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It's probably very
cathartic why horror works.
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00:00:24,589 --> 00:00:25,549
It takes you
to the edge of life.
3
00:00:28,767 --> 00:00:31,247
It's one of the few genres
that can get an audience
4
00:00:31,379 --> 00:00:34,559
to react viscerally.
5
00:00:34,686 --> 00:00:36,816
That's all horror is.
6
00:00:36,949 --> 00:00:39,649
These six kids are gonna die,
one by one.
7
00:00:39,778 --> 00:00:41,648
Maybe one schmo
will make it to the end.
8
00:00:41,780 --> 00:00:44,350
But it's all life and death.
9
00:00:44,479 --> 00:00:46,829
For over a century,
horror films have been
10
00:00:46,959 --> 00:00:50,049
an essential part
of American culture.
11
00:00:50,180 --> 00:00:53,360
They have thrilled us.
They have entertained us.
12
00:00:53,488 --> 00:00:57,748
And they have also exorcised
our collective demons.
13
00:00:57,883 --> 00:01:01,713
The horror genre has always
reflected our shared fears
14
00:01:01,844 --> 00:01:04,464
and anxieties.
15
00:01:04,586 --> 00:01:05,796
People-- they want
to be scared.
16
00:01:05,935 --> 00:01:08,285
They're coming to get you, Barbara.
17
00:01:10,070 --> 00:01:11,850
The world is always
throwing up new terrors
18
00:01:11,984 --> 00:01:14,384
that we can
turn into horror movies.
19
00:01:16,946 --> 00:01:19,596
Blumhouse's
Compendium of Horror examines
20
00:01:19,731 --> 00:01:22,911
how those films have held
a mirror up to society
21
00:01:23,039 --> 00:01:28,259
and allowed us to experience
and purge our national fears
22
00:01:28,392 --> 00:01:30,312
in the shared experience
of cinema.
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00:01:30,438 --> 00:01:33,398
The scariest fucking thing.
24
00:01:33,528 --> 00:01:34,788
We wanted Blair Witch
to come from a place
25
00:01:34,920 --> 00:01:37,360
of that primal motivation.
26
00:01:37,488 --> 00:01:40,268
Really get under your skin
and really scare you.
27
00:01:40,404 --> 00:01:42,284
From the brutality of war
28
00:01:42,406 --> 00:01:44,666
to national financial disasters,
29
00:01:44,800 --> 00:01:46,930
foreign or alien threats,
30
00:01:47,063 --> 00:01:50,853
uncomfortable challenges
to the social fabric,
31
00:01:50,980 --> 00:01:53,370
to the struggle for progress,
32
00:01:53,504 --> 00:01:56,514
all these cultural shifts
and movements
33
00:01:56,638 --> 00:02:01,428
have manifested
in our collective fears.
34
00:02:01,556 --> 00:02:04,556
They have inspired horror's
greatest filmmakers
35
00:02:04,689 --> 00:02:06,909
and resulted in the creation
of some of the most
36
00:02:07,039 --> 00:02:11,439
terrifying and unforgettable
films of all time.
37
00:02:13,524 --> 00:02:14,834
Invasion of
the Body Snatchers--
38
00:02:14,960 --> 00:02:18,360
one of the most
disturbing movies ever made.
39
00:02:18,486 --> 00:02:19,966
I was not ready for it.
40
00:02:20,096 --> 00:02:21,786
Of course,
Leatherface was terrifying.
41
00:02:21,924 --> 00:02:24,804
He was just this awful,
faceless entity
42
00:02:24,927 --> 00:02:28,837
that was in this house
killing teenagers.
43
00:02:28,974 --> 00:02:31,804
We've got no money, but we scare
the hell out of you.
44
00:02:31,934 --> 00:02:33,464
They don't make that movie,
45
00:02:33,588 --> 00:02:35,938
I don't get inspired
to make mine.
46
00:02:36,068 --> 00:02:38,718
I came up with the title
Friday the 13th,
47
00:02:38,854 --> 00:02:40,684
and I took out
a big ad in Variety.
48
00:02:40,812 --> 00:02:44,642
"The most terrifying film
ever made-- Friday the 13th."
49
00:02:44,773 --> 00:02:46,913
And I didn't have anything.
50
00:02:47,036 --> 00:02:49,596
Nightmare on Elm Street.
It's so simple.
51
00:02:49,734 --> 00:02:51,394
Somebody that terrorizes you
in your dreams.
52
00:02:51,519 --> 00:02:53,559
And if he gets to you, you die.
53
00:02:55,653 --> 00:02:57,963
Sleep kills.
54
00:02:58,090 --> 00:03:00,620
Horror fans--
they want to be scared.
55
00:03:02,660 --> 00:03:04,180
Anybody with a video camera
can make a horror film.
56
00:03:06,838 --> 00:03:11,188
There's a certain dedication
to it that no other genre has.
57
00:03:15,934 --> 00:03:18,374
They wanted to
bump it up and like,
58
00:03:18,502 --> 00:03:21,772
"Whoa, did you see that?"
59
00:03:21,897 --> 00:03:24,287
The communal experience
of screaming together
60
00:03:24,421 --> 00:03:25,941
in a dark theater
61
00:03:26,075 --> 00:03:28,895
is an experience that
draws us back again and again.
62
00:03:29,034 --> 00:03:31,824
Big old monster walks in
the room, we all jump.
63
00:03:31,950 --> 00:03:33,520
Aah!
64
00:03:33,648 --> 00:03:35,738
Fear and fun are co-mingled.
65
00:03:35,867 --> 00:03:40,517
And the audience
gets to sit and scream and yell
66
00:03:40,655 --> 00:03:43,655
and come out of the theater
unharmed at the end.
67
00:04:50,072 --> 00:04:52,602
My folks are big movie buffs.
68
00:04:54,946 --> 00:04:58,116
So we saw everything.
69
00:04:58,254 --> 00:05:02,914
For me, as a kid,
I was fascinated with monsters.
70
00:05:03,041 --> 00:05:07,961
I was just absolutely enthralled
with Frankenstein,
71
00:05:08,090 --> 00:05:10,700
The Wolf Man,
72
00:05:10,832 --> 00:05:12,572
Dracula,
73
00:05:12,703 --> 00:05:15,013
all the Universal
monster movies.
74
00:05:15,140 --> 00:05:18,620
I was kind of the weird kid
in high school.
75
00:05:18,753 --> 00:05:20,543
I was into monsters
76
00:05:20,668 --> 00:05:23,578
and I was into all this kind
of strange stuff
77
00:05:23,714 --> 00:05:27,114
back before nerds
or geeky people
78
00:05:27,239 --> 00:05:30,899
that loved this kind of stuff
were embraced.
79
00:05:35,247 --> 00:05:36,947
There was one guy
that I hung out with,
80
00:05:37,075 --> 00:05:39,685
and we saw every movie together.
81
00:05:39,817 --> 00:05:42,597
But other than that, people were
just-- didn't get it.
82
00:05:42,733 --> 00:05:44,473
I got it.
83
00:05:48,913 --> 00:05:50,923
I am Dracula.
84
00:05:54,919 --> 00:05:56,919
The most iconic
horror characters
85
00:05:57,052 --> 00:05:58,842
come from the best imaginations,
86
00:05:58,967 --> 00:06:00,837
but also, they come
from the culture.
87
00:06:00,969 --> 00:06:02,619
Dracula.
88
00:06:02,753 --> 00:06:04,763
the Creature
from the Black Lagoon...
89
00:06:04,886 --> 00:06:06,666
...Leatherface,
90
00:06:06,801 --> 00:06:08,631
Jason,
91
00:06:08,759 --> 00:06:10,459
Michael Myers,
92
00:06:10,587 --> 00:06:11,587
Freddy,
93
00:06:11,719 --> 00:06:12,979
Candyman,
94
00:06:13,111 --> 00:06:14,811
Pennywise,
95
00:06:14,939 --> 00:06:16,509
and Red in Us...
96
00:06:16,637 --> 00:06:18,987
Little girl,
97
00:06:19,117 --> 00:06:21,337
run!
98
00:06:21,468 --> 00:06:24,648
...are all uniquely
American monsters.
99
00:06:28,823 --> 00:06:31,133
Sometimes, the divide between
the real world
100
00:06:31,260 --> 00:06:35,260
and a horror movie
is a very, very thin line.
