Director
Richard E. Cunha
Cast
John Ashley - Johnny Bruder
Sandra Knight - Trudy Morton
Donald Murphy - Oliver "Frank" Frankenstein
Sally Todd - Suzie Lawler
Harold Lloyd, Jr. - Don
Harry Wilson - The MonsterFelix Maurice Locher - Carter Mortan
I've never had the pleasure of watching a movie at a drive-in theater...yet. I'm sure one day, it'll happen.
Despite never having done so, I know a typical drive-in movie aimed at teenagers when I see it. The B-horror flick "Frankenstein's Daughter" (1958) is one such movie.
Realistically speaking, this movie is a giant catastrophe. Certainly teenagers and their dates back in the late 1950s, who went to see "Frankenstein's Daughter," really went for other endeavors.
Despite never having done so, I know a typical drive-in movie aimed at teenagers when I see it. The B-horror flick "Frankenstein's Daughter" (1958) is one such movie.
Realistically speaking, this movie is a giant catastrophe. Certainly teenagers and their dates back in the late 1950s, who went to see "Frankenstein's Daughter," really went for other endeavors.
I almost chose not to review this movie. I didn't know what to say about it. But, clearly, I figured something out.
Not to be confused with another B-horror movie, "Jesse James meets Frankenstein's Daughter" from 1966, which I reviewed last year, "Frankenstein's Daughter" is as second-rate a teenage horror flick as they come. Teens didn't go to see something like this in the hopes of watching top-notch acting, or to listen to a compelling storyline. They went to make out in the seclusion of a dark theater or in the privacy of their car at the drive-in. And something had to be playing on the screen while they did these things.
The story is a typical mad scientist plot. It centers on teenage girl, Trudy Morton (Sandra Knight) who lives with her scientist uncle, Carter Mortan (Felix Maurice Locher). He works often in his laboratory inside his large estate.
Recently, Trudy has been having nightmares where she's a monster going crazy around the streets of her neighborhood. She's convinced the scenario in her dream is actually real. Her boyfriend, Johnny Bruder (John Ashley) thinks she's going crazy...like any "good boyfriend" would think. (Sarcasm intended).
Her friends, Suzie (Sally Todd) and Don (Harold Lloyd, Jr.) share the same opinion as Johnny.
But Trudy's dreams are real. She doesn't realize at first that her Uncle Carter's (Felix Maurice Locher) lab assistant, Oliver Frank (Donald Murphy). spikes her beverages with a concoction they're developing. This mixture turns her into a ravenous monster who goes out and stalks the neighborhood at night. When it wears off, she's only left with bad dreams.
Carter's intention is to use the mixture as a cure all diseases, and give people a chance at longevity. Oliver, however, has something more sinister in mind.
Little does Carter know that Oliver is secretly working on a project to create what he calls "the perfect being." Nor does Carter know that Oliver is actually the grandson of the late Dr. Frankenstein.
Rather than create such a person in the same manner his grandfather did, Oliver wants to use a female brain for his regenerated being instead.
Not to be confused with another B-horror movie, "Jesse James meets Frankenstein's Daughter" from 1966, which I reviewed last year, "Frankenstein's Daughter" is as second-rate a teenage horror flick as they come. Teens didn't go to see something like this in the hopes of watching top-notch acting, or to listen to a compelling storyline. They went to make out in the seclusion of a dark theater or in the privacy of their car at the drive-in. And something had to be playing on the screen while they did these things.
The story is a typical mad scientist plot. It centers on teenage girl, Trudy Morton (Sandra Knight) who lives with her scientist uncle, Carter Mortan (Felix Maurice Locher). He works often in his laboratory inside his large estate.
Recently, Trudy has been having nightmares where she's a monster going crazy around the streets of her neighborhood. She's convinced the scenario in her dream is actually real. Her boyfriend, Johnny Bruder (John Ashley) thinks she's going crazy...like any "good boyfriend" would think. (Sarcasm intended).
Her friends, Suzie (Sally Todd) and Don (Harold Lloyd, Jr.) share the same opinion as Johnny.
But Trudy's dreams are real. She doesn't realize at first that her Uncle Carter's (Felix Maurice Locher) lab assistant, Oliver Frank (Donald Murphy). spikes her beverages with a concoction they're developing. This mixture turns her into a ravenous monster who goes out and stalks the neighborhood at night. When it wears off, she's only left with bad dreams.
