...be so cruel to the monster? First he notices that the monster is afraid of fire and he immediately begins poking the fire torch in his face. Soon after he is seen with some type of whip and he is beating the monster.
What happened to Fritz that makes him so cruel? Why does he do this to the monster?
In my opinion Fritz was merely bullying the creature as a result of his lifetime of being bullied. Watching how cruelly Henry treats him tends to make one think he was used to being treated with abuse.
shareI agree. It was really disturbing to watch Fritz scurrying about behind Henry and lunging at the monster with the torch using Henry as a shield. Poor Henry looked like he was trying to separate the monster from some kind of wild, vicious dog (Fritz).
Then Henry in another scene, leaves them both together alone and Fritz begins lashing the monster. Fritz seems too quick to be caught...but the monster does catch him and all we hear are his blood curdling screams as the monster hangs him to death.
I think Fritz got what was coming to him.
Dwight Frye, the actor who played Fritz, was known for portraying psychologically disturbed characters. (See his roles in Dracula and Bride of Frankenstein in addition to this one.) As such, I think Fritz either was born insane or became psychotic as a result of cruel treatment by others because of his deformity. A warped mind would explain the glee Fritz displayed upon seeing the Monster cower away from the fire.
Requiescat in pace, Krystle Papile. I'll always miss you.
Here's another angle. In 'House of Frankenstein,' Dr. Niemann, played by Boris, says Dr. Frankenstein's assistant was his brother. Could he mean Fritz? Maybe growing up, Niemann was cruel to brother Fritz because of his deformity. Years later, when Henry makes a monster, Fritz sees the resemblance between the monster and his a$$hole brother. So he takes out all that repressed rage and anger on the monster-Niemann-look-a-like.
Or maybe the monster was partially made from a third Niemann brother and Fritz didn't tell Henry about it. :-D
I was thinking that maybe Fritz was just jealous of The Monster's size and strength. I'm sure he was mistreated because of his hunched back and Frankenstein probably promised to fix Fritz's spine but was taking too much time with The Monster.
"I'm in such bad shape, I'm wearing prescription underwear." Phyllis Diller 1917-2012
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For all intents and purposes, Fritz is Frankenstein's bitch. All the dirty jobs - climbing up the gallows pole to cut the noose of the dead man, stealing the brain from the classroom lab - all Fritz. Because of Fritz's deformity, you get the strong sense that Fritz gets treated like crap and that's why he's Frankenstein's bitch.
Fritz tormenting the monster is a classic example of one who is bullied bullying another to feel empowerment. In many ways, Fritz almost parallels the monster because he is also deformed and has (presumably) been shunned by society. This causes him to lash out against the monster.
Of course that is my interpretation, but it's interesting because all of these dynamics are expressed without words and very little screen time. I can't help buy like Fritz (and the actor who played him, Dwight Frye).
What happened to Fritz to cause him to...
I never thought Frankenstein treated Fritz all that bad. Sure, he ordered him around a bit, but isn't that what he's there for?
Frankenstein even felt bad when he died. "Poor Fritz."
I thought that Fritz probably works for Frankenstein because he treats him better than most.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z55W6ihUY-c
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