10 Great Horror Film Performances

3. Boris Karloff (Frankenstein's Monster) €“ Frankenstein

Perhaps one of the great horror actors of any age, Boris Karloff was a horror icon for all time. Taking his name from a mad scientist character in Harold MacGrath's novel The Drums of Jeopardy, Karloff found himself a regular in silent films before beating out Bela Lugosi to the part of Frankenstein's monster in the 1931 classic. Through the make-up, the heavy costume and huge 5kg shoes, Karloff simply produced a master-class in horror acting as he makes the monster both horrifying and sad. Through the physicality, the voice and his interactions with others, the performance is one of the best of the early age of talkies and stands up even now. Also, through the physicality, you can see clear through-lines to those other monsters, Michael Myers and Jason Vorhees. Karloff would go on to reprise the roles several more times but it was his performance in this original film which showed that being in a horror didn't mean being in a poor film. Yes, James Whale's direction and Colin Clive as Henry obviously highlight the violent and sorry aspects of Karloff's cinematic creation, but it is the man himself who gives heart to the monster.