Elsa Lanchester...
...Deadly Elegant, Elegantly Dead
Elsa plays two roles with distinctively different looks in the 1935 Universal Classic THE BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN. In the prologue, she's Frankenstein creator Mary Shelley, the epitome of Regency elegance in a chest-baring dress, her hair up with a few locks falling onto her forehead Just So.
At the film's conclusion she rocks the world of fashion and horror in the title role. The Bride begins her new life wrapped head to toe mummy-style in muslin bandages, with only her eyes and the bridge of her nose showing---a form fitting sheath that reveals that the body beneath is every inch the woman Boris could dream of.
She makes her debut as a living person in a unique white cotton dress that's part shift, part cocktail or wedding gown. Its structured shoulders create the perfect setting for her arresting hair and makeup.
The Bride enjoys quite the moment in the spotlight before heading down the runway to meet her mate and being explosively launched into the Big Fashion Show in the Sky.
To paraphrase her doomed hubby, "She belong deadly."
![A saucy empire bodice](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/44e5c8_360036014731484084773a986d613b4b.jpg/v1/fill/w_99,h_71,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/44e5c8_360036014731484084773a986d613b4b.jpg)
helps give perky life to Elsa's portrayal of Mary Shelley in the prologue. Period perfection.
![A hint of tongue](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/44e5c8_cbe27e144d0647bf9b73c7dd07fb3196.jpg/v1/fill/w_137,h_85,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/44e5c8_cbe27e144d0647bf9b73c7dd07fb3196.jpg)
She's saying "I think." Watch the movie, you'll see. In the meantime, let's admire her necklace, and wish she'd shown us some shoulder.
![Head-to-foot gauze...](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/44e5c8_ff85188e12d643febf12986b5575a52f.jpg/v1/fill/w_99,h_71,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/44e5c8_ff85188e12d643febf12986b5575a52f.jpg)
...is a better skin treatment than a week at Terme di Montecatini.
![Electric hair](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/44e5c8_660ea6de93b24a7d935911bb45a415ed.jpg/v1/fill/w_130,h_98,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/44e5c8_660ea6de93b24a7d935911bb45a415ed.jpg)
with lightning bolt accents add a vibrant sense of movement and life, which is handy considering she was dead until a few minutes ago.
![Don't forget the lip gloss](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/44e5c8_dfffa6cf6cff42ca8b1171a225646cb3.jpg/v1/fill/w_147,h_191,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/44e5c8_dfffa6cf6cff42ca8b1171a225646cb3.jpg)
for that "kiss me, Boris" look.
![Words fail](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/44e5c8_eb6d5746be1e4c2a8a45eb23b57c33ee.jpg/v1/fill/w_147,h_111,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/44e5c8_eb6d5746be1e4c2a8a45eb23b57c33ee.jpg)
...in the presence of such timeless beauty.
![Drama queen, be mine](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/44e5c8_8ad91a0e6263458c898e711667067930.jpg/v1/fill/w_147,h_186,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/44e5c8_8ad91a0e6263458c898e711667067930.jpg)
...Please
![Something borrowed, something blue](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/44e5c8_3f47a12eab9f4d17849815b3c8445b0d.jpg/v1/fill/w_132,h_161,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/44e5c8_3f47a12eab9f4d17849815b3c8445b0d.jpg)
...something brought to life for you. The Bride steps out.
![A woman should be allowed...](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/44e5c8_e71b364a73cd4d01ba3da6d797cc06b7.jpg/v1/fill/w_63,h_76,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/44e5c8_e71b364a73cd4d01ba3da6d797cc06b7.jpg)
![...to define](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/44e5c8_8c57e667d5b04b82a8c704310c1ecfb9.jpg/v1/fill/w_63,h_76,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/44e5c8_8c57e667d5b04b82a8c704310c1ecfb9.jpg)
![...her own beauty.](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/44e5c8_ba43a8582a8f4addb8e60628a6eacdba.jpg/v1/fill/w_63,h_76,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/44e5c8_ba43a8582a8f4addb8e60628a6eacdba.jpg)
![The simple elegance](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/44e5c8_37c7bc30a69b4ccda68d10f99d918d1f.jpg/v1/fill/w_147,h_193,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/44e5c8_37c7bc30a69b4ccda68d10f99d918d1f.jpg)
of a former corpse in a muslin sheet. Sometimes your hair and makeup are statement enough.
![The father about to](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/44e5c8_e308e9f143564595a28c5f9613e4413a.jpg/v1/fill/w_147,h_116,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/44e5c8_e308e9f143564595a28c5f9613e4413a.jpg)
give away the bride. Colin Clive, Elsa and Ernest Thesiger.
![Made for each other.](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/44e5c8_1209cdac5fa54071907f114d63515a0d.jpg/v1/fill/w_64,h_49,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/44e5c8_1209cdac5fa54071907f114d63515a0d.jpg)
Literally.
![Like most great romances](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/44e5c8_4d6be89fb1ce4fe8ae94fffd48b7ece2.jpg/v1/fill/w_144,h_113,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/44e5c8_4d6be89fb1ce4fe8ae94fffd48b7ece2.jpg)
...this isn't going to end well. But at least they're beautiful.