101
00:06:35,395 --> 00:06:38,565
The birth of the
American horror experience
102
00:06:38,702 --> 00:06:41,792
dates back nearly 100 years.
103
00:06:41,923 --> 00:06:44,233
In the wake of World War I,
104
00:06:44,360 --> 00:06:48,190
German artists created
seminal horror films
105
00:06:48,320 --> 00:06:53,240
that echoed societal fears
overwhelming the population.
106
00:06:53,369 --> 00:06:57,939
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari
and Nosferatu
107
00:06:58,069 --> 00:07:00,859
were dark
and disturbing stories
108
00:07:00,985 --> 00:07:05,895
that expressed audiences'
shared sense of dread.
109
00:07:06,034 --> 00:07:10,304
The idea that audiences
would embrace unsettling films
110
00:07:10,430 --> 00:07:15,650
which allowed them to experience
and purge those fears
111
00:07:15,783 --> 00:07:18,003
quickly caught on in America.
112
00:07:18,133 --> 00:07:22,793
The only thing we
have to fear is fear itself.
113
00:07:22,920 --> 00:07:25,920
The '20s and '30s
were a really interesting time
114
00:07:26,054 --> 00:07:29,064
for the United States
with post-World War I.
115
00:07:29,187 --> 00:07:31,017
They needed escapist.
116
00:07:31,146 --> 00:07:35,186
They needed something
to get away to.
117
00:07:35,324 --> 00:07:37,814
More than 70 million
people in the United States
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00:07:37,935 --> 00:07:40,155
go to the movies each week.
119
00:07:40,285 --> 00:07:43,985
Horror films function as, like,
a mirror of society.
120
00:07:48,206 --> 00:07:50,766
They're gonna reflect
whatever is going on.
121
00:07:50,905 --> 00:07:53,725
So whatever political,
whatever national trauma,
122
00:07:53,864 --> 00:07:55,954
whatever wartime we are seeing,
123
00:07:56,084 --> 00:07:58,654
we're gonna see horror
reflect what's going on.
124
00:07:58,782 --> 00:08:00,612
Good day, Herr Baron.
125
00:08:00,741 --> 00:08:02,701
Well, what do you want?
126
00:08:02,830 --> 00:08:05,700
If it's trouble, go away.
I've trouble enough.
127
00:08:05,833 --> 00:08:07,053
Oh, there's no
trouble, sir.
128
00:08:07,182 --> 00:08:09,012
What do you mean, no trouble?
129
00:08:09,140 --> 00:08:10,880
There's nothing but trouble.
130
00:08:11,012 --> 00:08:13,062
America
and the rest of the world
131
00:08:13,188 --> 00:08:16,758
were barely recovering from
the horrors of World War I
132
00:08:16,887 --> 00:08:18,277
when a new threat
was unleashed--
133
00:08:18,410 --> 00:08:21,810
the terror
of financial catastrophe
134
00:08:21,936 --> 00:08:25,156
in the form
of the Great Depression.
135
00:08:25,287 --> 00:08:28,807
It's interesting.
In tough times, horror thrives.
136
00:08:33,121 --> 00:08:35,951
The monsters of the era
of right around the Depression
137
00:08:36,080 --> 00:08:39,170
were relatable to all of us.
138
00:08:39,301 --> 00:08:42,041
There's pathos
in these characters.
139
00:09:06,328 --> 00:09:11,198
The 1930s saw the birth
of the American horror movie.
140
00:09:11,333 --> 00:09:13,203
Carl Laemmle Jr.,
son of Carl Laemmle
141
00:09:13,335 --> 00:09:16,725
who founded Universal,
made a big bet on horror,
142
00:09:16,860 --> 00:09:18,690
and his instincts were right.
143
00:09:22,344 --> 00:09:26,784
He put together adaptations
of Dracula and Frankenstein.
144
00:09:26,914 --> 00:09:29,794
Before Dracula and Frankenstein
145
00:09:29,917 --> 00:09:31,957
became iconic movie monsters,
146
00:09:32,093 --> 00:09:34,883
Carl Laemmle Jr.
had to find a way
147
00:09:35,009 --> 00:09:37,929
to make these large-scale,
ambitious films
148
00:09:38,055 --> 00:09:40,225
in the midst
of financial hardship.
149
00:09:40,362 --> 00:09:44,322
The stock-market crash of 1929
devastated the global economy
150
00:09:44,453 --> 00:09:46,933
and decimated movie budgets.
151
00:09:47,064 --> 00:09:50,894
But nothing-- nothing could
kill the pictures.
152
00:09:51,025 --> 00:09:55,245
Carl Laemmle Jr. found
a workaround by optioning plays
153
00:09:55,377 --> 00:09:58,987
that were easily adapted
into film scripts.
154
00:09:59,120 --> 00:10:01,250
With these ready-made
stories in hand,
155
00:10:01,383 --> 00:10:06,173
Laemmle tapped directors
with dark sensibilities.
156
00:10:06,301 --> 00:10:09,261
Laemmle recognized that
audiences wanted horror movies
157
00:10:09,391 --> 00:10:12,661
to purge their fears
now more than ever,
158
00:10:12,786 --> 00:10:17,176
and he tasked his directors
to fulfill that vision.
159
00:10:17,312 --> 00:10:20,362
But they needed the perfect
leading men
160
00:10:20,489 --> 00:10:25,229
to bring the monsters to life.
161
00:10:25,363 --> 00:10:28,413
He hired James Whale
to direct Frankenstein
162
00:10:28,540 --> 00:10:30,850
and Tod Browning
to direct Dracula.
163
00:10:30,978 --> 00:10:32,238
Tod Browning,
the director,
164
00:10:32,370 --> 00:10:34,500
as a kid, worked in carnivals,
165
00:10:34,634 --> 00:10:38,944
and one of his shticks was
he was the living corpse.
166
00:10:42,990 --> 00:10:45,300
He would get buried alive
for hours at a time
167
00:10:45,427 --> 00:10:47,427
and then dug up,
sometimes overnight.
168
00:10:47,559 --> 00:10:50,079
And so he was someone
who was very acquainted
169
00:10:50,214 --> 00:10:53,304
with living death
and being in a coffin.
170
00:10:53,435 --> 00:10:56,525
Director James Whale
was a World War I vet.
171
00:10:56,656 --> 00:10:59,346
He spent a lot of his war in
a German prisoner-of-war camp.
172
00:10:59,484 --> 00:11:01,974
He was a tremendously
troubled individual.
173
00:11:02,096 --> 00:11:03,356
Carl Laemmle Jr.--
174
00:11:03,488 --> 00:11:06,058
he also approved
casting Bela Lugosi
175
00:11:06,187 --> 00:11:08,187
and Boris Karloff
in those films.
176
00:11:08,319 --> 00:11:10,189
Frankenstein.
177
00:11:10,321 --> 00:11:12,721
Dracula.
178
00:11:12,846 --> 00:11:16,976
And those actors are still
synonymous with 1930s horror.
179
00:11:17,111 --> 00:11:18,901
Dracula and Frankenstein,
which really do kind of become
180
00:11:19,026 --> 00:11:21,376
an embodiment of society
181
00:11:21,506 --> 00:11:26,946
where it is these very wealthy
people in these castles.
182
00:11:27,077 --> 00:11:28,947
But the castles
are all crumbling.
183
00:11:31,603 --> 00:11:33,873
And the townsfolk are all
down below, struggling.
184
00:11:33,997 --> 00:11:36,567
Castle Dracula?
185
00:11:36,696 --> 00:11:38,126
Yes.
That's where I'm going.
186
00:11:41,396 --> 00:11:44,086
No, you mustn't go there.
187
00:11:44,225 --> 00:11:45,915
And this is what we see
in Dracula.
188
00:11:48,359 --> 00:11:50,749
In 1931,
189
00:11:50,884 --> 00:11:53,364
the world was introduced
to the first Universal monster.
190
00:11:53,495 --> 00:11:55,665
I bid you welcome.
191
00:11:55,802 --> 00:11:59,982
The sinister Count Dracula.
192
00:12:00,110 --> 00:12:01,240
Ouch!
193
00:12:06,508 --> 00:12:08,508
Oh, it's nothing serious.
194
00:12:08,640 --> 00:12:11,080
Just a small cut
from that paperclip.
195
00:12:11,208 --> 00:12:13,428
It's just a scratch.
196
00:12:13,558 --> 00:12:17,258
The notion of Dracula
as a character
197
00:12:17,388 --> 00:12:21,258
is that he is an eternal evil.
