Odelecol Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

KnotStronger This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

Invaderbank The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

Kimball Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

morrison-dylan-fan Watching the extras to the Blu-Ray of Hammer's Dracula a few days ago,I found out that was Dracula was the one to make Hammer's Gothic Horror style famous,that there had actually been a "test run" a year before on Frankenstein. Planning to buy the disc,I was taken aback to learn that the BBC were about to air it!,which led to me getting set to witness the first ever Gothic Hammer Horror.The plot:Waiting in jail to be hanged, Baron Victor Frankenstein tries to convince a priest that a spree of murders were done by a monster,and not him.Weeks earlier:Left in sole control of the family estate after his mum dies, young Frankenstein hires Paul Krempe.Becoming interested in science over the years, Frankenstein and Krempe start working on scientific experiments. Encouraged by them bringing a dead dog back to life, Frankenstein comes up with the idea of bringing a "perfect human" to life from different parts of dead bodies. Soon put off by their corpse robbing,Krempe tries to tell Frankenstein to stop crossing a line in science,but finds he is unable to destroy the dream of Frankenstein's perfect Creature.View on the film:Letting the Hammer Horror relish flow during the Creature's first steps,directing auteur Terence Fisher & cinematographer Jack Asher take a discreet turn to the build up,via covering all the body parts and bloody clothes in jars and test tubes which delicately allow the viewing to build their full image of the horrors that lurk within. Taking a restrained approach to the unveiling of the Creature, Fisher soaks the title in an extraordinary Gothic Horror atmosphere, painting everything in delicious reds,greens and whites, (which shine,even though the original negative is sadly lost) and also displaying a superb eye for the use of space, brilliantly used by Fisher to express how no one can get close to Frankenstein.Aware of Universal Studio's watching over his shoulders as "their" monsters changed hands,the screenplay by Jimmy Sangster gloves Frankenstein in a rich Costume Drama,that allow the Hammer Horror shocks to always feel grounded,thanks to all of them relating to the broken friendship between Frankenstein and Krempe.Bringing Hammer's Gothic Horror bursting to life, Sangster chillingly keeps the Creature silent and deadly,hitting pelts of cracking tension,as Frankenstein begins to lose control of his creation.Complaining about having no dialogue (until his co-star pointed out that he was lucky!) Christopher Lee (who got the role after Bernard Bresslaw asked for too much cash!) gives a roaring performance as Creature,whose handmade nature is perfectly captured by Lee's jerky walk and unsettling stop/start movement of arms and head. Joined by alluring Hazel Court and a passionate Robert Urquhart as Krempe,Peter Cushing offers a glimpse of the fatherly warmth he would give to future Hammer Horror,but wickedly off-sets the calm with an excellent, threatening belief that he spits out at anyone who tries to stop Frankenstein from creating his landmark Creature:the Gothic Hammer Horror.

