Thanks to my parents, I’m a pretty well-rounded guy when it comes to my likes and dislikes. I can watch a good gory horror film, then turn around and watch a light comedy. I can even follow this up with a dose of a musical and call it an evening. But what I’m most appreciative of is that along with this wide range of tastes comes an admiration for true originals. In the horror department, I grew up reading all the novels that gave birth to classic characters like Frankenstein (well actually Frankenstein’s Monster), Dracula, The Wolfman, The Mummy, Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde (a personal favorite) and The Invisible Man. Throughout my childhood I found myself following these great novels with some of their cinematic counterparts. My favorites again harkened back to the original films that were produced during the 1930’s and 40’s. I couldn’t get enough of Bela Lugosi as Dracula or Boris Karloff as both The Monster and The Mummy.

Even today, watching the great Lon Chaney Sr. as the Phantom of the Opera and Lon Chaney Jr. as the Wolfman still gives me chills as I imagine what those films had to have been like to watch for audiences of the time.

Most of today’s MTV audience loses out on the style and substance of these older films offer, opting instead to feed their senses with the mind-numbing, rapid fire images of Freddy Krueger, Jason, or Michael Myers films. Now, keep in mind I’m not knocking these newer films at all. Due to my aforementioned well-rounded nature I still watch them myself and find them to be quite entertaining (cheesy scripts notwithstanding). A lot of my friends are the same way, thankfully so we can have great conversations about both the old style and new style horror movies. The people I feel sorry for are the ones that can’t (or won’t) recognize the value these older films have. Or they look at the special effects with their noses turned up in the air and don’t realize how ‘state-of-the-art’ they were at the time the films were released. Even worse are those who simply write them off as nothing more than cheap old movies that aren’t worth their time. (“Black & White??? Ewwwwwww!!!”)

What have made things worse for these older films (and in some cases, characters) are the seemingly endless sequels and poor remakes. For a lot of these characters, there are so many of them that the originals just get lost in the mix. Then there is lack of availability of good VHS or DVD versions of them. Most have been restored in one form or another, and though some of the transfers help, few really live up to the potential of what can be done digitally today. In the case of this second problem, this is no longer the case.

Earlier this year, Universal Studios Home finally starting releasing what can be considered the definitive collections of some of their most popular horror icons. They started off with beautifully restored versions of “Frankenstein”, “Dracula” and “The Wolf Man.” But they didn’t stop there. Each of these collections offered special features worthy of their legacy. Extremely well-produced documentaries on the making of the films were included in most cases as well as in-depth commentaries by noted film historians on all of them. Where they were available, the studio even included photo galleries and trailers. I’ll grant you that these are pretty much standard fare on most DVDs nowadays, but you don’t often see them on older films such as these. But that wasn’t all.

Each of these Legacy sets also included some of the original film’s official sequels. So instead of just getting one movie for your money, you got anywhere from four to five. For example, the “Frankenstein Legacy Collection” had “Frankenstein”, “Bride of Frankenstein”, “Son of Frankenstein”, “Ghost of Frankenstein” and ‘House of Frankenstein.” (Who could ask for anything more…?) You simply can’t beat a deal like that.

Fortunately these first three sets were so popular (which makes me question my assumption that most people don’t care for these versions anymore) that Universal has decided to do it again. This week, they are releasing the Legacy sets for “The Invisible Man”, “The Mummy” and “The Creature from the Black Lagoon.” As soon as I received these gems, I set time aside to watch and enjoy. I couldn’t believe the overall quality of image that was on these discs. They’re far from perfect, and you’ll still see some specks and the occasional out-of-focus frame, but considering the age of the materials I doubt you could do much better than this.

It took me several days to get through all of the films, but it was worth every minute of it. I had seen all of the original film before, but I was surprised that I had not seen a few of the ‘sequels.’ As is the case with sequels even today, they vary in quality and rarely live up to the original, but they are all still more than worth watching.

The special features, which I have listed for each set below, were terrific. A lot of time and care was taken to create the documentaries and they are all a real treat for fans of these classic movies. As for the commentaries, even the most monotone of speakers offers up a wealth of information about the main film of each set.

I also have to call special attention to the packaging as well. What could have been released in plain old DVD cases, are instead delivered in some nicely designed keep cases. The outer slipcase has partially opaque window on the front that allows you to see the cover of the inner case. The semi-opaque window is illustrated with artwork that related to the subject matter. For example, the set for “The Mummy’” has pyramids on the window. When you pull the inner case out, you’ll notice that it is designed to look and feel like a hardcover book, and opens to reveal the 2 discs that are held inside. It’s very impressive looking.

I can’t recommend these sets enough for fans of classic horror films. For now, I only have these three new sets, having only watched borrowed copies of the first ones that were released. You can bet I’m going to add them to my collection as soon as I can. Hopefully, the brisk sales of these sets is a sign that a newer generation of fans is growing out there, one strong enough to make sure these films are never lost or forgotten.

THE MUMMY: THE LEGACY COLLECTION
Directed by: Karl Freund
Starring: Boris Karloff, Zita Johan, David Manners, Arthur Byron, Edward Van Sloan
Extras: “Mummy Dearest: A Horror Tradition Unearthed” Documentary, Commentary by Film Historian Paul M. Jensen, “The Mummy” Archives, Bonus Films “The Mummy’s Hand” (1940), “The Mummy’s Tomb” (1942), “The Mummy’s Ghost” (1944) and “The Mummy’s Curse (1944)
Specifications: Full Screen, Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Studio: Universal
Release Date: 10/19/2004
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
Website

THE INVISIBLE MAN: THE LEGACY COLLECTION
Directed by: James Whale
Starring: Claude Rains, Gloria Stuart
Extras: “Now You See Him: The Invisible Man Revealed” Featurette, Commentary by Film Historian Rudy Behlmer, Plus the Bonus Features “The Invisible Man Returns” (1940), “The Invisible Woman” (1940), “Invisible Agent” (1942), “The Invisible Man’s Revenge” (1944)
Specifications: Full Frame, Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Studio: Universal
Release Date: 10/19/2004
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
Website

CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON: THE LEGACY COLLECTION
Directed by: Jack Arnold
Starring: Richard Carlson, Julie Adams
Extras: “Back to the Black Lagoon” Documentary, Bonus Features “Revenge of the Creature” (1955) and “The Creature Walks Among Us” (1956), Film Historians and Cast Members Commentary on Each of the Three Movies
Specifications: Full Frame, Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Studio: Universal
Release Date: 10/19/2004
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
Website

We'll give The Universal Monster Legacy Collection an A.