198
00:12:21,392 --> 00:12:25,832
To die, to be really dead--
that must be glorious.
199
00:12:27,747 --> 00:12:32,877
He's someone who takes great
pleasure in the victimization
200
00:12:33,013 --> 00:12:35,153
of mostly female victims.
201
00:12:40,107 --> 00:12:43,547
He has a sadistic love affair
202
00:12:43,675 --> 00:12:46,325
with other people's pain
and humiliation.
203
00:12:56,601 --> 00:13:00,041
Bela Lugosi's Dracula
is very revolutionary for me
204
00:13:00,170 --> 00:13:02,220
in that he's the one
Universal monster
205
00:13:02,346 --> 00:13:04,776
that's not tormented
at what he is.
206
00:13:08,613 --> 00:13:12,273
He's actually enjoying himself
as best he can and go, "Well,
207
00:13:12,400 --> 00:13:15,400
since whatever can't
be remedied must be endured.
208
00:13:15,533 --> 00:13:17,583
And if I have to endure it,
I may as well enjoy it."
209
00:13:17,709 --> 00:13:21,319
Excuse me. Count Dracula,
Professor Van Helsing.
210
00:13:21,452 --> 00:13:26,152
A most distinguished scientist
whose name we know.
211
00:13:26,283 --> 00:13:31,033
Even in the wild Transylvania.
212
00:13:31,158 --> 00:13:32,378
Bela Lugosi--
213
00:13:32,507 --> 00:13:35,377
he was kind of an evil
Rudolph Valentino.
214
00:13:35,510 --> 00:13:36,770
He was originally written
215
00:13:36,903 --> 00:13:41,083
as an aristocrat
back in the old days.
216
00:13:41,211 --> 00:13:44,131
For one who has not lived
even a single lifetime,
217
00:13:44,258 --> 00:13:47,128
you are a wise man.
218
00:13:47,261 --> 00:13:50,311
Slicked-back hair, and he was
all-- got the girls.
219
00:13:50,438 --> 00:13:52,528
You see, I am 30 years
here in America.
220
00:13:52,657 --> 00:13:55,527
And eight months ago,
I was called to come to England
221
00:13:55,660 --> 00:13:57,450
to revive the American
version of Dracula.
222
00:13:57,575 --> 00:13:59,355
Doesn't Dracula
ever end for you?
223
00:13:59,490 --> 00:14:02,280
No, no.
Dracula will never end.
224
00:14:04,539 --> 00:14:07,149
I always
was scared of Dracula
225
00:14:07,281 --> 00:14:10,151
because there was something
very sensuous about him.
226
00:14:10,284 --> 00:14:13,244
He was the most sexual
of our sort of monsters.
227
00:14:17,465 --> 00:14:19,075
It's, you know,
the power of seduction,
228
00:14:19,206 --> 00:14:21,466
the power of the danger.
229
00:14:21,599 --> 00:14:24,079
You know, he is there
to either kiss or kill you,
230
00:14:24,211 --> 00:14:25,521
and you don't know which.
231
00:14:25,647 --> 00:14:27,947
And in the moment,
you don't really care.
232
00:14:28,084 --> 00:14:30,004
Come here.
233
00:14:30,130 --> 00:14:32,440
Come...
234
00:14:32,567 --> 00:14:33,867
here.
235
00:14:39,443 --> 00:14:41,183
I think the reason sex
is so connected to Dracula
236
00:14:41,315 --> 00:14:43,095
and to vampires
237
00:14:43,230 --> 00:14:44,540
is that a lot of people's kink
238
00:14:44,666 --> 00:14:47,316
is being completely dominated
and drained
239
00:14:47,451 --> 00:14:49,761
and used up
as someone else's fuel.
240
00:14:49,889 --> 00:14:52,979
There's something really
kind of beautiful about that.
241
00:14:54,241 --> 00:14:57,641
There's something about
the notion of the vampire.
242
00:14:57,766 --> 00:15:02,286
The thing that, in this case,
literally sucks your blood
243
00:15:02,423 --> 00:15:07,603
but, in other ways,
can get in your head,
244
00:15:07,732 --> 00:15:10,172
can change you
from the inside out.
245
00:15:12,737 --> 00:15:17,477
Can make you a version
of the monster he is.
246
00:15:17,612 --> 00:15:20,312
No, master, please.
247
00:15:20,441 --> 00:15:22,401
Please don't ask me to do that.
248
00:15:24,227 --> 00:15:26,227
That, to me, says a lot
249
00:15:26,360 --> 00:15:30,190
about the corrupting power
of power.
250
00:15:31,147 --> 00:15:32,577
In the wake
of the Great Depression,
251
00:15:32,714 --> 00:15:34,894
Americans were angry
252
00:15:35,021 --> 00:15:37,371
at the corrupt
and selfish wealthy class
253
00:15:37,501 --> 00:15:39,591
that they blamed
for the economic crash
254
00:15:39,721 --> 00:15:42,721
that left 12 million Americans
without work.
255
00:15:42,854 --> 00:15:49,344
A staggering 12,000 jobs
were lost every day.
256
00:15:49,470 --> 00:15:55,300
Over 20,000 Americans
committed suicide.
257
00:15:55,432 --> 00:16:01,262
And Hollywood delivered them
a monster fit for the times.
258
00:16:01,395 --> 00:16:05,485
The money-sucking upper class
was personified
259
00:16:05,616 --> 00:16:10,396
by the handsome and wealthy,
bloodsucking nobleman
260
00:16:10,534 --> 00:16:13,674
feeding on his
less fortunate victims.
261
00:16:13,798 --> 00:16:15,838
Dracula resonated
with a lot of people
262
00:16:15,975 --> 00:16:18,365
because here comes this man
who's just sucking the life
263
00:16:18,499 --> 00:16:20,539
out of us, and I think
264
00:16:20,675 --> 00:16:23,235
people living
in that time felt like
265
00:16:23,373 --> 00:16:26,993
life was sucking the life
out of them.
266
00:16:27,116 --> 00:16:28,726
Everyone was thirsty
and hungry for food,
267
00:16:28,857 --> 00:16:30,547
so they understood
the need for blood.
268
00:16:33,949 --> 00:16:37,519
Dracula was
an overnight success,
269
00:16:37,648 --> 00:16:39,478
selling 50,000 tickets
270
00:16:39,607 --> 00:16:42,387
within days of its opening
in New York.
271
00:16:45,526 --> 00:16:48,526
Here is Bela Lugosi,
the screen's numbere vampire
272
00:16:48,659 --> 00:16:50,359
who's decided to pay back
some of that blood
273
00:16:50,487 --> 00:16:52,487
that he's borrowed.
274
00:16:52,620 --> 00:16:53,750
I can't help thinking
what a perfect payoff
275
00:16:53,882 --> 00:16:55,672
it would be if Dracula Lugosi,
276
00:16:55,797 --> 00:16:57,707
after all the jugular veins
he's tapped,
277
00:16:57,842 --> 00:17:00,152
should be found too anemic
to donate blood.
278
00:17:02,847 --> 00:17:05,757
The success of Dracula
gave Universal confidence
279
00:17:05,894 --> 00:17:09,594
to greenlight its next
monster movie, Frankenstein...
280
00:17:12,074 --> 00:17:16,514
based on a play and inspired by
Mary Shelley's novel from 1818.
281
00:17:16,644 --> 00:17:20,874
The brain you stole
fits the brain of a dead man,
282
00:17:20,996 --> 00:17:25,216
waiting to live again in a body
I made with my own hands.
283
00:17:25,348 --> 00:17:26,608
With my own hands.
284
00:17:34,618 --> 00:17:38,488
It's alive! It's alive!
It's alive!
285
00:17:38,622 --> 00:17:42,542
Imagine being in a movie
theater, seeing Boris Karloff
286
00:17:42,670 --> 00:17:44,590
lumber out of the dark
for the first time.
287
00:17:46,804 --> 00:17:48,684
You know, they do
that great cut
288
00:17:48,806 --> 00:17:51,416
where it just goes boom, boom--
right into his face.
289
00:17:52,854 --> 00:17:55,424
It's so scary.
290
00:17:55,552 --> 00:17:57,602
There's something very taboo
291
00:17:57,728 --> 00:18:01,378
about a mad scientist
screaming about playing God.
