Alternate Takes 08.02.08: The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emporer
Posted by Shawn S. Lealos on 08.02.2008
Let Alternate Takes walk you through the history of the Universal monsters as we prepare for the latest offering from The Mummy franchise.
Hello and welcome to Week 15 of Alternate Takes. My name is Shawn S. Lealos and I have have a pretty long column this week, so just a few plugs to start off with.
I subbed for Arnold Furious in his Furious on Film News Report and talked about Y: The Last Man, A new Twilight Zone movie, a Wolf Man remake and Tim Burton's plans for a live action Alice in Wonderland. Read it by clicking HERE.
I subbed for Michael Bauer in the ECW on SCI-FI REPORT this week over in the wrestling section. Read it by clicking HERE.
The August version of the Monthly Movie's Roundtable went up Friday and you can read it by clicking HERE. You can just skip straight to the monthly predictions by clicking HERE.
And... here... we... go...
THE MUMMY: TOMB OF THE DRAGON EMPEROR
Directed by Rob Cohen Cast: Brendan Fraser, Jet Li, Maria Bello, John Hannah, Michelle Yeoh, Luke Ford
The first Mummy movie was a lot of fun and surprised me when I caught it. I was very excited when the sequel came out and left that movie disgusted. The CGI was some of the worst crap I had seen in a long time. What was supposed to be scary looked like a joke and what was supposed to be awesome looked completely fake. When I got word there would be a third movie in the Mummy series, it was that sequel that came to mind and not the above average original. That is what made me think of this week's column. I thought of the original Mummy, meaning the first Brendan Frasier movie. How many people say that these days? That movie is not the original Mummy movie any more than Francis Ford Coppola's Dracula was the original Prince of Darkness movie. This week Alternate Takes will take a stroll through history and tell you about the original classic Universal monsters.
Five Alternate Takes
5. DRACULA (1931)
Directed by Tod Browning Cast: Bela Lugosi, Helen Chandler, David Manners, Dwight Frye, Edward Van Sloan
Dracula wasn't the first vampire movie, nor was it even the first film based on the classic Bram Stoker novel. Nosferatu beat it to the punch nine years earlier, although it will always be considered an unofficial adaptation due to director F.W. Murnau's inability to secure the rights to the original material. In 1931, Universal Studios began a new endeavor and created a new legacy that holds up today as one of the most beloved eras in the history of cinema. In 1927, Dracula opened on Broadway with Bela Lugosi portraying the title character. Director Tod Browning (Freaks) based his screenplay on this stage play instead of the source novel. In this version of the story, there is no doubt that the vampires exist, a departure from the previous vampire tales.
Lon Chaney was supposed to play the role of the vampire but when he died in 1930, Browning went to the man best suited to play the title role, Lugosi. Universal took a strange marketing approach when they released it on Valentine's Day, and advertised it as "The Strangest Love Story of All." It earned critical acclaim and went on to become the biggest money maker of the year.
A Spanish language version was made simultaneously, directed by George Melford and running a half hour longer with a completely different cast. It is seen as a superior version over the Browning film, more visually dynamic and modern, and can be found on the Dracula: Legacy Collection DVD. Since its initial release, Dracula has received a number of sequels including Dracula's Daughter, Son of Dracula and House of Dracula. In 1958, Dracula was raised from the dead in the person of Christopher Lee. He would go on to appear in six Dracula movies, concluding his run in 1973. Frank Langella (1979) and Gary Oldman (1992) have also played the iconic blood sucker in the years since.
"Listen to them. Children of the night. What music they make."
4. THE MUMMY (1932)
Directed by Karl Freund Cast: Boris Karloff, Zita Johann, David Manners, Edward Van Sloan, Arthur Bryon
James Whale's Frankenstein was quickly green lit and released in 1931, thanks to the success of Dracula. Originally it was supposed to star Bela Lugosi, but the star refused on the grounds that he would be unrecognizable under the heavy makeup. Whale chose a British actor named Boris Karloff to star as the monster instead. It began the downfall of the career of Lugosi and the rise of Karloff. James Whale would follow that movie with The Invisible Man, although Karloff chose not to participate due to the role requiring a good speaking voice.
