Most Helpful Customer Reviews
|
|
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Peter Cushing Returns In One Of His Most Famous Horror Roles, June 9, 2005
Just as Boris Karloff became forever associated with playing the Frankenstein monster in the three classic Universal Studios efforts in the 1930's, Peter Cushing will be forever fondly associated with Baron Frankenstein after playing him in six films stretching from the late 1950's through to the 1970's for England's famed Hammer Studios. Here in "Frankenstein Created Woman", from 1967 which was his fourth time in the role Cushing had one of his best vehicles as the wily Baron which was a vast improvement on Hammer's earlier misfire with 1964's "The Evil of Frankenstein". This film returned largely to the core of the famous story and also added it's own unique twists which helped give it its own individual interest despite it being part of a series of movies on the Baron's various exploits. "Frankenstein Created Woman", has all the first rate trade marks one comes to expect from Hammer Studios; a superb lead in veteran Hammer star Peter Cushing essaying one of his most famous roles, able direction by arguably the studio's most talented director in Terence Fisher, lush technicolour photography and authentic period settings, and an attractive and talented young leading lady in Susan Denberg. Hammer managed through most of their Frankenstein series to make each story as uniquely self contained as possible, hence their ongoing popularity with audiences who didn't grow to feel they were seeing the same story over and over. This fourth installment is one of the series' best and has an almost supernatural feel to it dealing as it does with the good doctor's efforts to transfer the sole of one individual into the body of another with very startling results.
Set again in the 19th Century in the region of the Balkans we are introduced again to Baron Frankenstein (Peter Cushing) who in his latest spree of experiments around the wonders of the human body has devised a way to capture the soul of an individual after they have died and give it new life in the body of another. Assisted in these experiements by his assistant the amiable Dr. Hertz (Thorley Walters), Frankenstein has perfected the process of capturing the individuals soul which must be retrieved less than a few hours after the person dying. An opportunity for Frankenstein's knowledge to be put into practice arises when Frankenstein's lab assistant Hans (Robert Morris), is wrongly accused of the murder of the local tavern owner (Ivan Beavis)who happens to be the father of his scarred girlfriend Christina (Susan Denberg). He in actual fact was murdered by three affluent young thugs who allow Hans to take the blame and being the son of a man guillotined years before for crimes Hans is given no chance to prove his innocence. Frankenstein seeing that Hans has no hope decides that his execution will be of great use in his experiements with the human soul and after Hans is guillotined and Christina in grief drowns herself Frankenstein manages to obtain both bodies and transfers Hans soul into Christina's body which also undergoes treatment to turn her from her former scarred face self into a beautiful young woman. Christina is revived and at first all seems well as she becomes a likeable and very beautiful young woman however very soon the soul of a vengeful Hans trapped in her body reasserts itself and drives Christina on a ruthless killing spree against the three young men who caused his unnecessary death. One by one the three men Anton (Peter Blythe), Karl (Barry Warren), and Johann (Derek Fowlds), are ruthlessly murdered after falling for the obvious charms of the beautiful Christina. The townsfolk grow increasingly alarmed at the murders and blame them on Baron Frankenstein who most do not trust. Barely escaping an angry mob Frankenstein realises that Christina is the one being driven by Han's soul in his thirst for revenge and pursues her when he discovers she has left town with the last of the trio of young men Hans wants to see dead. When he finally catches up with her Christina begins to realise from what Frankenstein is saying that she is responsible for the multiple murders and in her tormented state she decides to end it all by jumping off a cliff before the Baron can capture her.