292
00:18:06,476 --> 00:18:07,826
There was that moment, too,
that was always cut,
293
00:18:07,956 --> 00:18:09,646
where Frankenstein meets
a little girl
294
00:18:09,784 --> 00:18:12,314
who's picking flowers
and throwing them into the lake.
295
00:18:12,439 --> 00:18:13,609
Would you like
one of my flowers?
296
00:18:17,357 --> 00:18:18,707
See how mine floats?
297
00:18:18,836 --> 00:18:21,226
No, you're hurting me!
298
00:18:21,361 --> 00:18:22,491
No!
299
00:18:25,800 --> 00:18:29,460
And then it all suddenly cut to
300
00:18:29,586 --> 00:18:31,716
her dad carrying her corpse
through the village.
301
00:18:35,810 --> 00:18:37,900
There is
something scary about
302
00:18:38,029 --> 00:18:40,339
something that is
unstoppable and...
303
00:18:40,467 --> 00:18:42,507
Maria-- she's drowned.
304
00:18:47,387 --> 00:18:48,607
...and pursues you...
305
00:18:52,783 --> 00:18:54,483
...and is relentless.
306
00:18:57,701 --> 00:18:59,271
And that's what I kind of
love about it.
307
00:19:02,706 --> 00:19:06,446
For audiences in 1931,
308
00:19:06,580 --> 00:19:11,410
Dr. Frankenstein and the monster
he pieced together
309
00:19:11,541 --> 00:19:13,671
were another potent symbol
310
00:19:13,804 --> 00:19:16,594
of the relentless evil
that had ruined their lives
311
00:19:16,720 --> 00:19:19,460
through war
and financial hardship.
312
00:19:20,246 --> 00:19:26,466
Frankenstein really created
the text for horror
313
00:19:26,600 --> 00:19:27,690
for many decades.
314
00:19:31,344 --> 00:19:34,874
Basically,
every era remakes Frankenstein.
315
00:19:34,999 --> 00:19:36,389
Back into the closet.
Back, back.
316
00:19:36,523 --> 00:19:39,573
Back, back, back,
back, back!
317
00:19:39,700 --> 00:19:43,050
They were there to lay
the foundation for what works.
318
00:19:43,182 --> 00:19:45,232
Dr. Frankenstein, I presume.
319
00:19:54,323 --> 00:19:57,983
Frankenstein is a story
about a mad scientist
320
00:19:58,109 --> 00:20:00,549
whose greatest dream
is to create life.
321
00:20:04,812 --> 00:20:07,642
And he does so by cobbling
together a body,
322
00:20:07,771 --> 00:20:10,211
galvanizing that body with
the use of a lightning storm.
323
00:20:12,863 --> 00:20:14,823
Child's Play.
324
00:20:14,952 --> 00:20:17,352
Hi. I'm Chucky. Wanna play?
325
00:20:20,828 --> 00:20:22,738
The Chucky films
are Frankenstein movies...
326
00:20:25,963 --> 00:20:31,103
about a doll that comes
to life after the warehouse
327
00:20:31,230 --> 00:20:34,580
that the doll is stored in
is struck by lightning.
328
00:20:39,977 --> 00:20:41,677
That's a Frankenstein myth.
329
00:20:41,805 --> 00:20:43,015
I said talk to me, damn it,
330
00:20:43,154 --> 00:20:45,514
or else I'm gonna throw you
in the fire.
331
00:20:45,635 --> 00:20:47,545
I mean, look at Michael Myers.
332
00:20:47,681 --> 00:20:50,031
Michael Myers is
the perfect example.
333
00:20:50,161 --> 00:20:53,601
You can't stop him.
You can't kill him.
334
00:21:00,824 --> 00:21:03,314
Michael Myers
was written as a blank.
335
00:21:05,829 --> 00:21:08,349
He had no defining
characteristics, really.
336
00:21:08,484 --> 00:21:10,014
He had no face.
337
00:21:10,138 --> 00:21:12,708
It was a thing without a face.
338
00:21:12,836 --> 00:21:15,706
Almost a force of nature,
as opposed to a human being.
339
00:21:18,799 --> 00:21:20,709
You can draw a direct line
from Frankenstein's monster
340
00:21:20,844 --> 00:21:22,464
to Leatherface in
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
341
00:21:25,936 --> 00:21:27,546
Frankenstein's monster
is always terrified,
342
00:21:27,677 --> 00:21:28,497
jumping at the light, at fire.
343
00:21:30,811 --> 00:21:33,991
He's tormented
by the other characters.
344
00:21:34,118 --> 00:21:35,858
And there's a scene
in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
345
00:21:35,990 --> 00:21:39,080
where Leatherface is genuinely
frightened and agitated
346
00:21:39,210 --> 00:21:40,430
that why are so many people
coming into his house.
347
00:21:46,479 --> 00:21:50,479
You actually kind of feel bad
for him in a weird way
348
00:21:50,613 --> 00:21:51,533
because he's frightened.
349
00:21:52,354 --> 00:21:53,794
Because we're all rooting
350
00:21:53,921 --> 00:21:57,011
for the Frankenstein monster
351
00:21:57,141 --> 00:21:59,881
who's pulled into this world
and abandoned,
352
00:22:00,014 --> 00:22:02,504
and we all feel bad for him.
353
00:22:03,626 --> 00:22:06,756
Like Dracula,
Frankenstein also told a tale
354
00:22:06,890 --> 00:22:09,590
of elites unleashing a horror
on the masses.
355
00:22:09,719 --> 00:22:14,809
In this case, a scientist
who wanted to play God.
356
00:22:14,942 --> 00:22:19,642
It was the perfect allegory
for a traumatized America
357
00:22:19,773 --> 00:22:22,343
still reeling from facing
its own monsters--
358
00:22:22,471 --> 00:22:25,871
the First World War,
financial disaster,
359
00:22:25,996 --> 00:22:30,696
and the prospect of another
global conflict on the horizon.
360
00:22:30,827 --> 00:22:35,007
The movie struck a chord.
361
00:22:35,136 --> 00:22:39,656
Frankenstein became
a huge, huge hit,
362
00:22:39,793 --> 00:22:43,933
because I think it tapped
into a lot of these fears.
363
00:22:44,058 --> 00:22:46,708
Frankenstein-- it's almost
like an autobiography
364
00:22:46,843 --> 00:22:48,543
by director James Whale.
365
00:22:48,671 --> 00:22:51,721
It is a cry for help.
366
00:22:51,848 --> 00:22:53,678
James Whale.
367
00:22:53,807 --> 00:22:55,847
He was a war veteran
who saw a lot of combat.
368
00:22:58,768 --> 00:22:59,898
He had a hard time sleeping
without being drunk
369
00:23:00,030 --> 00:23:01,950
or doped up on pills.
370
00:23:02,076 --> 00:23:04,556
These things haunted him.
371
00:23:04,687 --> 00:23:08,167
He talked a lot about suicide.
372
00:23:08,299 --> 00:23:12,259
He didn't like water,
yet he had a swimming pool
373
00:23:12,391 --> 00:23:16,051
and would ultimately kill
himself with that swimming pool,
374
00:23:16,177 --> 00:23:18,047
almost like he had
the instrument
375
00:23:18,179 --> 00:23:21,969
for his own self-destruction
there at his house,
376
00:23:22,096 --> 00:23:24,396
waiting until
he was ready for it.
377
00:23:28,755 --> 00:23:30,625
Universal saw the success
378
00:23:30,757 --> 00:23:32,847
of Dracula and Frankenstein.
379
00:23:32,976 --> 00:23:35,276
They hit, and they exploded.
380
00:23:35,414 --> 00:23:38,904
And so in the 1930s,
that's what we see is Universal
381
00:23:39,026 --> 00:23:41,246
owns the game
with these movie monsters.
382
00:23:41,376 --> 00:23:43,936
And with that,
they keep just churning them out
383
00:23:44,074 --> 00:23:44,904
as fast as they can.
384
00:23:59,220 --> 00:24:00,050
Stop where you are.
385
00:24:05,139 --> 00:24:06,449
Oh, no!
386
00:24:08,838 --> 00:24:09,618
No!
387
00:24:13,930 --> 00:24:16,590
Inspector Crow,
District Police.
388
00:24:16,716 --> 00:24:18,886
Smoke.
389
00:24:19,022 --> 00:24:19,852
What strange-looking country.
390
00:24:32,035 --> 00:24:34,995
I saw The Mummy
on television.