In 1932, Carl Laemmle of Universal offered Karl Freund, the cinematographer of both Dracula and Murders in the Rue Morgue an opportunity to direct his own Universal monster movie. That movie would be The Mummy, and Karloff was brought aboard to play the three-thousand year old mummy, Im-ho-tep. The storyline tells us Im-ho-tep was buried alive for sacrilegious attempts to restore life to his beloved princess. His sarcophagus was discovered and brought out by archeologists who found a curse engraved into it. Despite being told to leave the artifact case closed, a young man opens it and reads from an incantation. In one of the greatest moments in classic monster movies, the mummy opens a single eye. It is chilling and one of the only shock moments of the movie. The rest of the movie plays out as a mood drama as the mummy takes off its bandages and starts living under the assumed name of Ardet Bey. His goal is to find an English girl who is the reincarnation of his princess love.
Freund would only make one more film following this in Mad Love, a retelling of The Hands of Orlac. Unlike Dracula, this film had no direct sequels, instead getting remade in 1940 with The Mummy's Hand. Instead of Im-ho-tep, the mummy in this movie is Kharis. Tom Tyler would play the mummy in the film but it would be Lon Chaney Jr. who would take over in the three sequels: The Mummy's Tomb, The Mummy's Ghost and The Mummy's Curse. In 1959 Christopher Lee would portray Kharis in a remake of The Mummy's Hand the year after he starred as Dracula. It is interesting to note Peter Cushing played Lee's nemesis in both Dracula and The Mummy. Hammer Films would continue on with the series without Lee in tow for two sequels: The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb (1964) and The Mummy's Shroud (1967). The monster would then remain at rest until 1999's Brendon Fraser film The Mummy, which was the first film to even reference the original 1932 version's Imhotep. It would be followed by The Mummy Returns, The Scorpion King and this weekend's The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor.
"You will not remember what I show you now, and yet I shall awaken memories of love... and crime... and death..."
3. BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1935)
Directed by James Whale Cast: Boris Karloff, Colin Clive, Valerie Hobson, Ernest Thesiger, Elsa Lanchester
Frankenstein was a great movie but its sequel, Bride of Frankenstein is a true masterpiece. James Whale created a monster that was very unlike Dracula and Im-ho-tep in that The Monster was an innocent, created by a scientist and then cast aside, constantly fearing for its life. The terror found in this movie has nothing to do with gruesomeness or bloody spectacle. The terror here is evident as a master filmmaker allows the camera to silently watch what is happening and we, the audience, can sit and watch helplessly as the body count rises. The death of the little girl at the lake was considered so traumatic it was censored out at the time of the film's release. The scene shows the little girl and The Monster, both as innocents and securely places The Monster on the lowest tier of the food chain, less mature than even a small child. Whale was named Universal's Master of Horror following this movie and accepted it halfheartedly. The title gave him almost complete control over all his pictures and he was able to use this clout to make his more personal projects.
He would create Bride of Frankenstein when Universal decided they should not have killed The Monster in the first film and asked him to bring the creature back. To make the story more plausible to audiences, the new film began with a prologue where Mary Shelley (Elsa Lancaster) tells the story of how Frankenstein survived to her husband and Lord Byron. What resulted was the high point of Whale's career and his personal masterpiece. Where the original movie had very little music, Bride had a full score. The film also works on an absurdist level as Dr. Praetorius became the blueprint for all mad scientists to come. You can learn more about Whale's work in the biopic Gods and Monsters (1988), with Ian McKellen starring as the director. That film was based on the novel Father of Frankenstein and won an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. It would recreate the production of Bride of Frankenstein and that film's name was actually taken from this classic film.