"Frankenstein Created Woman", definately benefits from the return of Terence Fisher to the directors seat and together with Peter Cushing playing again one of his most famous horror characters the partnership managed to put the Frankenstein series back on track. Heralded upon its release in 1967 with the catchy byline "A Beautiful Woman With The Soul Of The Devil!", this film doesn't have the resident "monster", that one comes to expect from the Frankenstein movies. Instead we have here the rather original idea (for this series anyway!), of a beautiful and seemingly innocent young woman being driven to unspeakable acts of murder by the transplanted soul of a recently executed man. Peter Cushing delivers his usual highly polished performance in the role that he played on and off for over 17 years. he has an interesting chemistry with the slightly daffy Thorley Walters as his assistant that brings to mind the film collaborations of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson in the earlier Hollywood films. Austrian born Susan Denberg makes a most interesting villianess and her quite sweetbeauty makes a starling contrast to the terrible murders she commits when possessed by the soul of Hans. One unique aspect of alot of the Hammer films of the 1960's was that they provided a solid training ground for many young British actors who went on the great success in later years. Foremost here in "Frankenstein Created Woman", is a very young Derek Fowlds as one of the young men who becomes Christina's /Han's victims. He would of course enjoy great success in later years as a star of the long running "Yes Minister ", and "Heartbeat" series on British television. This effort boasts all the standard Hammer features so appealing to horror lovers; beautiful colour photography, excellent period settings that still have a strong English feel despite being set in central Europe, and a number of stunning set pieces that seem to take on a life of their own such as in this film's case the haunting image of the guillotine towering over the hillside which is put into good use at various intervals throughout the film.
"Frankenstein Created Woman", is certainly good old fashioned horror entertainment of the kind Hammer Studios excelled in and is one of my absolute favourites in the series. Baron Frankenstein by this installment in the series had developed from being a villian into an almost hero type figure which some movie goers objected to at the time of release. This perhaps explains why in the next entry "Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed!", Frankenstein once again became a villianous character. The slight character change in this film does however create interest and works in the stories favour as the otherwise sweet character of Christina suddenly takes on a bloodthirsty persona which produces quite startling results and really helps drive the story along. For all Hammer horror lovers this fourth entry in their classic Frankenstein series of movies is essential viewing and should definately be in your horror collection.
|
|
|
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Baron Frankenstein starts playing those mind games..., May 12, 2001
Although you might think from the title that "Frankenstein Created Woman" is Hammer films version of "The Bride of Frankenstein," it is really a strong return to the studio's original Frankenstein series after the dreadful mistake of "The Evil of Frankenstein." Baron Victor Frankenstein, played by Peter Cushing of course, has become bored with stitching together corpses and is now interested in transplanting souls by occult methods (with a little help, believe it or not, from a small atomic pile). This new direction is due in some small part to the fact his hands were damaged in the fiery conclusion of the previous film. Dr. Hertz (Thorley Walters), the local doctor in the village where the Baron now lives, willingly serves as Victor's hands. Meanwhile, a pair of young lovers named Hans (Robert Morris) and Christina (Susan Denberg), meet tragic fates. He is mistakenly executed for murdering her father, and the heartbroken girl drowns herself. Victor acquires the bodies and transfers Han's soul into Christina's body. When a visit to the guillotine awakens Han's memories of what happened, he uses his new body to claim vengeance for what happened to them both. Ironically, not only do we not have the traditional monster in "Frankenstein Created Woman," the mad doctor is also pretty much a secondary figure in the film, although the new twists on the character makes him much more sympathetic than he had previously been. Indeed, Victor is the film's "hero." This is arguably the best script in the series by Anthony Hinds (writing again as "John Elder") and the return of director Terence Fisher to the series is quite welcomed. The casting of former Playmate of the Month Susan Denberg as the, ah, creature did require her role to be dubbed because of her Austrian accent, a final irony since Hammer's Frankenstein films are always set in that lovely part of Central Europe that looks like Austria/Germany while everyone speaks with English/Cockney accents. "Frankenstein Created Woman" is probably the second best film in the series.
|
|
|
9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
WARNING, June 20, 2002
this Anchor Bay DVD appears to have serious flaws as almost all of the originally pressed discs no longer play correctly.....those of you who have these discs, Please check them in your dvd players as 9 out of 10 of them have suffered a form of corruption that doesnt allow them to work anylonger...........the worst news of all is that ANCHOR BAY dont apparently have the license to release this title again at the moment, so those of us who have dumped our Elite Laserdiscs are rather stuck with a dud dvd. Anchor Bay who are normally so excellent about handling themselves ought really to start something about refunding those of us who are stuck with a dud disc - clearly something they MUST have had some idea about.
|
|
|
Most Recent Customer Reviews
|
DVD ~ Peter Cushing
DVD ~ Peter Cushing
DVD ~ Peter Cushing
DVD ~ Ralph Bates
DVD ~ André Morell
on 