391
00:24:35,125 --> 00:24:39,165
I was pretty familiar with
all of the Universal monsters
392
00:24:39,303 --> 00:24:41,873
because they did the best job
selling them.
393
00:24:45,962 --> 00:24:47,142
I mean, they had the package.
394
00:24:47,268 --> 00:24:50,788
If you wanted horror,
it was Universal.
395
00:24:50,924 --> 00:24:53,014
They treated their genre seriously.
396
00:24:58,148 --> 00:25:01,888
I told you not to disturb me.
397
00:25:02,022 --> 00:25:03,372
The Invisible Man,
398
00:25:03,502 --> 00:25:07,162
adapted from H.G. Wells'
horror novel of the same name.
399
00:25:07,288 --> 00:25:08,898
There must be a way back.
400
00:25:09,029 --> 00:25:10,809
After Frankenstein,
401
00:25:10,944 --> 00:25:13,604
audiences were hungry
for more monster movies.
402
00:25:13,729 --> 00:25:15,299
Only, this time,
403
00:25:15,426 --> 00:25:19,256
the monster literally
was the mad scientist himself.
404
00:25:19,387 --> 00:25:23,037
A scientist playing dangerously
with nature.
405
00:25:23,173 --> 00:25:27,183
An arrogant, elite doctor,
indulging his dark impulses
406
00:25:27,308 --> 00:25:30,488
and, as a result,
unleashing horror
407
00:25:30,616 --> 00:25:34,136
on an unsuspecting
and innocent public.
408
00:25:34,271 --> 00:25:37,191
You're crazy to know who I am,
aren't you?
409
00:25:37,318 --> 00:25:40,358
All right, I'll show you.
410
00:25:40,495 --> 00:25:44,185
There's a souvenir for you,
and one for you.
411
00:25:44,325 --> 00:25:46,715
I'll show you who I am
and what I am.
412
00:25:50,070 --> 00:25:52,770
Look. He's all eaten away.
413
00:25:52,899 --> 00:25:54,939
How do you like that, eh?
414
00:25:58,687 --> 00:26:04,037
Ironically,
the most effective killer
415
00:26:04,171 --> 00:26:06,741
of every Universal monster
is the Invisible Man.
416
00:26:22,145 --> 00:26:23,925
Invisible Man,
like, derails a train.
417
00:26:32,155 --> 00:26:33,635
And the entire train
goes off a cliff.
418
00:26:36,377 --> 00:26:39,247
It kills a whole trainload
full of people.
419
00:26:39,380 --> 00:26:42,170
And basically, he's the one
that's not a monster.
420
00:26:42,296 --> 00:26:43,946
He's the one
that's a human being,
421
00:26:44,080 --> 00:26:45,910
which I always find fascinating.
422
00:26:46,039 --> 00:26:48,389
Thank God
for the fire. Sit down.
423
00:26:48,519 --> 00:26:49,869
Unless you want me
to knock your brains out.
424
00:26:51,261 --> 00:26:53,051
Sit down!
425
00:26:53,176 --> 00:26:56,046
You're frightened
out of your wits, aren't you?
426
00:26:56,179 --> 00:26:58,049
When I was growing up...
427
00:26:58,181 --> 00:27:00,921
Oh,
it's no good talking like this.
428
00:27:01,054 --> 00:27:03,274
...there was a show
that used to come on,
429
00:27:03,404 --> 00:27:04,974
I think it was Friday nights
and Saturday nights,
430
00:27:05,101 --> 00:27:06,931
called Shock Theater.
431
00:27:11,194 --> 00:27:14,634
And that's when I first saw
the old Universal horror films.
432
00:27:17,331 --> 00:27:19,161
Frankenstein, Dracula,
433
00:27:19,289 --> 00:27:21,289
The Invisible Man,
434
00:27:21,422 --> 00:27:22,382
The Wolf Man.
435
00:27:22,510 --> 00:27:24,770
Yeah, I loved The Wolf Man.
436
00:27:26,253 --> 00:27:27,993
Larry Talbot, man.
437
00:27:28,124 --> 00:27:29,654
Talbot Castle, Mr. Larry.
438
00:27:32,389 --> 00:27:34,519
You know, he was just so cool.
439
00:27:34,653 --> 00:27:37,353
The Wolf Man gave us
yet another monster
440
00:27:37,481 --> 00:27:41,051
who represented audiences' fear
of the unknown events
441
00:27:41,181 --> 00:27:42,881
that continued
to upend their lives.
442
00:27:45,272 --> 00:27:47,882
The Wolf Man was the monster
443
00:27:48,014 --> 00:27:51,154
who could not control
his own actions.
444
00:27:51,278 --> 00:27:55,108
It was in the Wolf Man's
nature to kill.
445
00:27:55,238 --> 00:27:56,848
Go ahead and shoot
before he bites you.
446
00:27:56,979 --> 00:27:59,329
A monster
too many could relate to.
447
00:27:59,460 --> 00:28:01,380
It shows the wolf
in the pentagram.
448
00:28:01,505 --> 00:28:04,245
- The sign of the werewolf.
- Werewolf? What's that?
449
00:28:04,378 --> 00:28:06,338
Oh, that's a human being who,
at certain times of the year,
450
00:28:06,467 --> 00:28:07,987
changes into a wolf.
451
00:28:22,352 --> 00:28:24,272
Sir John!
452
00:28:24,398 --> 00:28:25,088
- Master Larry, what happened?
- He was bitten by a wolf.
453
00:28:25,225 --> 00:28:27,225
- A wolf?
- Yes.
454
00:28:27,357 --> 00:28:28,267
Nonsense. Haven't been wolves
around here for years.
455
00:28:28,402 --> 00:28:29,492
Where did all this happen?
456
00:28:29,620 --> 00:28:31,750
By the marsh.
That woman came to help.
457
00:28:31,884 --> 00:28:34,024
The main thing that
the Lon Chaney Jr. Wolf Man
458
00:28:34,147 --> 00:28:36,277
did was, if you're gonna do
a werewolf movie,
459
00:28:36,410 --> 00:28:39,240
you'd better have
the transformation scene,
460
00:28:39,369 --> 00:28:41,329
and it better be
something amazing.
461
00:28:57,083 --> 00:28:58,353
That is the sizzle.
462
00:29:02,436 --> 00:29:04,216
So that became the standard
for a long time.
463
00:29:16,755 --> 00:29:21,145
The Wolf Man is
a really interesting monster.
464
00:29:21,281 --> 00:29:24,371
He's completely innocent
of anything.
465
00:29:24,501 --> 00:29:26,551
Richardson was killed
last night. The gravedigger.
466
00:29:26,677 --> 00:29:29,197
The tracks
lead up to this house.
467
00:29:29,332 --> 00:29:31,032
Footprints?
468
00:29:31,160 --> 00:29:33,160
No. Animal tracks. A wolf.
469
00:29:33,293 --> 00:29:35,163
He got bitten by a werewolf.
470
00:29:35,295 --> 00:29:37,295
What the hell, man?
471
00:29:37,427 --> 00:29:39,257
You killed the wolf.
472
00:29:39,386 --> 00:29:42,076
Well, there's no crime
in that, is there?
473
00:29:42,215 --> 00:29:43,515
Bela became a wolf.
474
00:29:43,651 --> 00:29:45,831
- And you killed him.
- You're insane.
475
00:29:45,958 --> 00:29:48,398
I tell you, I killed a wolf.
A plain, ordinary wolf.
476
00:29:48,525 --> 00:29:51,655
It's unbelievably depressing.
477
00:29:51,790 --> 00:29:55,230
It's like what was going on
in the culture at the time.
478
00:29:55,358 --> 00:29:58,318
Hell, I'm out of a job. Why?
479
00:29:58,448 --> 00:30:01,058
Why am I a werewolf?
480
00:30:01,190 --> 00:30:04,110
And it's-- you know,
it's tragic.
481
00:30:04,237 --> 00:30:06,147
Your suffering is over.
482
00:30:08,371 --> 00:30:11,421
Now you will find peace
for eternity.
483
00:30:22,559 --> 00:30:24,389
And then there was
kind of, like, another wave.
484
00:30:25,562 --> 00:30:28,262
There was another boom,
and you saw movies like
485
00:30:28,391 --> 00:30:30,311
the Universal classic
movie-monster sequels.