Nigel P "It's alive!" So gasps Peter Cushing as Baron Frankenstein, as he infuses the spark of life into a creature previously dead. On this occasion, it is a puppy used as an experiment. Cushing, taking over from Melvyn Hayes (as the younger Baron), makes the part instantly his own. Every flicker of the eye, every movement, every sideward glance is meticulously measured – a trait of Cushing's acting, and one of the reasons he has been admired over the years by fans and fellow cast and crew members. As 'Curse of Frankenstein' starts, its credits intoned over swirling red smoke, Frankenstein is dishevelled and desperate, imprisoned for his foul deeds and a cert for the guillotine – his story is told in flashback.This was Hammer's first major success, the Mary Shelley novel condensed by writer Jimmy Sangster (but not as much as Dracula was the following year). Robert Urquhart, who played Paul Krempe, Frankenstein's tutor, walked out of the premiere, and in disgust gave an interview slating its horrific nature; needless to say, he never appeared in another cinematic film for Hammer. He was not alone – 'revolting, degrading, pathetic and depressing' are four words amongst many scathing reviews of 'Curse of Frankenstein' upon its release, usually from the prissy pens of the British critics. Happily, the film made seventy times the money that was needed to make it, which tells its own story.Goat's eyes, severed hands and heads, and Cushing's blood spattered lapels certainly brought 'Curse' a huge level of notoriety upon its release which fuelled its popularity and put Hammer forever on the map – as well as making stars out of both Cushing, and his 'creature' Christopher Lee (a role for which Bernard Bresslaw was also considered). Lee was chosen mainly for his height and smothered in car-crash make-up and an obvious wig, which provides an effective scare but is hardly memorable in the way that Jack Pierce's make-up had been for the Universal original. It is unfair to compare the two films however – they were made in a different age for a different audience - and that is the last time I shall do so.The few wisps of humour in this doom-laden story are provided by The Baron's affair with maid Justine, who naively believes his lies and tried to blackmail him, and another scene which involves The Baron politely asking for the marmalade during a genteel breakfast directly after the scene in which he locks Justine into his filthy laboratory with his reborn creature.The Creature has a magnificent introduction. Left in an emptying water tank, with its chest heaving, there is a crash which leads Frankenstein to scurry into his deserted laboratory. There stands his creation, uncoordinated arms and hands reaching to rip away the bandages covering his face. Phil Leakey's make-up is revealed, and the creature (or rather the late Professor Bernstein, whose brain is in the monster's head) immediately recognises the man who originally killed him and reaches out to strangle him. No mild-mannered monster, he still invites a kind of sympathy – in the way a rabid dog would invite sympathy for its plight, if not for its temperament.At the finale, we return to The Baron's incarceration, with Frankenstein facing the guillotine after his last hope, Paul Krempe, has wilfully failed to save him. Krempe is hardly as virtuous as he seems, I think. For all his gallant protection of Frankenstein's intended Elizabeth (Hazel Court), it is clear he has designs on her – by the film's end, he happily places an arm around her as he escorts her out of Frankenstein's cell. The cad.

disinterested_spectator Movies starring Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee are a subgenre of horror films, one that I have never cared for. Actually, this is one of those Hammer productions, which I do not care for either, even when they do not star these two actors. Such movies are typically ponderous and dull. In the original story, Dr. Frankenstein is dedicated to science, which he believes will benefit mankind, but ends up creating a monster instead. Though we feel sorry for the monster, he is dangerous and has to be destroyed. In this movie, Dr. Frankenstein is more evil than the monster, committing murder to get the brain he needs, which then makes the monster seem superfluous. Furthermore, whereas the original story was a cautionary tale about the unintended consequences of science, the only moral to this story is that if you commit murder, you will probably be punished.

tomgillespie2002 26 years after Universal Studios and James Whale hit gold with both critics and audiences alike with their interpretation of Mary Shelley's classic novel Frankenstein, another production studio was about to reinvigorate the horror genre with a vastly different take on the same book. Hammer Studios seemed to know something no-one else did - that audiences had a thirst for blood. The critics may not have appreciated it at the time (though they certainly do now), but the paying audiences lapped up The Curse of Frankenstein's amped-up levels of gore and Gothic atmosphere.The film begins with Victor Frankenstein (Peter Cushing) in a jail cell awaiting his execution for an unknown crime. He calls for a priest who he tells his story to. Victor was only a child where he became a baron and inherited his family's estate, and employed his teacher, Paul Krempe (Robert Urquhart), to teach him everything there is to know about the science of anatomy. Years later, Victor and Paul manage to bring a puppy back to life, much to their delight. While Paul is thrilled with their achievement, Victor is unsatisfied and longs to create a human life of his own.Anyone hoping for a faithful re-telling of Mary Shelley's novel will be sorely disappointed. Director Terence Fisher and writer Jimmy Sangster (director of Hammer's Fear in the Night (1972)) makes the film more about Frankenstein than his creation. While the novel focused more on the tragic nature of the Creature's creation and treatment, the film portrays Victor not only as a flawed and arguably misguided visionary, but a stone-cold murderer, pushing a scientific genius to his death in order to have his superior brain for his creation. The brain is damaged in an alteration between Victor and Paul, so the creature is of low intelligence anyway.For all the 're-imaginings' of Frankenstein, this is certainly the best I've seen. The diversions from the source material make it a different experience entirely, and one simply to be enjoyed rather than to ponder it's deeper meanings. Cushing's performance is incredible, adding a gravitas to his character even when the movie dips into camp. Christopher Lee, playing the Creature and in his first of many appearances for Hammer, puts in an impressive physical performance and manages to invite sympathy with no dialogue at all. Hazel Court also appears as Victor's cousin Elizabeth, in what is little more than the obligatory female role. A fantastic kick-start to what would be one of the greatest movements in horror.www.the-wrath-of-blog.blogspot.com