Having spent every Saturday night for
more than a decade viewing horror movies has a certain level of
challenge and reward. Always finding new and fresh entertainment
while fitting in old favorites can be a difficult balancing act. What
I’ve found helpful over the years is mixing things up every so
often with theme nights or going through entire series at the pace of
about once a month. Most recently I’ve used this option to comb
through the classic Hammer horror series of which my experience was
often incomplete or disjointed. Since we honestly don’t talk about
spooky stories enough around here I thought it might be fun to talk a
bit about some classics and maybe provide some guides for those
who've yet to experience them. What better place to start than with
Hammer Studios Frankenstein series.
It’s probably safe to say that for
most people the name Frankenstein conjures up images of the monster,
usually Karloff. Honestly that’s not a bad frame of reference as
the old Universal series is a solid line-up of films but the sheer
variety of takes on this story is staggering with versions so far out
as to include time-travel, blacksplotation, and Mr. Magoo. Even then
most variations stay focused on the monster. The Hammer series
however is based entirely around the doctor as he travels Europe
conducting ever more fiendish experiments to perfect his work. That
being said this is a far different doctor than usual as there is
little in the way of redeeming characteristics to his personality.
Sure there’s an occasional pang of regret or sadness here and there
but he’s largely a murderous, self-centered, misogynistic wretch
and Peter Cushing plays the anti-hero role perfectly as he tries to
deepen human understanding with questionable methods.
The other notable aspect to this
series is that it’s hard to get people to agree on the exact number
of movies. The studio’s sixth stab at the franchise, The Horror
of Frankenstein was a more comedic remake of the original story
without Cushing. Most people ignore it and move straight on to the
seventh and final film which returned to the antics of our favorite
doctor. For the sake of my viewings I’m sticking solely to the six
Cushing entries. That’s enough background information for now.
Let’s get on with the show.
The Curse of Frankenstein
This is where it all started. While
Hammer had been in the film business for quite some time and had even
touched on the horror genre with efforts like the Quatermass
series The Curse of Frankenstein is the moment when so many
different talents came together to create the entire vibe of
successful British horror. Not only did this kickstart Hammer’s
legacy of horror films but it brought the world the pairing of Peter
Cushing and Christopher Lee while inadvertently forming a competitive
studio named Amicus. As you might imagine that historical
significance plays into a lot of the reputation for this film which
can lead some people to oversell it. Don’t let an abundance of hype
influence you however as while this may not be the greatest example
of U.K. terror it is still a fine piece of cinema.
Functioning as a fairly
straightforward adaptation of the original Frankenstein novel means
Curse hits a lot of familiar beats. We watch as Victor
Frankenstein grows up, educates himself, courts ladies, and begins to
stitch corpses together. None of this is all that new except for the
attitude this version of the character brings with him. This guy
doesn’t send a hunchback out to fetch a brain, he straight up
murders people to get the exact brain he desires. If one of his
mistresses gets out of hand, he’ll simply introduce her to the
monster. I don’t mean that in a sexual way. Poor girl already met
that monster.
Speaking of the creature, Christopher
Lee’s take on the role is a bit different than the mopey beast we
usually see, acting instead as something closer to a meandering
zombie. The make-up follows suit with loose gray skin and hints of
blood around the stiches. It’s not the actors best performance but
he’s still a proper mixture of threatening and pathetic.
One aspect that has stood the test of
time is the wonderful atmosphere Even this early in the game Hammer
knew how to craft a comfortable spooky setting for their productions.
There’s such a perfect blend of autumnal colors, harsh weather,
baffling science equipment, and old-world wealth that creates a world
not unlike a comfy blanket. It’s the perfect sort of film to watch
when you want to feel like a kid.
Overall the film lacks much in the way
of surprises and most of the scares have faded over time. What holds
everything together and keeps this in the upper rankings of
Frankenstein cinema is how well it presents itself with that fine
atmosphere and a great leading man.
The Revenge of Frankenstein
In this tale Victor is believed to be
dead by the world which doesn’t realize he managed to escape the
guillotine. He now lives in another city practicing medicine under
the name Dr. Stein. I can only assume that his plan revolves around
no one thinking he’s dumb enough to use a shortened name as a
disguise. One young doctor sees through this farce and wants to
further his education by aiding Frankenstein's newest experiment. The
duo is aided by a hobbled man named Karl.
The nature of the new experiment goes
a large way towards separating this entry from similar fare. Instead
of just bringing a collection of dead flesh to life the doctors plan
to create a passable looking being and placing the brain of the
willing Karl within this new being so he might escape his deformed
body. After the operation there's a struggle between Karl who wishes
to recover and lead a new life and the doctors who want to put him on
display. Throw in a young woman, further deformities, and violent
mobs & you've got one weird sequel.
Revenge is
very much an odd duck within the series. Lacking the mood of the
first. The craziness of the fourth, or outright cruelty of the last.
this one instead finds a place via a strange storyline and a nifty
ending. Sadly those unique aspects are largely ignored by the rest of
the franchise due to an immediate retcon during the third film. There
are some problems here, especially in the pacing department but it
remains one of the most unique Franky flicks I've ever encountered.
The Evil of Frankenstein
If you ever ask someone to recap this
one for you expect them to spend an inordinate amount of time
scratching their head as they struggle to recall anything of note.
Much like Hammer's third Dracula film this one is a bit empty. The
most notable aspects of it are that Universal played a hand in
production and the film puts a lot of legwork into reworking the
events of the preceding movies, totally glossing over Revenge in
the process.
So what happens
during this installment anyway? Frankenstein is down on his luck amd
along with his assistant he returns home to find it vandalized. After
spending some time reigniting feuds with the townies that chased him
away a mute girl leads him to his first monster who is frozen in a
block of ice. The doctor revives the creature only to find its mind
is shattered causing him to enlist the aid of a mentalist who takes
control of the beast for his own ends. That's about it.
Though
I've yet to see the fifth entry I have little trouble declaring Evil
to be the weakest piece of the
series. Failing to live up to the atmospheric pleasure of the first
or the interesting story of the second with a monster that's just
dumb looking leaves little to recommend save for one important thing.
Peter Cushing is still the man and his take on Victor has only grown
better throughout the series. By this point he's incredibly smug when
dealing with lesser people and it's a joy to behold. Just a shame he
doesn't have much to do here as the film meanders along before
settling on the hypnotism plot and then rushes the ending for no
discernible reason. Some might place the blame on this being the only
installment not directed by Terence Fisher or the influence of
Universal forcing change where it wasn't needed. Whatever the case
there is still some entertainment value to be found here, just
nowhere near enough to match up to the others.
And there you have
it, a beginners guide to the first three entries in this classic
series. Within the next couple of months I'll cover the second trio
of films one of which I know is the best outing. In the meantime I
may give this same treatment to some other series, perhaps even the
Hammer Dracula franchise. Gotta wrap this up for now though.
Something about the slow shift towards spring weather has made me
very sleepy and I've no intention of passing out and drooling all
over this laptop. Ciao.
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