486
00:30:32,787 --> 00:30:36,307
Bride of Frankenstein
is considered by many
487
00:30:36,443 --> 00:30:39,843
to be a perfect sequel.
488
00:30:39,968 --> 00:30:42,228
It picks up
where Frankenstein left off,
489
00:30:42,362 --> 00:30:46,502
scaring audiences with its tale
of unnatural monsters
490
00:30:46,627 --> 00:30:48,847
threatening the world
around them...
491
00:30:51,371 --> 00:30:53,371
and ups the ante
with spectacular
492
00:30:53,503 --> 00:30:55,423
and unnerving effects
493
00:30:55,549 --> 00:30:58,249
unlike any that were seen
at the time.
494
00:30:58,378 --> 00:30:59,898
I think Bride of Frankenstein
is one of the best films,
495
00:31:00,032 --> 00:31:00,862
period.
496
00:31:07,300 --> 00:31:08,650
Baron Frankenstein.
497
00:31:08,779 --> 00:31:12,309
- What do you want?
- We must work together.
498
00:31:12,435 --> 00:31:14,305
Bride of Frankenstein
is super interesting
499
00:31:14,437 --> 00:31:18,787
because it's modeled on a piece
from the Mary Shelley story.
500
00:31:18,920 --> 00:31:21,100
I give you the monster.
501
00:31:21,227 --> 00:31:22,487
Frankenstein, the scientist,
502
00:31:22,619 --> 00:31:26,359
decides he should
make a mate for his monster.
503
00:31:26,493 --> 00:31:29,063
Oh, I thought I was alone.
504
00:31:29,191 --> 00:31:34,021
You make man like me?
505
00:31:34,153 --> 00:31:35,723
No.
506
00:31:35,850 --> 00:31:38,900
Woman. Friend for you.
507
00:31:40,333 --> 00:31:42,343
Woman. Friend.
508
00:31:42,465 --> 00:31:44,595
Why?
509
00:31:44,728 --> 00:31:48,378
James Whale takes up
Mary Shelley's lost plot
510
00:31:48,515 --> 00:31:49,335
and brings it to life.
511
00:31:51,213 --> 00:31:53,393
Isn't it amazing, Henry?
512
00:31:53,520 --> 00:31:55,740
Bride of Frankenstein
is genuinely frightening
513
00:31:55,870 --> 00:31:58,130
when you realize
what a scientist wants to do
514
00:31:58,264 --> 00:32:00,534
is to make a world
of gods and monsters.
515
00:32:00,657 --> 00:32:04,397
To a new world
of gods and monsters.
516
00:32:04,531 --> 00:32:09,541
Universal Horror really nailed
the idea of the monster
517
00:32:09,666 --> 00:32:11,536
is never really
the evil perpetrator.
518
00:32:12,191 --> 00:32:14,151
Keep still!
519
00:32:14,280 --> 00:32:16,370
If anything, they're the biggest
520
00:32:16,499 --> 00:32:18,589
and most frightened victim
in the film.
521
00:32:18,719 --> 00:32:20,459
Oh!
522
00:32:20,590 --> 00:32:22,590
I'd hate to find him
under my bed at night.
523
00:32:22,723 --> 00:32:24,643
Bride of Frankenstein
is amazing.
524
00:32:24,768 --> 00:32:27,678
It is a feminist film
without ever even realizing
525
00:32:27,815 --> 00:32:29,595
that it is a feminist film.
526
00:32:34,822 --> 00:32:38,222
We see this woman who has been
created for the sole purpose
527
00:32:38,347 --> 00:32:40,437
of being a mate
for this monster.
528
00:32:43,613 --> 00:32:46,443
She's alive. Alive!
529
00:32:46,573 --> 00:32:49,053
The bride of Frankenstein.
530
00:32:57,671 --> 00:33:01,461
But once she's born to light,
she looks at him and she's like,
531
00:33:01,588 --> 00:33:03,238
"Nah, I'm not into that."
532
00:33:08,769 --> 00:33:10,509
"This is not what I want.
I don't want to do this."
533
00:33:13,643 --> 00:33:16,823
So we're seeing this beautiful
feminist reaction in a movie
534
00:33:16,951 --> 00:33:20,131
that no one really
kind of perceived it being in.
535
00:33:22,696 --> 00:33:25,436
She hate me.
536
00:33:25,568 --> 00:33:28,348
Get away from that lever.
You'll blow us all to atoms.
537
00:33:28,484 --> 00:33:29,704
Henry! Undo the door!
538
00:33:29,833 --> 00:33:31,183
But I can't leave them.
539
00:33:31,313 --> 00:33:33,453
Yes, go. You live.
540
00:33:34,708 --> 00:33:36,838
You stay.
541
00:33:36,971 --> 00:33:39,021
We belong dead.
542
00:33:43,760 --> 00:33:47,030
It's the most nihilistic ending.
543
00:33:57,426 --> 00:33:59,556
Universal
making those movies
544
00:33:59,689 --> 00:34:02,559
gave all the other studios
permission to go,
545
00:34:02,692 --> 00:34:04,262
"Horror movies are lucrative."
546
00:34:06,522 --> 00:34:08,392
It gave, like, you know,
547
00:34:08,524 --> 00:34:10,574
Paramount the right to go make
a slate of horror movies.
548
00:34:13,921 --> 00:34:16,181
Give MGM the right to go make
some films.
549
00:34:20,754 --> 00:34:23,324
It's like the landscape
just opened up.
550
00:35:06,669 --> 00:35:08,889
After he
directed Dracula,
551
00:35:09,019 --> 00:35:11,369
Tod Browning went on
to make Freaks.
552
00:35:16,244 --> 00:35:19,944
An incredibly important,
unique early horror movie.
553
00:35:20,074 --> 00:35:23,384
Freaks was based on
the short story Spurs,
554
00:35:23,512 --> 00:35:27,912
written by American horror
author Tod Robbins.
555
00:35:28,038 --> 00:35:33,348
Director Tod Browning, regarded
as the Edgar Allan Poe of film,
556
00:35:33,479 --> 00:35:35,519
had worked for
a traveling carnival
557
00:35:35,655 --> 00:35:37,915
and urged MGM
to secure the rights
558
00:35:38,048 --> 00:35:40,958
to a story
some considered grotesque,
559
00:35:41,095 --> 00:35:44,445
thus putting his reputation
on the line.
560
00:35:44,577 --> 00:35:46,667
♪ We accept her,
we accept her ♪
561
00:35:46,796 --> 00:35:48,616
♪ Gooble, gobble,
gooble, gobble ♪
562
00:35:48,755 --> 00:35:50,625
♪ One of us, one of us
563
00:35:50,757 --> 00:35:53,627
When looked at through the lens
of the Great Depression,
564
00:35:53,760 --> 00:35:57,460
Freaks is about
the class struggle.
565
00:35:57,590 --> 00:35:59,640
The supposedly
normal characters,
566
00:35:59,766 --> 00:36:01,896
Cleopatra and Hercules,
567
00:36:02,029 --> 00:36:05,769
have disdain for the people that
make their carnival possible.
568
00:36:05,902 --> 00:36:10,172
The so-called freaks
are the working man.
569
00:36:16,826 --> 00:36:18,606
♪ Gooble, gobble,
gooble, gobble ♪
570
00:36:18,741 --> 00:36:20,791
No!
571
00:36:20,917 --> 00:36:22,527
Dirty!
572
00:36:22,658 --> 00:36:24,308
Slimy!
573
00:36:24,443 --> 00:36:25,493
Freaks!
574
00:36:25,618 --> 00:36:27,358
Freaks! Freaks!
575
00:36:27,489 --> 00:36:29,619
Get out of here!
576
00:36:29,752 --> 00:36:31,012
Freaks disturbed me.
577
00:36:31,145 --> 00:36:33,755
Get out.
You heard her! Get out!
578
00:36:35,758 --> 00:36:39,458
And I think it did it in a way
that was probably
579
00:36:39,588 --> 00:36:42,498
really advanced for its time.
580
00:36:46,726 --> 00:36:49,856
And a lot of that, I'm sure,
had to do with the casting.
581
00:36:49,990 --> 00:36:53,430
The cast of Freaks
was groundbreaking--
582
00:36:53,559 --> 00:36:55,299
putting people on screen
who'd never been seen
583
00:36:55,430 --> 00:36:57,220
in movies before.
