The Universal monster movie sequels...

I like The Mummys Curse and House of Dracula.

@forceghostackbar

Dracula’s Daughter. That’s the first one you should see—I think I like it more than the original Dracula (and I love Dracula). Somehow manages to keep the original’s spooky, Gothic tone while quickening the pace, and offers a much better hero and heroine. Great atmospherics, lots of fog and mist and wonderful set-pieces—the funeral-pyre, the piano, the attack, the climax. (I’m trying to keep it vague so as not to spoil it.) First class performances from Gloria Holden and Irving Pichel as the villains. That climax is what Dracula should have had. Just a great little horror flick.

After that… Hm!

Son of Dracula has a lot going for it, and it tends to be “love it or hate it.” The mood, special effects, and Southern Gothicism are great. (That great fortune-teller in the beginning: “I see you marrying a corpse…living in a grave!”) The script, unfortunately, makes a mockery of the vampire in its third act, and this vampire, of all of ‘em, doesn’t need to be made any more a fool. Lon Chaney, Jr., who plays him, is here about as wooden as tree bark. Other than the vampire himself, though, there are some definite virtues and an intriguing, unmistakable feeling of film noir. (Robert Siodmak, who directed, was a noir specialist—The Killers is probably his best.)

You’ve seen Bride of Frankenstein… Son? No more Jimmy Whale, so unfortunately no more wild black humor and Ernest Thesiger stealing Henry away from his bed on his wedding-night (“to create life together”—yuk yuk yuk), but Son of Frankenstein is possibly the most underrated of the Frankies—the only one that’s genuinely spooky, with Béla Lugosi’s best performance, as the mad hunchback Ygor. Like Bride, but in a different way, the whole thing comes off as a demented fairy tale.

I’ve been watching the Mummy sequels recently, and they all pretty much stink, unfortunately.

I don’t like Ghost of Frankenstein, which seems too streamlined and Wolf Man-y to me, but everyone else does, so you may want to give it a whirl. I do like Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, which has a superb opening scene that the movie as a whole doesn’t quite live up to, but it’s good nonetheless. Horror fans like making fun of Lugosi’s go at playing the Monster, but I think he’s fine. Not great, but fine.

I haven’t seen the Invisible Man or Creature sequels, so I can’t tell you about Revenge of the Creature, unfortunately. (Should you and I exchange thoughts as we watch?) House of Frankenstein has some good stuff (a nice Dracula sequence—and Karloff as a mad scientist), but it never quite comes together, and House of Dracula also has a good Dracula sequence but is even weaker.

Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein is a really good one that somehow manages to be a spooky monster movie and a goofy Abbott and Costello comedy without giving the short end of the stick to either. Highly recommended.

Anything I’ve missed?

‘Course!

If you’re not averse to watching these movies online, I see that Dracula’s Daughter is available for free on Internet Archive, and Revenge of the Creature on Dailymotion.

I liked "DRACULA's DAUGHTER" and I think that "REVENGE OF THE CREATURE" is okay.

You should check out "FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE WOLFMAN" and "HOUSE OF FRANKENSTEIN", Those are Pretty Good as well.