Karloff would only return for one more run as The Monster in Son of Frankenstein (1939), joined in a supporting role by Bela Lugosi as Ygor. Lon Chaney Jr. would take over the role in The Ghost of Frankenstein (1942). In quite a funny twist, the man who refused the role of The Monster in the original 1931 version would take that role in 1943. Lugosi would portray The Monster in Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man because Chaney Jr. was already playing The Wolf Man and couldn't pull double duty as both creatures. In an even more confusing situation, Karloff returned for the next sequel, but not as The Monster, instead playing a mad scientist who encounters Dracula, The Wolf Man and The Monster in House of Frankenstein (1944). In this film, Glenn Strange would step into the boots of The Monster. He would continue this role in the final two Frankenstein films, House of Dracula and Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein.
The legendary monster has not received the same respect as Dracula, or even the Mummy, in recent years. Christopher Lee, in an obvious attempt to play every Universal monster he could, revived The Monster in The Curse of Frankenstein (1957), Peter Cushing remaining in tow, this time as Dr. Frankenstein. It is Cushing who would become the star of this Hammer series, as it focused on the doctor and not The Monster. He would appear in five of the six sequels to that film. Along the way, Frankenstein became a joke with the television show The Munsters and the Mel Brook's film Young Frankenstein, which sees The Monster in a song and dance routine. Kenneth Branagh directed Mary Shelley's Frankenstein in 1994 with Robert DeNiro playing The Monster. Finally, as bad as Van Helsing (2004) was, it remains the most loyal portrayal of the character from the book and original two films.
"It's a perfect night for mystery and horror. The air itself is filled with monsters."
2. THE WOLF MAN (1941)
Directed by George Waggner Cast: Claude Rains, Warren William, Bela Lugosi, Lon Chaney Jr., Evelyn Ankers
With so many monster movies proving successful, producers were looking at what all they could bring to life. Dracula, Frankenstein, The Mummy, The Invisible Man and so many of Edgar Allen Poe's horrific tales were bringing in the money. Titles such as The Phantom of the Opera and Jekyll and Hyde were also being thrown around, but another idea that was being discussed was the idea of lycanthropy. Werewolf of London (1935) was the first attempt at tackling this werewolf legend. Unlike Dracula, there was no literary basis for the idea of a wolf man, so the studios had to rely on mythology and create their own rules concerning the creatures. The story was a twisted take on the Jekyll and Hyde theme and has the twist at the end that there was not one but two werewolves in the city and a showdown between them occurs at the end of the film. The movie was not successful and, although it remains an interesting piece of cinema history, is a boring movie.
A movie that is not boring is The Wolf Man (1941) in which Lon Chaney Jr. takes over the mantle of Larry Talbot, who would be bitten by a werewolf and soon turn into The Wolf Man. The mythology of the creature was deepened in this attempt and the only way to kill a werewolf now was with a silver bullet or silver-encrusted cane. Chaney Jr. would turn in a spectacular performance as the tormented Talbot and it is his character that made this movie rise above the typical monster fare. The Wolf Man is a cold blooded killer, an animal with no soul. However, its human counterpart is a man torn apart by grief at what his other half does that he can't control. Without The Wolf Man, there would be no Incredible Hulk. As far as I am concerned, Lon Chaney Jr. is Larry Talbot and no one will ever take his crown.
Universal believed they found gold in Chaney Jr. as well, giving him the chance to play the roles of all the monsters made famous by Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff in the prior decade including Dracula (Son of Dracula), Frankenstein (The Ghost of Frankenstein) and The Mummy (The Mummy's Tomb). The Wolf Man would continue to make appearances in four more films following the 1941 effort: Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, House of Frankenstein, House of Dracula and Abbott and Costello Meets Frankenstein.
The werewolf has been in some really solid films over the years including Salem's Lot (1979), The Howling (1981), An American Werewolf in London (1981), Teen Wolf (1985), Wolf (1994), Ginger Snaps (2000), Dog Soldiers (2002), as well as the Underworld series of movies. I would argue the werewolf has been the best represented of all the Universal monsters, even more so than Dracula himself. The worst version I think I have ever seen would be the werewolf present in Van Helsing (2004), which was the worst looking transformation I have ever seen. I have high hopes for the upcoming Wolf Man, starring Benicio Del Toro as Larry Talbot. This remake promises all natural makeup work, which should bring back memories of the better creatures from the original Wolf Man and the great An American Werewolf in London.
