
Universal's founder, Carl Laemmle,
:03:50
didn't want his son, Carl Junior, to make
films like Dracula and Frankenstein.
:03:55
But there was no arguing
with the box office.
:03:57
As soon as Frankenstein was complete,
the studio began planning a follow-up.
:04:01
This time it was
the director who objected.
:04:04
James Whale didn't want to do
a sequel to Frankenstein.
:04:08
He seemed to be trying to
squirm out of it, as it were,
:04:10
avoid it, bypass it.
Do something else instead.
:04:14
He said he'd gotten everything out of
the first one, that he'd "wrung it dry".
:04:18
Maybe that was the phrase.
:04:20
You have to remember that Frankenstein
was the Jaws or Star Wars of its day.
:04:24
It was such a big hit.
:04:25
The studio had so much invested in it
that finally he agreed to do it.
:04:30
But again I love the fact that
he only did it on his terms.
:04:35
Meantime, Universal again teamed Whale
and Karloff for The Old Dark House,
:04:41
a sardonic thriller that introduced
Whale's mischievous sense of humour.
:04:46
The Invisible Man, with Claude Rains,
mixed laughs and chills,
:04:50
and showcased state-of-the-art
special effects.
:04:52
The effects in The Invisible Man
are just extraordinary.
:04:56
You still watch them
and wonder how some were done.
:04:59
You're crazy to know who I am,
aren't you?