
A dead and frozen Baron Frankenstein is re-animated by his colleague Dr. Hertz proving to him that the soul does not leave the body on the instant of death. His lab assistant, young Hans, is found guilty of murdering the local pub owner with whom he had an argument where he foolishly swore to kill the man and Frankenstein acquires his body immediately after the execution. Hans had been quite friendly with the dead man's daughter Christina who returns just in time to see him g... (Full plot summary below)
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A dead and frozen Baron Frankenstein is re-animated by his colleague Dr. Hertz proving to him that the soul does not leave the body on the instant of death. His lab assistant, young Hans, is found guilty of murdering the local pub owner with whom he had an argument where he foolishly swore to kill the man and Frankenstein acquires his body immediately after the execution. Hans had been quite friendly with the dead man's daughter Christina who returns just in time to see him guillotined. Distraught, she commits suicide and is brought back to life by the good Doctor but with Hans' brain replacing her own. As memories return to her - Hans' memories in fact - she sets out to pursue and kill those responsible for having sent him to his death.
Leave your thoughts about Frankenstein Created Woman.
| ESplatterLucius GoreThe same year as Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band and the Summer of Love, Hammer Studios decided to make a great Cushing Frankenstein film. |
| Antagony & EcstasyTim BraytonEven by the standards of the Hammer Gothic aesthetic, this movie has some very loopy notions upon which its plot hangs - yet it never comes anywhere remotely near camp or melodrama. |
| Ozus' World Movie ReviewsDennis SchwartzA disgusting but intriguing script by Anthony Hinds makes for a preposterous but intriguing horror pic. |
| User ReviewDavid LMy favorite of the series, Hammer's fourth Frankenstein entry is an offbeat, fascinating gothic masterpiece. The film ingeniously opens up with the guillotine execution of a drunken murderer (played with hardy relish by Hammer vet Duncan Lamont), unintentionally witnessed by his young boy, Hans. Years later, Hans (Robert Morris) is employed by the half-witted Dr. Hertz (Thorley Walters) who has taken in the ardent Baron Frankenstein ( Peter Cushing). Forgetting Freddie Francis' Evil Of Frankenstein, a so-so homage to Universal, Fisher picks up the series where he left off and firmly relates that the Baron is really the monster (the character is here introduced as being brought back to life through his own body-freezing experiment). At the local tavern, Hans gets into a fierce brawl with a trio of spoiled, arrogant aristocrats (Peter Blythe, Barry Warren, Derek Fowlds) after they insult the twisted and deformed Christina (Susan Denberg). Later that night after Hans consummates his love for Christina, the three delinquents break into the tavern and kill Christina's father, the landlord. Since he refuses to tell where he was during the murderous event, Hans is brought to trial, accused of murder and guillotined like his dad. Christina witnesses this and immediately commits suicide by drowning herself. In the meantime, the brilliant Baron has contrived a way to capture the human soul ("Bodies are easy to come by, souls are not," proclaims Frankenstein). He gets a hold of Hans' body, captures his soul, and transfers it into the wretchedly salvaged corpse of Christina. Luckily, the Baron is also a pioneer in cosmetic surgery, and under the faithful hands of Dr. Hertz (the Baron's hands are burned) is able to transform Christina into a beautiful blond bombshell. As she now harbors the vengeful soul of Hans, Christina is able to use her seductive charm to kill the ones responsible for her father's and Hans' deaths. Not for all tastes, I personally love this movie think it gets better with repeated viewings. It's totally unconventional as far as "Frankenstein" films go, and it takes a director like Fisher, an actor like Cushing and a screenwriter like Anthony Hinds to make it succeed on every level. Hind's script wastes no opportunity at overlapping a number of morbid sequences (two executions, a murder, a suicide, and the Baron's unworldly experiments) to lead up to the third act, which involves Christina's revenge on the three antagonists. Add other bizarre circumstances such as Christina carting around Hans' severed head as inspiration for vengeance, and later conversing to herself in his voice, and you have a satisfying horror tale to say the least. Fisher was always quoted as saying that Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed was his favorite film because of the "love story" aspect of it, but Frankenstein Created Woman is arguably his most romance-driven effort. The relationship between Hans and Christina is what brings the story to the predicament that it's in, and Christina's unexpected discovery of her lover's beheading, followed by her own suicide, is one of the director's most powerful scenes. Although he's given less to do here then in the other Frankenstein films, Cushing is awesome to watch in every motion and every shred of dialogue. He's kinder than usual this time, even displaying moments of concern for the young leads when their lives are at stake, but Cushing plays him cold, chauvinistic and determined, giving the impression that any warmth he expresses is only to boost his personal goals (such as in the closing moments of the film). His refusal to accommodate the newly revived, confused Christina's request for a mirror is a brilliantly subdued example of his true character. Although Polish-born Susan Denberg only had several other acting assignments (including the "I Mudd" episode of Star Trek and the Stuart Whitman vehicle, An American Dream) and got the job because of her spread in Playboy (often the only requirement to star in a Hammer Horror), she excels in the role. Even though another actress dubbed her voice, she convincingly changes from innocent, suicidal ugly duckling to confused, suicidal and possessed beauty. But the performances are great all around; from Robert Morris' gentle yet easily enraged Hans to Thorley Walter's intoxicated, bumbling Dr. Hertz, whose fatherly kinship with Christina presents some of the film's most touching moments. A great film and worth checking out for first time viewers and well worth another look for those who have seen it |
| User ReviewStella DI just watched this for the umpteenth time. It may have its flaws but I was raised on a steady diet of movies from Hammer Films. |
| User ReviewMichael KProbably my favorite Hammer horror movie of all time. Susan Denberg is HAWT! |
| User ReviewConor FA masterpeice. Favourite line: "look after that head!" Priceless. Extremely witty, nicely shot, has another brilliant perfeomance by Cushing and is thought provoking. What more could you want. |
| User ReviewDavid PI just watched this for the umpteenth time. It may have its flaws but I was raised on a steady diet of movies from Hammer Films. |
| User ReviewRyan VAn offbeat, intriguing entry in the series. The Baron plays around with brains, bodies, and even souls in this go-round. While in earlier films he was eccentric and occasionally evil, he is absolutely reveling in depravity in later films like this. |
| User ReviewL JA Terence Fisher film is always worth a look. The Baron still has his trademark chilliness, but isn't the centre of the movie (though Cushing still manages to dominate very scene he's in). All in all a very interesting, sharp little film, Fisher's directorial instinct doesn't fail him; though the film does start to flag a little after the 'creation' where the inevitability of the plot takes over. Still, more than simply a 'worthy effort' |