"Even a man who is pure in heart and says his prayers by night, may become a wolf when the wolfbane blooms and the autumn moon is bright."
1. Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948)
Directed by Charles T. Barton Cast: Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Lon Chaney Jr., Bela Lugosi, Glenn Strange
By the 1940s, Universal seemed to be flogging a dead horse with the classic monsters. In a Hollywood mindset that still exists today, they pushed an idea until one was no longer willing to buy it anymore. Then they push it some more. Movies like Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, House of Frankenstein, and House of Dracula were the obvious next step. People were not interested in just seeing the monsters wreck havoc against humans anymore, they wanted a monster on monster battle royal. Unfortunately, none of these movies met the par of excellence the originals set.
Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943) pits Bela Lugosi's The Monster against Lon Chaney Jr.'s Wolf Man. The problems with this movie are numerous but the poor performance of Lugosi as The Monster is at the forefront. Lugosi was sick throughout much of the shoot, needing a stunt double for many of his scenes. Chaney was excellent as always as Larry Talbot, hoping to find death as a permanent cure from lycanthropy, but instead finding The Monster. All his hard work is sunk thanks to the lackluster performance of his co-star. Columbia produced a horrible attempt at the same idea with The Return of the Vampire (1944), with Lugosi playing a vampire and Matt Willis playing an unimpressive werewolf.
Somewhat better was Universal's House of Frankenstein (1944), where all three iconic monsters were paired up in a movie that appears too busy to be a cohesive story. We have a mad scientist (Boris Karloff) who orchestrates the murder of a travelling showman and takes over his carnival, which includes the body of Dracula (John Carradine) and a manuscript that leads to the castle of Frankenstein where they find The Monster (Glenn Strange) and The Wolf Man (Chaney), somehow still alive after their last confrontation.
Next up was House of Dracula (1945), and is the better of the monster mash ups. A doctor finally cures Larry Talbot (Chaney) of his horrible affliction. When he tries to also cure Dracula (Carradine) of his bloodlust it all goes wrong when the doctor (Onslow Stevens) becomes a vampire as well and happily revives The Monster (Strange). Talbot, finally cured for good, is able to defeat the doctor and The Monster, finally able to live happily ever after.
In the meantime, a new fad was catching on at Universal and the monsters were being pushed out of the way for a completely different genre. Bud Abbott and Lou Costello were the new golden boys of Hollywood, bringing in the money the monster movies once provided. Remaining absent from cinema for three years, Universal had a brain storm to pair up their new cash cows with the cash cows from yesteryear. What resulted was Abbot and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948).
The movie is noteworthy because it never once treats the monsters as a joke. You would assume it would be easy to treat the classic creatures as a parody since the new money was being brought in by the comedy duo. Thank goodness, the monsters were allowed to act as they would in the movies that made them famous. Meanwhile, Abbott and Costello would do what they did best: get into all kinds of trouble and create slapstick humor while the world continues to move around them. Bela Lugosi was back as Dracula, Chaney reprised his role as Larry Talbot/The Wolf Man and Glenn Strange was once again The Monster. Interesting trivia is this is the only time Lugosi portrayed Dracula since the original movie. In this film, the Count is looking for a new brain to resurrect The Monster and it would be Talbott who becomes the hero of the film. It is never explained why Talbott is once again the Wolf Man, but I would assume it takes place out of context of the prior movies. Of the four movies combining the "Big Three" Universal monsters, this would be the highlight. It would also launch Abbott and Costello's career to new levels while delivering the swan song for the classic Universal monsters.
"Oh relax. Now that we've seen the last of Dracula, the Wolf Man, and the Monster, there's nobody to frighten us anymore.
Oh, that's too bad. I was hoping to get in on the excitement.
Who said that?
Allow me to introduce myself. I'm the Invisible Man."
I hope you enjoyed this week's read, and I hope you might found some interesting classic monster movies to check out
