MOVIE: The Evil Of Frankenstein (1964)

After being hounded out of his home by local villagers after his experiments with a newly laid-out corpse, Baron Frankenstein (Peter Cushing) goes back to his ancestral home in the hope of continuing his work. Here, he finds that the Frankenstein name is still mud as far as the locals are concerned, but undeterred he carries on...

Always the unloved runt of Cushing's Frankenstein outings, time has been relatively kind to The Evil Of Frankenstein. Whilst not in the top division of the studio's output, it respectfully stands tall in the second tier, a fascinating one-off fusion of Hammer's then radical overhaul of the Gothic film and Universal's approach from their golden age horror cycle. The collaboration between the two results in the only Hammer birthed creature to bear any resemblance to Jack Pierce's make up for Boris Karloff. Sadly, one of the unfortunate side effects of the hi-def treatment is that it shows up more than ever the inadequacies of the monster design. Designer Roy Ashton was under considerable pressure and working against the clock as the producers struggled to choose a design for the creature's face, and in this edition it shows more than ever, like a crude papier-mache mask and certainly not up to Ashton's usual standards. The film looks and feels stylistically different too. The previous writer/director team of Jimmy Sangster and Terence Fisher is here replaced by producer Anthony Hinds (under his nom-de-plume of John Elder) and Freddie Francis, making his first Gothic-horror for Hammer following a couple of psychological thrillers. 

Then there is the rewrite of the series back-story. Whilst 1958's The Revenge Of Frankenstein picked up nicely where 1956's The Curse Of Frankenstein had left off, this installment starts from scratch with an entirely new past being created for the Baron. Here, we are told that an earlier attempt at making a creature simply led to him being banished from his village, rather than sent to the gallows. This allows the creature to be rediscovered, preserved in ice! Playing the creature, New Zealand born wrestler Kiwi Kingston does pretty much what is expected of him, generally lumbering around and causing mayhem, albeit without the pathos of other creations in the canon.

Make-up and continuity aside, there is still plenty to enjoy. The Evil Of Frankenstein hasn't been given the kind of makeover afforded The Curse Of Frankenstein, but it's a nice enough transfer considering the unrestored source material. Especially striking is the machinery used to bring the creature to life, which gives more than a nod to Kenneth Strickfaden's crackling generators of Universal's 1931 classic. If the film is ultimately a failure in some ways, it's always an interesting one. After all, as one of Britain's greatest ever cinematographers, did Freddie Francis ever direct a film that wasn't pleasing to look at?

In short, if you separate The Evil Of Frankenstein from the Fisher-directed entries in Hammer's catalogue and treat it as a stand-alone film, what you are left with is a very enjoyable 84 minutes. Peter Cushing was always pretty much brilliant whatever he was in, and he certainly helps to bring this one up a notch or two. Meanwhile, Cushing and Terence Fisher would get things back on track in 1967's Frankenstein Created Woman

Blu-Ray Notes: The UK BD release from Final Cut Entertainment adds trailer, photo gallery and a very good 30 minute making-of documentary. As mentioned before, the source hasn't been given a full-blown restoration, but it's quite a nice transfer considering. The aspect ratio will doubtless cause controversy (is there a vintage Hammer BD release which hasn't?). It isn't in the original European projection ratio, but is formatted to match the film's original US release. It would have been nice to include the extra footage inserted for the US TV version as an extra (available over on YouTube!), but other than that it's a nice package overall.



UK 1964 - Hammer/Universal

84 Minutes

Certificate - X (following cuts, original UK release); 12 (uncut, for this release!)

Blu-Ray: Final Cut Entertainment (UK) (previous DVD from Showbox Entertainment)

Original UK trailer:

MOVIE: Spider Baby (1964 - released 1968)

Image from Wikipedia

I go for years without seeing a Jack Hill movie, then two turn up within a week or so. Following his 1974 black-cinema classic Foxy Brown, here's a more macabre work from ten years earlier.

It's a heartwarming story, this one. A family chauffeur named Bruno (horror legend Lon Chaney Jr, in his declining years) makes a promise to his dying employer (one Mr. Merrye) that he will care for his three children after his death. This he does, protecting them from the outside world. The trouble is, these are no ordinary children. They are grown adults suffering from a family condition which causes their mental age to regress as they get older, the result (we are told) of inbreeding. They are also psychotic.

Ralph (Sid Haig) is immature but lascivious, travelling through the house using the dumb waiter. Elizabeth (Beverly Washburn) is seemingly the least maladjusted, but malevolent nonetheless. However, it's Virginia (Jill Banner) who proves to be the Spider Baby of the title, her obsession with the creatures extending to stalking and eating them, whilst she also enjoys entrapping her human victims in a web made of string.

Things kick off when Bruno heads out to town on an errand, and in his absence Virginia picks off an unsuspecting postman (veteran comedy actor Manton Moreland in a small role). He's arrived to deliver a letter informing the family that two distant cousins are laying claim to a share of the family estate: Emily (Carol Ohmart) and Peter (Quinn Rodeker). They arrive, accompanied by their lawyer and his assistant. Naturally, the Merrye siblings are not pleased by their presence, and set about dealing with them...

Throw into the mix a dead father still lying in his bed, and some even further degenerated relatives lurking in the basement (where else?), and Spider Baby is a bonkers treat if you like this sort of thing. It's the kind of film where some unfortunate actress manages to end up being chased through the house and grounds in her undies and a borrowed negligee, but by this point I was laughing too hard to care how it got to this stage.

Everyone involved seems to be having a hoot making this thing. Your level of enjoyment watching Spider Baby will depend on your level of intoxication. I'd suggest a glass of wine or a bottle of Boondoggle before starting, then continue drinking for the duration.

NOTES ON THE BLU-RAY: The UK Blu-Ray from Arrow Films (released June 2013) is quite a revelation. The slightly blurry image of previous releases has been upgraded to a fantastic high-definition master. I really was amazed that a film shot on a tiny budget in twelve days could look this good, with film grain fully present and details in the backgrounds very sharp. There is the odd shot where things take a turn for the worse, but this is probably the result of optical zooming on the frame when making the original cut and doesn't spoil the presentation as a whole.

The sound is not quite as good, with background noise rising and falling on the exterior scenes, and a slight harshness throughout, but considering the source material it's crisp enough. 

The Extras are fascinating: 
* Commentary by Jack Hill & Sid Haig.
* A featurette in which Jack Hill revisits the house where the film was made.
* The Hatching Of Spider Baby - Cast, Director, and fan of the film Joe Dante talk about the making of the film.
* Featurette on film composer Ronald Stein
* Alternate opening and an extended scene
* The Host (1960) - Jack Hill's 30 minute student film
* Cast and Crew panel discussion
* Trailer and Gallery



US 1964 (released 1968) - American General Pictures

Also known as: The Liver Eaters, Cannibal Orgy.

86 Minutes

Certificate 15 (UK)

Blu-Ray/DVD: Arrow Films (UK), Dark Sky Films (US)