Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell

Frankenstein
and the Monster from Hell

Theatrical release poster
Directed by Terence Fisher
Produced by Roy Skeggs
Written by John Elder
Starring Peter Cushing
Shane Briant
David Prowse
Madeline Smith
John Stratton
Patrick Troughton
Music by James Bernard
Cinematography Brian Probyn
Edited by James Needs
Production
company
Distributed by AVCO Embassy
(United Kingdom)
Paramount Pictures
(United States)
Release dates
 2 May 1974
Running time
 99 min.
Country United Kingdom
Language English
Budget £137,200[1]
Box office 88,788 admissions (France)[2]

Frankenstein and the Monster From Hell is a 1974 British horror film, directed by Terence Fisher and produced by Hammer Film Productions. It stars Peter Cushing, Shane Briant and David Prowse. Filmed at Elstree Studios in 1972 but not released until 1974, it was the final chapter in the Hammer Frankenstein saga of films as well as director Fisher's last film.

The film was released on UK DVD+Blu-ray on 28 April 2014, with all previously censored scenes restored.

Plot

Baron Victor Frankenstein (Cushing) is housed at an insane asylum where he has been made a surgeon at the asylum, and has a number of privileges, as he holds secret information on Adolf Klauss, the asylum's corrupt and perverted director (John Stratton). The Baron, under the alias of Dr. Carl Victor, uses his position to continue his experiments in the creation of man.

When Simon Helder (Briant), a young doctor and an admirer of the Baron's work, arrives as an inmate for bodysnatching, the Baron is impressed by Helder's talents and takes him under his wing as an apprentice. Together they work on the design for a new creature. Unknown to Simon, however, Frankenstein is acquiring body parts by murdering his patients.

The Baron's new experiment is the hulking, ape-like Herr Schneider (Prowse), a homicidal inmate whom he has kept alive after a violent suicide attempt and on whom he has grafted the hands of a recently deceased sculptor (Bernard Lee). Since Frankenstein's hands were badly burned in the name of science (possibly in The Evil of Frankenstein or Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed), the shabby stitch-work was done by Sarah (Madeline Smith), a beautiful mute girl who assists the surgeon, and who is nicknamed "Angel". Simon tells the Baron that he is a surgeon, and the problem is solved. The Baron reveals that Sarah is the daughter of the director and has been mute ever since he tried to rape her.

Soon new eyes and a new brain are given to the creature. When the creature – lumbering, hirsute and dumb – is complete, it becomes bitter and intent on revenge. It ultimately runs mad on a killing spree in the asylum, killing several individuals, including Klauss. Eventually, it is fully overpowered and destroyed by a mob of inmates. Simon is devastated by the loss of life and reports to Frankenstein; however, the Baron feels that it was the best that could happen to such a creature, and is already considering a new experiment with other involuntary donors. The three start tidying up the laboratory whilst Frankenstein ponders who should be first to "Donate"...

Cast

Production

This was the sixth and last time that Peter Cushing portrayed the role of the obsessively driven Baron Frankenstein, a part he originated in 1957's The Curse of Frankenstein. Cushing had long been known throughout his career for his meticulous attention to detail, even in the planned handling and usage of props. For this film, he helped to design the wig that he wore, but years afterward regretted the outcome, and jokingly quipped that it made him look more like stage and screen actress Helen Hayes. But Cushing's dedication to his role was never truly dampened, and at age 59, looking somewhat gaunt and fragile, he still insisted upon performing a daring stunt which required him to leap from a tabletop onto the hulking creature's back, spinning wildly in circles to subdue the monster gone amok with a sedative.

David Prowse makes his second appearance as a Frankenstein laboratory creation in this film, his first having been in The Horror of Frankenstein. He's the only actor to have played a Hammer Frankenstein's monster more than once. During the DVD commentary session for this movie, Prowse said that his daily transformation into "The Monster From Hell" went fairly quickly, being able to suit up and pull on the mask in only about 30 minutes – whereas his time in the make-up chair for his previous Hammer monster role typically required several tedious hours.

Critical reception

Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell has received a mixed reception from critics. Of the film, The Hammer Story: The Authorised History of Hammer Films wrote: "Terence Fisher's haunting, melancholy swansong would be an epitaph for Hammer horror itself."[3] Time Out wrote, "Fisher's last film is a disappointment."[4]

The film itself performed poorly at the box office.[1]But despite this, the film currently holds an average three star rating (6.3/10) on IMDb and has fared better with modern critics. It was released in certain markets with another Hammer film, Captain Kronos – Vampire Hunter.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Marcus Hearn & Alan Barnes, The Hammer Story: The Authorised History of Hammer Films, Titan Books, 2007 p 161
  2. ↑ Box office information for Terence Fisher films in France at Box office Story
  3. ↑ Hearn & Barnes 2007, p. 161.
  4. ↑ "Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell Review. Movie Reviews – Film – Time Out London". timeout.com. Retrieved 16 August 2012.
Sources

External links

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