584
00:36:57,345 --> 00:36:59,215
I mean, it really
felt like, "Oh, wow,
585
00:36:59,347 --> 00:37:03,397
we're hearkening back to
a time where creepiness
586
00:37:03,525 --> 00:37:08,045
and exploitation was acceptable
587
00:37:08,182 --> 00:37:10,012
and thrived upon."
588
00:37:10,140 --> 00:37:13,750
Watching it, I found myself
kind of like,
589
00:37:13,883 --> 00:37:15,713
"This is a little bit more
than exploitation.
590
00:37:15,842 --> 00:37:19,372
There's actual story going on
with a lot of layers to it."
591
00:37:23,023 --> 00:37:25,463
Freaks follows a
trapeze artist who joins a group
592
00:37:25,591 --> 00:37:27,681
of carnival sideshow performers
593
00:37:27,810 --> 00:37:29,680
with a plan
to murder a little person
594
00:37:29,812 --> 00:37:31,682
in the troupe
for his inheritance.
595
00:37:33,860 --> 00:37:35,690
Any horror filmmaker
wants to set out
596
00:37:35,818 --> 00:37:39,558
to give you
a level of discomfort.
597
00:37:52,313 --> 00:37:55,713
Make you confront feelings that
you don't normally confront.
598
00:38:18,165 --> 00:38:19,945
Sometimes when you're
a horror fan,
599
00:38:20,080 --> 00:38:21,730
you have to listen
a little deeper
600
00:38:21,864 --> 00:38:23,784
than what people
automatically lead with,
601
00:38:23,910 --> 00:38:25,740
which is,
"This movie's exploitive."
602
00:38:28,175 --> 00:38:32,045
In the end, it becomes this
kind of, like, revenge movie,
603
00:38:32,179 --> 00:38:33,879
almost in a way
like I Spit on Your Grave.
604
00:38:37,053 --> 00:38:38,793
It's a rape revenge film.
605
00:38:46,193 --> 00:38:48,943
These movies are that window
into the darkness of the world.
606
00:38:52,852 --> 00:38:54,112
At the same time,
607
00:38:54,244 --> 00:38:55,904
Freaks came out
in a time period
608
00:38:56,029 --> 00:38:57,679
where we're having people
return from war.
609
00:38:59,902 --> 00:39:01,692
Terrible was
the price to be paid.
610
00:39:01,817 --> 00:39:04,517
A million men laid dead.
611
00:39:05,517 --> 00:39:07,907
Hospitals coped with
the unending flow of wounded.
612
00:39:09,172 --> 00:39:13,962
Plenty of soldiers came back
with whatever had happened
613
00:39:14,090 --> 00:39:16,830
to them-- their injuries--
and felt less than.
614
00:39:21,359 --> 00:39:25,579
They felt marginalized.
They felt they didn't fit in.
615
00:39:25,711 --> 00:39:26,801
They weren't worthy anymore.
616
00:39:29,845 --> 00:39:32,015
They weren't the high school
quarterback they were
617
00:39:32,152 --> 00:39:33,372
when they left.
618
00:39:35,982 --> 00:39:38,772
They're not just
externally injured.
619
00:39:38,898 --> 00:39:40,858
They're internally injured.
620
00:39:40,987 --> 00:39:44,767
And nobody knows about it,
and nobody ever talked about it.
621
00:39:44,904 --> 00:39:48,784
And then along comes a movie
like Freaks, where...
622
00:39:48,908 --> 00:39:51,038
they can identify
with these people
623
00:39:51,171 --> 00:39:53,961
that are being marginalized
and looked down on
624
00:39:54,087 --> 00:39:55,777
and just don't make
the cut anymore.
625
00:39:55,915 --> 00:39:56,865
And they're the heroes.
626
00:39:59,048 --> 00:40:00,048
We are actually seeing
627
00:40:00,180 --> 00:40:01,960
these body horrors firsthand
628
00:40:02,095 --> 00:40:04,745
of people coming over,
missing limbs,
629
00:40:04,880 --> 00:40:08,670
and so seeing it up on screen
in an almost exploitive manner,
630
00:40:08,797 --> 00:40:10,927
no one really knew
what to do with it.
631
00:40:13,106 --> 00:40:14,846
Freaks was also a film
632
00:40:14,977 --> 00:40:17,147
that when MGM initially
test screened it,
633
00:40:17,284 --> 00:40:19,424
there are anecdotes
that people got up and ran out.
634
00:40:22,768 --> 00:40:24,028
They didn't just leave.
635
00:40:24,160 --> 00:40:25,810
They literally ran out
of the theater.
636
00:40:25,945 --> 00:40:28,855
There was a backlash to that.
637
00:40:28,991 --> 00:40:30,651
After the test screening,
638
00:40:30,776 --> 00:40:32,996
MGM removed more than 30 minutes
of footage
639
00:40:33,126 --> 00:40:35,956
from Tod Browning's
original cut.
640
00:40:36,085 --> 00:40:37,695
Despite the changes,
641
00:40:37,826 --> 00:40:40,916
Freaks was not
a commercial success
642
00:40:41,047 --> 00:40:43,917
and was outright banned
in some places.
643
00:40:46,356 --> 00:40:49,006
With its failure
at the box office
644
00:40:49,142 --> 00:40:51,102
and the controversy
surrounding it,
645
00:40:51,231 --> 00:40:55,801
the film essentially ended
Tod Browning's career.
646
00:40:55,931 --> 00:40:59,021
Although it is now
in the National Film Registry,
647
00:40:59,152 --> 00:41:00,942
at the time of its release,
648
00:41:01,067 --> 00:41:04,107
Freaks was a prime example
of why the Hays Code
649
00:41:04,244 --> 00:41:06,334
was enacted
just a few years earlier.
650
00:41:06,464 --> 00:41:07,944
At the time,
651
00:41:08,074 --> 00:41:10,164
people did not know
what kind of impact
652
00:41:10,293 --> 00:41:13,083
the cinema might have
on the mass audiences
653
00:41:13,209 --> 00:41:15,999
who were all going to see
the same material.
654
00:41:16,125 --> 00:41:18,995
So the question is,
would people be so mesmerized
655
00:41:19,128 --> 00:41:21,038
by what they saw in the cinema
656
00:41:21,174 --> 00:41:25,134
that they would immediately
go out and mimic what they saw?
657
00:41:25,265 --> 00:41:27,875
And if so,
was there a responsibility
658
00:41:28,007 --> 00:41:31,707
within the community
of filmmaking
659
00:41:31,837 --> 00:41:33,837
to regulate what was shown?
660
00:41:33,969 --> 00:41:37,229
Hollywood, the
glamour capital of the world.
661
00:41:37,364 --> 00:41:40,194
Hollywood reaches far,
carrying its cargo of dreams
662
00:41:40,323 --> 00:41:43,283
to almost every city
and village in America.
663
00:41:43,413 --> 00:41:45,683
♪ Clean as a whistle,
fresh as a daisy ♪
664
00:41:45,807 --> 00:41:48,027
♪ Brand-new, clean through
665
00:41:48,157 --> 00:41:51,987
♪ On my way just wearing
that smile of mine ♪
666
00:41:52,118 --> 00:41:54,248
The Hays Code
was this reaction
667
00:41:54,381 --> 00:41:56,251
by the film industry
to police themselves
668
00:41:56,383 --> 00:41:59,343
before the government
started policing them.
669
00:41:59,473 --> 00:42:01,213
Things got so hot
in the movies
670
00:42:01,344 --> 00:42:04,134
that the reputable producers
signed up Will Hays
671
00:42:04,260 --> 00:42:07,870
at 100 grand a year
to clean up the picture business
672
00:42:08,003 --> 00:42:11,143
and yet keep the busybodies
off the industry's neck.
673
00:42:11,267 --> 00:42:17,537
Pre-Code movies had cocaine use,
drinking, wild partying.
674
00:42:17,665 --> 00:42:20,145
Pretty racy stuff
that maybe wasn't quite nudity
675
00:42:20,276 --> 00:42:22,706
but was getting awful close.
676
00:42:22,844 --> 00:42:23,984
I'm ready now.
677
00:42:27,153 --> 00:42:28,853
They looked
at Hollywood and said,
678
00:42:28,981 --> 00:42:30,331
"All of the questionable stuff
that you've been
679
00:42:30,460 --> 00:42:33,160
doing for years,
we're done with that."
680
00:42:33,289 --> 00:42:35,289
And they really started
to regulate
681
00:42:35,422 --> 00:42:39,732
not just things like violence
or murder or nudity on screen,
682
00:42:39,861 --> 00:42:40,951
but also morality.