Carter's intention is to use the mixture as a cure all diseases, and give people a chance at longevity. Oliver, however, has something more sinister in mind.
Little does Carter know that Oliver is secretly working on a project to create what he calls "the perfect being." Nor does Carter know that Oliver is actually the grandson of the late Dr. Frankenstein.
Rather than create such a person in the same manner his grandfather did, Oliver wants to use a female brain for his regenerated being instead.
Oliver scores a date with Trudy's friend, Suzie. But their rendezvous becomes a big let down. Oliver tries to take advantage of her while they sit in his parked car, but she turns down his advances.
Since he wants a female brain, he decides to take Suzie's. So, he runs her over with his car, and takes her back to his lab.
 |
| Harry Wilson as the monster in "Frankenstein's Daughter." |
Call me a prude, but I get the feeling this movie subtly caters to the sexual urges teens in the audience were feeling back then. I caught a slight hint of creature-feature fetishtic licentiousness portrayed off-camera. Vulnerable and attractive young women at the mercy of a towering brutish and mindless monster surely caters to the imaginations of young curious kids. It's right there on the movie poster. That's all mixed in with typical teenage partying and dancing common in 1950s.
No doubt the producers thought they needed to capture their young audience's attention for at least one-third of the movie while they made out during the rest of the time. Hence the party scenes, and poolside sing-a-longs.
Everything else is a standard horror movie trope. "Frankenstein's Daughter" has an evil mad scientist, a destructive monster who mindlessly kills and preys on vulnerable young girls, a teenage couple who end up the heroes, and trepidatious organ music playing throughout the film. Of course there's bad acting and unintentionally hilarious dialogue.
Movie theaters during this silver age of horror were swarming with creature features. Somehow, these kinds of movies still have a fanbase. They're the audience that still gets some kind of kick from "Frankenstein's Daughter."
It's hilarious watching Sandra Knight's character scream each and every time the monster appears in her presence. At one moment, she just stands there and screams when the monster enters the room, as though it's expected of her because, after all, she's a girl. And then she continues to stand on her mark, not attempting to flee nor hide behind her boyfriend. It's no exaggeration that Knight looks either bored, confused, or both in various scenes throughout the film.
It's worth mentioning Harold Lloyd, Jr's presence in the film. He's the son of legendary silent film star Harold Lloyd. This movie was his fourth screen appearance. In the same year, he made an appearance on the classic T.V. series "Father Knows Best."
According to a "New York Times" article, Lloyd sadly died at the age of 40 in 1971 after suffering a stroke in 1965 from which he never fully recovered.
I can't say "Frankenstein's Daughter" let me down. It's exactly the sort of low-budget B-horror I expected going in. To beat it up any further would simply be unjust. The fun was in watching something this bad and unintentionally hilarious.
Everything else is a standard horror movie trope. "Frankenstein's Daughter" has an evil mad scientist, a destructive monster who mindlessly kills and preys on vulnerable young girls, a teenage couple who end up the heroes, and trepidatious organ music playing throughout the film. Of course there's bad acting and unintentionally hilarious dialogue.
Movie theaters during this silver age of horror were swarming with creature features. Somehow, these kinds of movies still have a fanbase. They're the audience that still gets some kind of kick from "Frankenstein's Daughter."
It's hilarious watching Sandra Knight's character scream each and every time the monster appears in her presence. At one moment, she just stands there and screams when the monster enters the room, as though it's expected of her because, after all, she's a girl. And then she continues to stand on her mark, not attempting to flee nor hide behind her boyfriend. It's no exaggeration that Knight looks either bored, confused, or both in various scenes throughout the film.
It's worth mentioning Harold Lloyd, Jr's presence in the film. He's the son of legendary silent film star Harold Lloyd. This movie was his fourth screen appearance. In the same year, he made an appearance on the classic T.V. series "Father Knows Best."
According to a "New York Times" article, Lloyd sadly died at the age of 40 in 1971 after suffering a stroke in 1965 from which he never fully recovered.
I can't say "Frankenstein's Daughter" let me down. It's exactly the sort of low-budget B-horror I expected going in. To beat it up any further would simply be unjust. The fun was in watching something this bad and unintentionally hilarious.
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