FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE WOLF MAN (1943). Colorized

FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE WOLF MAN is a 1943 American horror film directed by Roy William Neill and starring Lon Chaney Jr. as Larry Talbot (the Wolf Man) and Bela Lugosi as Frankenstein's monster. The script, written by Curt Siodmak, follows The Ghost of Frankenstein and The Wolf Man, though with a number of retcons. Most significantly, Talbot only transforms into werewolf form during a full moon (rather than every night while wolfsbane is in bloom, as in The Wolf Man), which became a standard part of werewolf lore. The film involves Larry Talbot, who is resurrected when his tomb is disturbed. His search for a way to end his seeming immortality leads to his befriending Frankenstein's monster.

PLOT:
Four years after the events of The Wolf Man and The Ghost of Frankenstein, two graverobbers break into the Talbot family crypt during a full moon. They remove the wolfsbane buried with Larry Talbot. The full moon shines on Larry's body, reviving and transforming him. Larry is found by the police in Cardiff later that night, still with the head wound thought to have killed him, and taken to a hospital where he is treated by Dr. Mannering. During the full moon, Larry becomes the Wolf Man and kills a police constable. The next morning, Larry remembers everything, and implores Mannering to summon police before he kills again. Inspector Owen believes Larry to be an imposter, having confirmed reports of his death, and demands to know his real identity. Larry becomes violently irate, then is overcome by orderlies and bound to his bed with leather straps. Not believing his story of being a werewolf, Mannering and Owen travel to the village of Llanwelly to investigate the Talbot tomb, only to find Larry's body gone, and one of the grave robbers killed in the same manner as the slayings from four years ago. Larry escapes from the hospital by biting through the restraints. Seeking a cure for his apparent inability to die, he leaves Wales and seeks the gypsy Maleva. She opines Dr. Frankenstein may be able to help. Together they travel across Europe to the village Vasaria. Larry hopes to find Dr. Frankenstein's notes in the remains of his estate.

Larry transforms and kills a young woman, causing a mob of villagers to chase him down. Fleeing toward the ruins of Frankenstein's castle, Larry falls through the burned-out flooring and into the frozen cellars. He returns to human form, and discovers Frankenstein's monster trapped within ice. Using a stone, Larry breaks the ice and pulls the creature free, hoping he can show him Frankenstein's notes. As the monster is unable to locate the notes, Larry poses as a potential buyer of the Frankenstein estate in order to find Baroness Elsa Frankenstein, the daughter of Ludwig, hoping she knows their hiding place. She declines to assist Larry, but the pair are invited to the "Festival of the New Wine" by the Burgomeister. During the festival, Dr. Mannering arrives. Having followed Larry across Europe, Mannering attempts to persuade him to commit himself to a mental institution before having another spell. Larry refuses to go with Mannering. The monster crashes the festival and is attacked by the villagers. Larry guides the monster onto a cart and drives him to safety. Elsa and Mannering agree to help the villagers kill Frankenstein's monster. The following morning, Elsa, Mannering, and Maleva meet with Larry and the monster at the ruins. The Baroness gives the notes to Larry. Larry asks that his life energy be transferred to the monster, believing the laboratory can be repaired for the task. Mannering agrees, but secretly he and Elsa plan to drain both Larry and the monster of life.

Mannering begins the procedure, but his curiosity to see the monster at full strength compels him to alter the process and fully revive the monster. Horrified, Elsa attempts to stop the machines, and as a result Larry's life is not fully transferred. The experiment coincides on the night of a full moon, and Larry transforms as the monster regains his strength. The monster begins to carry Elsa away, but the Wolf Man attacks him. Vazec, the innkeeper, suspecting Elsa, Mannering, and Maleva of conspiring with Larry and the monster, destroys the dam overlooking the Frankenstein estate with dynamite, hoping to drown all five of them. Elsa escapes from the castle with Mannering, but the Wolf Man and the monster, engaged in their fight, are both swept away in the flood.

CAST:
Lon Chaney Jr. as Lawrence Stewart Talbot, the Wolf Man
Ilona Massey as Baroness Elsa Frankenstein
Patric Knowles as Dr. Frank Mannering
Lionel Atwill as Mayor
Bela Lugosi as The Frankenstein monster
Maria Ouspenskaya as Maleva
Dennis Hoey as Police Inspector Owen
Don Barclay as Franzec
Rex Evans as Vazec
Dwight Frye as Rudi
Harry Stubbs as Guno
Doris Lloyd as Nurse
Jeff Corey as Grave Digger
Cyril Delevanti as Freddy Jolly—Graverobber (uncredited)

PRODUCTION:
Curt Siodmak discussed the development of Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man at the beginning with producer George Waggner proposing the title to him. Siodmak explained that he wanted to purchase a new car and needed a writing job to afford it, which led to Waggner telling him to buy the car as he had two hours to agree to write the script. Richard G. Hubler of the Saturday Evening Post stated that the film was prompted by the nearly one million dollar gross of The Wolf Man. The screenplay of Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man merges the stories of the two films, as The Wolf Man was set in the present day with the sequel taking place four years later, while the Frankenstein story is set in a much earlier era. The authors of Universal Horrors commented on this, stating that "probably almost no one noticed or cared about details like this when the film was released", as Universal had begun targeting their films to a younger audience. Several minor changes were made to Siodmak's script before the film was completed, such as grave robbers finding Talbot's body with long fingernails, a hospital scene with Dr. Harley (later changed to Dr. Mannering in the film) and Inspector Owen finding Talbot's clothes rotten and moldy and his shirt falling apart.

LEGACY:
Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man was the first of what would become known as the "monster rally films". These would be followed with other name-brand film monsters in crossovers such as House of Frankenstein and House of Dracula. The authors of Universal Horrors declared that these films are "often blamed for the decline and demise of the classic Dracula and Frankenstein series, but by the mid-40s they were on their last legs anyways", and the monster rallies "may be juvenilia, but they're slick and enjoyable, and a welcome opportunity for many of the best-loved horror stars to congregate in a single picture", and that among these monster rallies, Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man was the best in the series. Kim Newman declared that the film set the precedent for future similarly themed films such as King Kong vs. Godzilla and Freddy vs. Jason.