The Curse of Frankenstein
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Movie Reviews of The Curse of Frankenstein
Movie Review: Total Pleasure
Summary: 5 Stars
These Hammer horror gems are a must for anyone seeking to be entertained by great actors. Peter Cushing was in a class by himself when it came to self-parody and cockiness.Movie Review: The one that started it all.
Summary: 5 Stars
If you don't like it, then you just don't get what Hammer is all about.Movie Review: Essential DVD for Horror Fans.
Summary: 4 Stars
Shot in colour and released in 1957, "The Curse of Frankenstein" is, of course, the film that made Hammer Films a household name for horror/thriller movie fans all over the world. To fully appreciate the importance and impact of "Curse", you have to look at it in the context of the time when it was made. By the mid-fifties, horror films had long passed their peak in Hollywood--certainly in terms of quality. Black and white "quickies", with almost no budget, were being churned out for teenagers to watch at the drive-in ( at least, those who were watching the screen ! ) Shlock-masters like Roger Corman and Bert Gordon were turning out "masterpieces" like "The Wasp Woman" and "The Amazing Colossal Man".
Suddenly, we have a small studio in England, making a horror film with excellent production values, gorgeously creepy sets, fine costumes, professional actors and a talented director, Terence Fisher. At the same time, along with a classy look, you add liberal amounts of gore ( certainly by 1950s standards ), and a couple of voluptuous "damsels in distress" who can scream lustily when they encounter the monster. It was a winning formula that Hammer would raise to an art form.
Peter Cushing plays Baron Von Frankenstein, and his terrific performance dominates the film. His character goes through quite a transformation from curious scientist to an obsessive fiend, determined to "create life" at, literally, any cost. His mentor/friend Paul Krempe ( Robert Urquhart )is an enthusiastic assistant at first, but soon becomes alienated by the Baron's frantic and ultimately murderous behaviour. Sometimes body parts are easily available--sometimes you have to be "creative" in obtaining them !
Of course, this flesh and blood "jigsaw puzzle" comes to life in the form of a hideous, pathetic creature played by Christopher Lee, who soon breaks loose, displaying no appreciation whatsoever for being "born" ! As I mentioned earlier, two beautiful women "round out" the cast. Gorgeous Hazel Court is Elizabeth, the Baron's betrothed, and Valerie Gaunt is Justine the maid. Justine is, as they say in England, the Baron's "bit on the side"--when she threatens to spill all the Baron's secrets unless he marries her, you just know that her future is "cloudy".
"Curse" may not be Hammer's best film, but it put the studio on the map and started an enduring partnership of two very fine actors--Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee.
The DVD exhibits good colour, with occasional haziness and mono sound. The extras are sparse--a few notes on other Hammer films, and a trailer. I would have loved some comments from Mr. Lee--sadly Peter Cushing passed away some time ago.
Still, if you like classic horror films, "Curse" has to be in your collection--its importance cannot be over-estimated. Recommended.
A very sad footnote, dated 30 April 2008. Ms. Hazel Court has passed away at age 82. She was most famous for her roles in horror/suspense films produced by the Hammer Studios and also Roger Corman. A talented actress, she always brought glamour and a touch of class to any production she was involved in.
Movie Review: The Birth of Hammer Horror
Summary: 4 Stars
England's Hammer Film Productions had been around since 1934 and gone through bankruptcy, reorganization, and a purchase by Exclusive Films. Throughout the 1930s and 1940s, English law required that a certain number of English films be made for every American film imported; Hammer specialized in these "quota quickies," for which Exclusive acted as distributor. But by the late 1940s and early 1950s Hammer's product improved, and a series of business deals brought an infusion of cash. Then, in 1955, the popular film THE QUATERMASS XPERIMENT gave the studio a brainstorm: an up-dated version of Mary Shelly's FRANKENSTEIN, complete with color, bloody gore, and heaving breasts.
Seen today, it is hard to know what all the fuss was about; there is no nudity, the gore is almost circumspect in comparison with such films as SCREAM, and the graphic surgeries used to create the monster tend to happen just slightly off screen or in scenes that fade out before anything particularly unpleasant can be seen. Even so, censors were so horrified by the film that they rated it X, and critics were so outraged that they described it as debasing, depressing, and degrading. Needless to say, audiences on both sides of the Atlantic flocked to see it, and "Hammer Horror" was born.
Mary Shelly's novel has never been closely adapted to the screen, and this particular version is no different from the rest. On this occasion we find Victor Frankenstien (Peter Cushing) less a serious scientist than a cold-blooded nut who doesn't draw the line at committing murder in order to get the body parts he needs for his experiment (Christopher Lee.) Victor's former tutor and current assistant Paul (Robert Urquhart) becomes increasingly disenchanted with it, considers Victor insane, and remains in the house only to protect Victor's cousin and fiancee Elizabeth (Hazel Court) from harm. But soon even this motivation is not enough, Paul flees the scene, and Elizabeth's curiosity about Victor's lab gets the better of her--with predictable results.
Although it isn't a patch on Universal's FRANKENSTEIN, Hammer's THE CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN is entertaining in its own way. True, it longer has the power to shock, but the cast is quite good, the laboratory set is fun, and the re-imagining of Frankenstein as coldly evil and his creation as almost machine-like is a stroke of genius. The money came rolling in for the film, and Hammer would go on to make six more Frankenstein films between 1958 and 1973--when, of course, the studio wasn't making Dracula films. The Hammer movies may not have been "A" films, but they were certainly better and a great deal more sophisticated than most "B" films of their era, and they remain fun to watch. Recommended to fans of the genre.
GFT, Amazon Reviewer
Movie Review: BLOOD,GUTS AND CLEAVAGE...YES, IT'S HAMMER TIME AGAIN!
Summary: 4 Stars
I have always been a classic Universal horror films fan and was never that big a fan of the Hammer interpretations. This was because of my loyal devotion to the original classic Universal films. If you compare the Hammer films to the true classic Universal films then I would say they pale by comparison. Unfortunately the classic films were replaced with some rather cheaply made quickies in the 40's and 50's. Even though these cheaper films may hold fond memories for those who grew up with them, it is easy to see that these Hammer films were a much needed improvement. The biggest factor was they were shot in glorious color! I know...I know....Color? I love the old black and Whites as they have an unsurpassed creepiness. Now that so much time has gone by, I thought I would give Hammer another try. What better place to start than with Hammer's breakthrough film "The Curse Of Frankenstein"! This film showed nowhere near the blood I remembered as a kid. I know that this is not the case in the next installments and later Hammer films, which show blood, guts and ......CLEAVAGE! OH Yes, we were not going to be getting any of that back in the 30's LOL! The film is very good, but the story strays worse than the original Karloff Frankenstein from the book. The make-up pales in comparison to Jack Pierce's genius work, but it does show some style and is frightful! Over all this is a very good horror film with great actors, sets and a restored passion to a dying genre...at the time. The DVD transfer looks very good but has minimal extras.....too bad!