The Curse of Frankenstein isn’t one of the great monster horror movies, even amongst the ones by Hammer Films, but I do appreciate taking a different turn of the classic story with Peter Cushing giving it his all to portraying a more unique version.
The Curse of Frankenstein
— Two-Disc Special Edition | Warner Archive Collection —
(1957)
Genre(s): Horror, Science Fiction, Fantasy
Warner Archive | NR – 83 min. – $21.99 | December 15, 2020
Date Published: 12/09/2020 | Author: The Movieman
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Warner Bros. Home Entertainment provided me with a free copy of the Blu-ray I reviewed in this Blog Post.
The opinions I share are my own.
THE MOVIE — 3½/5 |
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Plot Synopsis: Victor Frankenstein (PETER CUSHING) is a brilliant scientist willing to stop at nothing in his quest to reanimate a deceased body. After alienating his longtime friend and partner, Paul Krempe (ROBERT URQUHART), with his extreme methods, Frankenstein assembles a hideous creature (CHRISTOPHER LEE) out of dead body parts and succeeds in bringing it to life. But the monster is not as obedient or docile as Frankenstein expected, and it runs amok, resulting in murder and mayhem.
Quick Hit Review: The Curse of Frankenstein was Hammer Films debut into the gothic horror game that spawned several sequels and ushered in other classic monster horror films such as Dracula and The Mummy. As for the movie itself, it’s not exactly perfect as some of the dialogue is trite or repetitive (several times Robert Urquhart’s Paul reiterates his disapproval for what Frankenstein is doing), but there’s a fun, entertaining element to the film and a different way to tell the story, here Baron Victor Frankenstein is a downright sociopath than seen before. I also liked Peter Cushing’s portrayal of the character showing his path to madness (though Cushing pretty much is fantastic in any of the monster horror flicks and his numerous outings as Van Helsing). In addition, funny to see Christopher Lee in a dialogue-free role as The Creature. Not exactly a memorable performance, but the make-up, albeit a tad campy, was fun.
The film was directed by Hammer Films go-to guy, Terence Fisher who would go on to helm Horror of Dracula, The Revenge of Frankenstein (sequel to Curse), The Mummy, The Brides of Dracula and numerous other in the monster horror genre. |
SPECIAL FEATURES – 4/5 |
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This two-disc set is housed in a standard Blu-ray case. The second disc contains new featurettes. Disc One: Disc Two: The Resurrection Men: Hammer, Frankenstein and the Rebirth of the Horror Film (21:51) – Examines how Hammer Films injected the popularity of the horror genre beginning with The Curse of Frankenstein. Hideous Progeny: The Curse of Frankenstein and the English Gothic Tradition (22:49) looking the style and design behind the film. Torrents of Light: The Art of Jack Asher (15:14) is a profile on the cinematographer and how he lights his films. Diabolus in Musica: James Bernard and the Sound of Hammer Horror (17:05) on the scores composed by Bernard on the various films within the studio. Includes an interview with composer Christopher Drake (worked on various DC Animated features). Theatrical Trailer (2:19) |
VIDEO – 4½/5 |
| Warner Bros. Home Entertainment releases The Curse of Frankenstein onto Blu-ray which has been given a new 1080p high-definition transfer which was taken from a new 4K scan. You get two choices for the aspect ratios, the first is 1.85 and the other is 1.66 (an open matted 1.33 option is available on the special features disc). Whichever you choose, the picture looks quite good, detail is fairly nice though not as defined compared with other releases, however, the original film grain has thankfully been retained. However, colors are pretty vibrant and I didn’t really notice any apparent dust marks, scratches or other damage to the film elements. |
AUDIO – 4/5 |
| The movie comes with a DTS-HD Master Audio Mono track. As with many of these older, remastered films, you’re not going to get incredible depth though dialogue and James Bernard’s great score does come across with fine clarity with no discernible hissing or popping and the levels overall were well balanced. |
OVERALL – 4/5 |
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The Curse of Frankenstein isn’t one of the great monster horror movies, even amongst the ones by Hammer Films, but I do appreciate taking a different turn of the classic story with Peter Cushing giving it his all to portraying a more unique version of Frankenstein and the story as a whole was entertaining. This two-disc Blu-ray release from the Warner Archive Collection offers up solid transfers and a good selection of bonus material. |
Check out some more 1080p screen caps by going to page 2. Please note, these do contain spoilers.