Product Description

Producer Dan Curtis (Dark Shadows, The Night Stalker), faithfully resurrects Mary Shelley's Gothic classic in an acclaimed adaptation starring Robert Foxworth (Falcon Crest), Bo Svenson (Delta Force) and Susan Strasberg (Picnic).

Fiercely devoted to the theories of extending and creating human life, scientist Victor Frankenstein and his assistants have secretly assembled an artificial man with human parts stolen from graves. Once he is brought to life, the enormous creature exhibits a child-like innocence. Unaware of his superhuman strength and frightful appearance, the Giant becomes hostile and demands that Victor create him a mate.

Bonus features include a new audio commentary track with actors Robert Foxworth (Victor Frankenstein) and John Karlen (Otto Roget) plus 1973 Frankenstein promo, recap and preview from the original broadcast on ABC-TV's Wide World Of Mystery.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #73995 in DVD
• Brand: MPI
• Released on: 2007-10-30
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Color, Full Screen, Subtitled, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 126 minutes

Customer Reviews

Dan Curtis' Frankenstein
The 1973 Dan Curtis "Frankenstein" is an eloquent, 2-part video-taped production. A contemporary of the equally stylish "Frankenstein: the True Story", the Curtis version was originally relegated as episodes of the late-night, television series, "Wide World of Mystery".

Bo Svenson (coined as the "giant", as opposed to the "monster" or "creature") gives a powerhouse performance as Shelley's misunderstood specimen. Indeed, Svenson conveys the anticpated danger that one naturally associates with this character, but his focus is ultimately on confusion and sensitivity. In essence, such traits have always been the essence of Shelley's iconic figure; Svenson expertly understands and embodies such.

Robert Foxworth is an excellent, credible Victor; Susan Strasberg is an on-target Elizabeth. The auspicious John Karlen, of Curtis' "Dark Shadows", is also featured. (Incidentally, he and Foxworth offer commentary on the DVD release.) In a twist of casting, a lovely blonde replaces the blind man/hermit, and the result is uniquely engaging, touching.

In addition to Karlen's presence, those who fancy "Dark Shadows" will appreciate the production's overall, unpretentious feel. (For those in the know, "Dark Shadows" actually tackled Shelley's themes with its "Adam/Eve" storyline.) This version also sports Robert Cobert's distinctive music, which further invokes a "Dark Shadows" aura. (In the same vein, fans of Curtis' "Jekyll/Hyde" and "Dorian Gray" will feel at home with this "Frankenstein". Fans of the BBC, Louis Jourdan "Count Dracula" will also find it worth while.)

If one has a hankering for classic monsters and good, old-fashioned horror retellings, Dan Curtis "Frankenstein" is a must to view and own. Simply put, they just don't make them like this anymore. A pity, indeed, but at least through this DVD release, one will have a chance to re-experience an example of a gothic story done right.

Different version of the classical tale
For those of you who are fans of James Whale's classical, yet flawed, film, you will find this enjoyable, as well as those who like Kenneth Branagh's beautiful version, and the novel itself. Robert Foxworth is an over the top, yet sympathetic Frankenstein, and Bo Svenson is a wonderful Monster, very similar to both Karloff before him, and De Niro after him. Brought to life by electrical power,(specifically lightning), Svenson's creature starts off with the child-like ignorance of Karloff's portrayal, but soon becomes the intelligent being of Shelley's novel. This is probably the only Frankenstein film, aside from Whale's, where Frankenstein has an assistant, in this case two. Well worthy of *****.

A "Dark Shadows" style Frankenstein
To sum up, I recommend this Dan Curtis's version of the classical monster tale. Aside from a few flaws (the monster could have even learnt to write poetry!!), an entertaining story. For obvious reasons, it is imposible not to appreciate similarities with Dan Curtis's Dark Shadows, including the TV filming format, some artefacts and special effects during the lab experiments, the music score, and some of the characters such as the blind girl (you even have John Carlen on the cast).