Frankenstein: parents' guide
Best for ages 10 and up. Not formally rated.
The 1931 Universal original is a short, atmospheric monster movie that most kids 10 and up can handle with a parent, and a great way into classic horror. A scientist robs graves to build a man, then brings him to life; the creature, rejected and mistreated, lashes out. Nothing is gory by today's standards, but the creature kills the assistant who torments him and a doctor, and accidentally drowns a little girl, whose father then carries her body through a village celebration. A torch-bearing mob ends things in flames. The child's death is the moment to prepare kids for.
What's in it
Violence
ModerateBloodless but real: the creature strangles a doctor, his tormentor is found hanged, and he throws a small girl into a lake, where she drowns. He is whipped and threatened with a torch, then trapped by a mob in a burning windmill.
Language
NoneNo profanity: the strongest word is darn, and God is invoked a few times, including the scientist's cry that he knows how it feels to be God, a line censors once cut that modern prints restore.
Sex and nudity
NoneNothing beyond a few kisses between the scientist and his fiancee as they prepare for their wedding.
Drinking, drugs and smoking
ModerateWine and champagne at wedding toasts, brandy given to a sick man, and a gravedigger and another man smoke. No drunkenness or drugs.
Scary or intense scenes
ModerateGrave robbing at night, a lightning-lit laboratory, the creature's lurching first appearance and a bride menaced in her room. The drowned girl's grieving father and the mob scenes may upset young or sensitive children.
Sensitive topics
- Death of a child
Worth talking about
The creature starts out innocent and turns violent after cruelty and fear. Who is the real monster here, and what does a creator owe the life he makes?
On our lists
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Checked October 13th, 2026 against Common Sense Media, Wikipedia, Plugged In, bbfc.co.uk. The age is our judgment, not an official rating, and every family draws its lines differently: read the notes, not just the number. Spotted something we missed? Tell us. How we rate.