1935 Boris Karloff Film Ranked Among ‘Best Horror Movies of All Time'

Rotten Tomatoes recently ranked "The 200 Best Horror Movies of All Time." Topping the list was a 2020 movie, His House, which is about a refugee couple making a harrowing escape from their home and adjusting to life in a new town. A few more recent films appear on the list, including the award-winning Sinners and Get Out. However, there's one older film that has made the top 10, Bride of Frankenstein.

The 1935 film, which is a sequel to the 1931 Frankenstein, has a 98% critic score. It stars Boris Karloff, who was known as a horror icon. He played the role of Frankenstein's monster in the original film, then reprised it for this sequel. He also played Imhotep in The Mummy, which was released in 1932, and appeared in additional horror films like The Body Snatcher, The Black Cat, Black Sabbath, and Targets. He also voiced the Grinch and the narrator in the 1966 animated special, How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Ultimately, he was awarded two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. One was for Motion Pictures and the other was for Television.

Karloff died on February 2, 1969 when he was in his eighties. Bloody Disgusting, which covers the best horror movies and news, described him as nothing like his characters. "Though his roles onscreen were primarily villains and monsters, Karloff was a man of great gentleness, a lover of cricket, gardening, animals, and children," Brian Keiper said. "He was a man with an innate sense of justice who championed the downtrodden. He was known to travel far on many occasions to play Santa Claus for disabled children in hospitals. He was personally very generous, but never public about his giving. By all accounts, he was a true gentleman and could not have been further from the monstrous roles he played."

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Bride of Frankenstein was one of Karloff's most famous roles. He acted alongside Elsa Lanchester, Colin Clive, and Valerie Hobson in the film, which was inspired by Mary Shelley's classic novel.

As one reviewer stated, "Chock full of stunning black and white photography, groundbreaking make-up and special effects, and mad dark comedy, classic horror doesn't get much better than Bride of Frankenstein." Another said, "It is no surprise that Bride of Frankenstein is heralded as one of Hollywood's best-ever sequels: it does everything a good sequel should."

There have been many other Frankenstein adaptations since this film's release, including the 2025 film by Guillermo del Toro, which won multiple Academy Awards for best makeup and hairstyling, costume design, and production design. The Bride! was also recently released, which stars Jessie Buckley and Christian Bale. However, the reviews were not nearly as favorable with a critic score of 58%.

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This story was originally published April 15, 2026 at 7:49 AM.