BORIS KARLOFF: THE MAN BEHIND THE MONSTER – Review

BORIS KARLOFF: THE MAN BEHIND THE MONSTER is a gloriously enjoyable retrospective of the legendary actor, who is forever tied to the horror genre and the monster role of Frankenstein’s monster, which first brought him fame. The film, directed by Thomas Hamilton, is thoroughly enjoyable but, despite its subtitle, it is less a personal biography than a review of this career, with an emphasis on how his work influenced future filmmakers and the horror genre. Karloff fans and serious film history buffs will find little that was not already known about the man but it is a wonderful introduction and retrospective on Boris Karloff.

If ever there was an iconic Hollywood figure who deserves a biopic, it is Boris Karloff. Everyone knows his name, whether as the star of the classics FRANKENSTEIN or THE MUMMY, or the voice narrating HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS. Despite his fame, Karloff has been long dismissed as only character actor, the result of having primarily worked in horror genre films. But Karloff’s is more complicated story, with acting experience grounded in the theater, a story that warrants a new, deeper look at the man and his work. Something this documentary touches on is Karloff’s ethnicity and what that meant in an earlier, more racist era and in early Hollywood.

Boris Karloff was not Russian nor was that his real name, but an Englishman named William Pratt, the youngest of nine children of a Anglo-Indian man, who had been in civil service in Indian, and his much younger wife. Young Billy Pratt was well-read and well-educated. but he and his brothers faced racism comments at school. Family expectations were that he would follow his older brothers into the diplomatic service, yet he fell in love with theater. Leaving college early, he immigrated to Canada, adopting the stage name Boris Karloff. His partly East Indian heritage gave him a darker complexion and led to him being often cast in ethnic roles. He had appeared on stage and in over 80 silent and sound movies by the time he was cast as the Monster in James Whale’s ground-breaking FRANKENSTEIN.

It is an intriguing story and the above details are among the personal background offered by the documentary. However, the documentary’s greater focus is on Karloff’s career. This fine, long-overdue documentary has admiring commentaries from such name directors as Guillermo Del Toro, along with John Landis, Roger Corman and Peter Bogdanovich. Del Toro in particular, speaks at length about the influence Karloff’s films had on him. Interviewees are a mix of directors, actors and film historians, including Christopher Plummer, Stefanie Powers, Lee Grant, Sir Christopher Frayling and Kevin Brownlow. There are also interview footage with Karloff’s only child, daughter Sara Karloff, and a few who knew him or worked with him. Not many of the latter left, given that Karloff died in 1967.

Besides the interviews, there is plenty of footage from Karloff’s many films, and analysis by critics and film historians. The footage include Karloff’s biggest hits and most iconic roles, FRANKENSTEIN with director James Whale, and THE MUMMY with director Karl Freund. There are insightful discussions of the films, tidbits on their filming and an examination of performance details. The discussions often turn on how Karloff’s performances, which gave the monsters a sympathetic aspect, riveted audiences, shaped the genre and influenced films and directors far beyond that role itself.

But the documentary also offers footage and discussions of perhaps less famous but influential films Karloff appeared in, like THE OLD DARK HOUSE and THE BODY SNATCHER, and an appreciation of his skill in lesser-known films and dramatic roles. These discussions are among the most intriguing for serious film buffs.

The footage, and the film-by-film analysis, are the best parts of the film, putting Karloff’s work in perspective of the times and tracing his mix of work, with included silent and sound films, stage performances, radio, and television. A highlight is the focus on the way HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS re-vitalized Karloff’s career and introduced him to a new generation of fans, as did “monster movie” archival TV shows of the ’60s and ’70s. The documentary covers Karloff’s hit Broadway debut in “Arsenic and Old Lace,” winkingly playing a crook who is angry that botched plastic surgery left him looking like Boris Karloff. The role led to a return to other stage roles, and, as the e documentary highlights. Karloff’s role in “The Lark,” which won him a Tony nomination.

All the old film footage and career highlights are delightful. Where the documentary falls a bit short is in the biographical, where the information is thinner and often leaves the audience with questions. Serious fans will already know the details but the less well-informed are left to wonder when the actor actually adopted the stage name Boris Karloff, and exactly when he arrived in Hollywood. Of course, like many actors of his era in particular, Karloff had a tendency to re-write his own history, which makes uncovering his past a bit difficult. One re-writing of the past the film does note is that Karloff used to tell people his parents died when he was very young, which was not true, to avoid questions about them. Partly this may have been to conceal his Anglo-East Indian heritage, in an era rife with open racism, but perhaps it was partly to save his family, all respectable members of the diplomatic corps or other professions, from embarrassment over having an actor in the family.

Another unexpected detail of the actor’s life is how many times he was married, at least five (there may have been more) but only some of the wives even get a mention. Despite all the marriages, Karloff had only one child, Sara. The story of her birth during the filming of one of the Frankenstein movies and on his birthday, along with still photos, provides some of the best moments in the documentary. Sara Karloff herself is a great asset to the film, often giving those personal insights the subtitle promises.

This enjoyable documentary is an fine introduction to Boris Karloff and particularly his career, which reaches beyond his most familiar roles and deepens appreciation of his work.

BORIS KARLOFF opens Friday, Sept. 17, at theaters in select cities, expanding to others over the coming weeks.

RATING: 3 out of 4 stars