683
00:42:42,995 --> 00:42:46,165
Crime must not pay.
684
00:42:46,302 --> 00:42:48,912
You cannot show
sexual intercourse.
685
00:42:49,044 --> 00:42:50,874
You can't show drug use.
686
00:42:51,003 --> 00:42:53,923
I mean, really specific stuff
that you could not do.
687
00:42:54,049 --> 00:42:57,099
And that steamrolled all the joy
out of movies for a while.
688
00:42:59,315 --> 00:43:03,095
There were many ways in which
filmmakers figured out
689
00:43:03,232 --> 00:43:05,232
how to circumvent the rules
690
00:43:05,365 --> 00:43:07,445
and the regulations
of the Hays Code,
691
00:43:07,585 --> 00:43:12,235
and that was to eschew realism
for the supernatural
692
00:43:12,372 --> 00:43:15,552
or the extraordinary,
the fantastical.
693
00:43:15,680 --> 00:43:17,160
A lot of the studios pulled back
694
00:43:17,290 --> 00:43:18,900
from doing overt horror
695
00:43:19,031 --> 00:43:22,821
because they felt that people
had enough death
696
00:43:22,948 --> 00:43:24,648
and destruction in their lives.
697
00:43:28,301 --> 00:43:30,961
You know, you can't
depict violence,
698
00:43:31,086 --> 00:43:34,086
and it puts a damper on horror.
699
00:43:34,220 --> 00:43:35,870
What you do get
is very psychological horror.
700
00:43:36,004 --> 00:43:38,444
You get Val Lewton
and his whole stable
701
00:43:38,572 --> 00:43:42,492
of psychological thrillers
like Cat People.
702
00:43:42,620 --> 00:43:47,320
He kind of reinvents horror
to be this more subtle genre.
703
00:43:47,450 --> 00:43:49,370
Cat People is
incredibly groundbreaking
704
00:43:49,496 --> 00:43:52,456
and has a lot to say about
what it means to be a female.
705
00:43:52,586 --> 00:43:55,886
It explores a lot
of kind of marriage basis,
706
00:43:56,024 --> 00:43:57,164
like, our ground rock
of society,
707
00:43:57,286 --> 00:43:58,936
like what does marriage mean?
708
00:43:59,071 --> 00:44:00,861
What does it mean
to be in love with someone?
709
00:44:00,986 --> 00:44:02,636
The studio RKO
710
00:44:02,770 --> 00:44:06,120
gave director Val Lewton
the title Cat People
711
00:44:06,252 --> 00:44:08,472
and told him,
"Develop a film around it."
712
00:44:08,602 --> 00:44:10,342
Cat People is about
a fashion illustrator
713
00:44:10,473 --> 00:44:13,093
obsessed with the idea
that she is descended
714
00:44:13,215 --> 00:44:15,165
from an ancient tribe
of cat people
715
00:44:15,304 --> 00:44:18,394
who turn into panthers
when they're aroused.
716
00:44:18,525 --> 00:44:21,475
While it didn't claw
its way to success at the time,
717
00:44:21,615 --> 00:44:24,305
Cat People did fulfill
the Hays Code edict
718
00:44:24,444 --> 00:44:27,104
to ensure the audience
is always aware that
719
00:44:27,229 --> 00:44:29,189
in the battle of good
versus evil,
720
00:44:29,318 --> 00:44:32,188
evil is always wrong.
721
00:44:32,321 --> 00:44:35,671
The film did this, in part,
by illustrating one of society's
722
00:44:35,803 --> 00:44:39,293
most notoriously dangerous
temptations--
723
00:44:39,415 --> 00:44:42,675
female sexuality.
724
00:44:42,810 --> 00:44:45,160
Cat People is also
one of the pioneers
725
00:44:45,291 --> 00:44:47,471
of what we know in horror
as the jump scare.
726
00:44:49,382 --> 00:44:51,212
But like all things,
you know,
727
00:44:51,340 --> 00:44:56,000
there's times that horror boom
started to wane a little bit.
728
00:44:56,128 --> 00:44:58,258
You weren't getting
really beautiful works of art
729
00:44:58,391 --> 00:45:00,131
that, like, Val Lewton
was creating.
730
00:45:02,264 --> 00:45:03,924
With Hitler on the rise
731
00:45:04,049 --> 00:45:05,489
and the threat
of another World War
732
00:45:05,615 --> 00:45:09,485
creating tremendous stress
in people's lives,
733
00:45:09,619 --> 00:45:13,189
the great release
that horror provided
734
00:45:13,319 --> 00:45:15,019
was on the decline.
735
00:45:15,147 --> 00:45:18,147
We started getting more tepid
scary movies.
736
00:45:21,066 --> 00:45:23,236
Some were just incredibly awful.
737
00:45:25,461 --> 00:45:27,251
How can you defile
this sacred house
738
00:45:27,376 --> 00:45:30,156
with the body of that evil man,
that servant of the devil?
739
00:45:36,516 --> 00:45:38,206
This house is full of it--
something evil.
740
00:45:38,344 --> 00:45:40,004
Evil? Yes, it's you.
741
00:45:43,653 --> 00:45:45,573
At that particular time,
742
00:45:45,699 --> 00:45:48,749
Universal had sort of been
cycling through their monsters.
743
00:45:53,446 --> 00:45:55,746
Frankenstein Meets
the Wolf Man.
744
00:46:00,627 --> 00:46:02,017
And then it was
House of Frankenstein.
745
00:46:04,544 --> 00:46:08,294
Don't go this way.
Quicksand. Quicksand.
746
00:46:10,115 --> 00:46:11,415
They shouldn't have come here.
747
00:46:11,551 --> 00:46:13,291
And then House of Dracula.
748
00:46:21,430 --> 00:46:24,690
They were getting
a little fatigued.
749
00:46:24,825 --> 00:46:28,045
They didn't know what to do with
those monsters after a while.
750
00:46:32,790 --> 00:46:36,050
Yesterday,
the United States of America
751
00:46:36,184 --> 00:46:38,404
was suddenly
deliberately attacked.
752
00:46:39,361 --> 00:46:42,631
With America's entry
into World War II,
753
00:46:42,756 --> 00:46:47,196
vampires, werewolves,
and man-made monsters
754
00:46:47,326 --> 00:46:50,546
like Frankenstein
and Invisible Man--
755
00:46:50,677 --> 00:46:54,457
well, they had run their course.
756
00:46:54,594 --> 00:46:59,254
The audiences were engrossed
in a new kind of horror.
757
00:46:59,381 --> 00:47:02,381
Realities of war.
758
00:47:02,515 --> 00:47:06,035
People are seeing
stories unfold on a big screen
759
00:47:06,171 --> 00:47:09,481
with sound in black and white
760
00:47:09,609 --> 00:47:13,569
and seeing things
they had never seen before.
761
00:47:13,700 --> 00:47:16,530
People were
genuinely afraid.
762
00:47:16,659 --> 00:47:19,659
They were afraid because
now there was nowhere safe.
763
00:47:19,793 --> 00:47:22,233
They couldn't just go into their
bedroom and slam the door shut
764
00:47:22,361 --> 00:47:25,321
and be safe from the monster.
765
00:47:25,451 --> 00:47:27,321
Because the monster
could get through the wall.
766
00:47:30,673 --> 00:47:33,293
It's hard to know
where the true monsters are.
767
00:47:33,415 --> 00:47:35,975
It's sort of like
they're everywhere you look.
768
00:47:40,205 --> 00:47:43,205
A short time ago,
769
00:47:43,338 --> 00:47:48,168
an American airplane
dropped one bomb on Hiroshima.
770
00:47:50,563 --> 00:47:52,003
The atomic bomb
kind of changed everything.
771
00:47:55,307 --> 00:47:59,567
Changed people's world view, perspectives.
772
00:47:59,702 --> 00:48:04,102
I think people were just like,
"Okay, you know what?
773
00:48:04,229 --> 00:48:07,449
There is clearly
a greater force at work here
774
00:48:07,580 --> 00:48:10,150
and bigger things
to be afraid of."
775
00:48:17,459 --> 00:48:20,109
"Not only do we have to worry
about World Wars,
776
00:48:20,245 --> 00:48:21,505
but there is another threat."
777
00:48:26,642 --> 00:48:28,172
Holy shit.
57362
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