The Curse of
Frankenstein (1957), dir. Terrence Fisher, Hammer Film Productions
Here the focus changes. Moving ahead a decade or so, we head
across the Atlantic to the famed Hammer Films studio. While the studio had been
in business almost as long as Universal by 1957, they were best known for their
comedies and mysteries. Moving into horror, specifically Gothic horror, was a
decision that would shape the studio’s direction for the next twenty years.
Baron Victor Frankenstein (Peter Cushing) sits in a prison
cell. He pleads with a priest (Alex Gallier) to believe his story. The priest
promises nothing but from there we go into a flashback. When Victor was a
teenager, his mother died. Left with the Frankenstein title and fortune, Victor
hires tutor Paul Kemp (Robert Urquhart) to teach him science. Victor proves to
be an apt pupil and soon Victor and Paul are more equals rather than teacher
and student. Their objective: Restoring life to dead tissue. Despite their
success with bringing a dead puppy back to life, Victor wants more. He wants to
create life fresh rather than mess around with something already born.
Paul, despite his increasing misgivings, goes along with
Victor. Things get complicated with Victor’s cousin and betrothed Elizabeth
(Hazel Court) arrives. Victor apparently forgot about her, as well as
forgetting to mention his engagement to his maid Justine (Valerie Gaunt). Paul
grows increasing worried at Victor’s progress with his creature and his
treatment of the two women. By this point all Victor lacks is a brain.
When a visiting scientist spends the night, Victor arranges
an accident and has the man interred in the family crypt. When Paul finally
screws up enough courage to confront Victor, the brain is damaged. Undeterred,
Victor goes ahead with his experiment. The Creature (Christopher Lee), however,
is not the perfect specimen that Victor had hope for; indeed its barely
controlled rage ends up racking a good sized body count before Paul swears to
stop his former pupil.
Cushing and Lee, usually so dynamic in their other onscreen
pairings seems oddly mismatched here. While the film focuses on the man rather
than the monster; a novel approach and a good way to distance itself from
Universal, here Lee’s Creature hardly does anything aside from kill a few
people and grunt. Lee’s face isn’t as covered up, yet he might as well be
wearing a stocking over his face. Cushing steals the show though, as his
Frankenstein is both daring and an utter bastard to boot.
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