Classic horror icon Peter Cushing is back in one
of his greatest roles, the legendary (although totally fictional) Baron
Victor Frankenstein. This was Hammer Films’ fifth of the series and
the directorial skills of Francis Fischer and performance of Cushing
ensured that it would be the best. In addition to Peter Cushing,
FRANKENSTEIN MUST BE DESTROYED includes a first rate genre cast
including the lovely Veronica Carlson (DRACULA HAS RISEN FROM THE GRAVE,
HORROR OF FRANKENSTEIN, THE GHOUL), Simon Ward (THE CHOSEN, THE MONSTER
CLUB, DOMINIQUE IS DEAD), and Thorley Walters (DRACULA: PRINCE OF
DARKNESS, THE EARTH DIES SCREAMING, THE VAMPIRE CIRCUS). In this entry
in the long running Hammer series, Freddie Jones (THE MAN WHO HAUNTED
HIMSELF, SATANIC RITES OF DRACULA, DUNE) portrays the tormented monster.
To capitalize on the classic monster craze brought upon us by the hype
surrounding the new VAN HELSING movie (that features Dracula, the
Wolfman, and Frankenstein), Warner Home Video have dug deep into their
catalog to unearth this gem for DVD release. The version of the film on
this DVD includes the rape scene which was censored upon its initial
release on these shores.
Frankenstein (Peter Cushing), to avoid detection,
moves to another town and assumes an alias. He now plots, with the aid
of a young couple, Dr. Holst (Simon Ward) and his fianceé Anne Spengler
(Veronica Carslon), who he blackmails for their help, to kidnap a
colleague, Dr. Brandt from an Asylum for the Mentally Ill. Dr. Brandt
who has performed experiments like Frankenstein's and has information
the Baron needs. Too bad that Dr. Brandt is stark raving mad. However,
Frankenstein believes he can cure the insanity through surgery. To
complicate matters, Brandt's heart is giving out and the body is not
suited to survive the surgical procedure. So Frankenstein kidnaps
another, Prof. Richter (Freddie Jones, the freak show promoter in The
Elephant Man), with Richter's body to be the recipient of Brandt's
brain.
Frankenstein is forced to flee town again after
his experiments are discovered. In a new town he signs into the boarding
house of Anna Spengler. When he discovers Anna's fiancee Karl Holst has
been stealing cocaine from the asylum where he works to help his ailing
mother, Frankenstein blackmails them both with threat of calling the
authorities. He takes over the boarding house and has Karl steal
supplies so that he can set up laboratory in the basement. He then
discovers that his old colleague Dr Brandt is incarcerated in the
asylum, having been deemed mad. Frankenstein wants the secrets of how
Brandt successfully conducted brain transplants and devises a scheme to
break him out with Karl’s help. But the attempt puts Brandt in a coma.
So Frankenstein makes the decision to transplant Brandt’s brain into
the body of the incompetent asylum head Professor Richter. During the
process he cures the problem that was causing Brandt's madness. However
when Brandt comes around, Frankenstein realizes that he really was mad
after all. Brandt then escapes, setting a trap to kill Frankenstein.
Warner Home Video presents FRANKENSTEIN MUST BE
DESTROYED in its original 1.85:1 ratio with 16x9 enhancement. The good
news is they have spent some money restoring the luster to this nearly
40 year old film, which looks almost new again! The image offers superb
depth and clarity. Colors are fully saturated, with the deep blacks
contrasting those wonderful Hammer period color schemes. The transfer
brings out the dark, gothic cinematography that a Hammer film offers.
Warner Home Video didn’t do much with the score, but the Dolby Digital
Mono 2.0 soundtrack gets the job done. It’s crystal clear with the
dialog taking center stage (after all FRANKENSTEIN MUST BE DESTROYED is
highly dialog driven). This is not motion picture with a lot of action
by any means and sound effects are not really needed. And James Horner’s
wonderful score in nicely integrated into the mix. Also included is a
French language soundtrack in mono. Extras are very slim as only a
trailer is included.
Two of the most notable elements of FRANKENSTEIN
MUST BE DESTROYED is the insertion of gore into the film, and the
complete deviousness of the Baron Frankenstein character, who by this
time had upstaged his creations and became the real monster.
FRANKENSTEIN MUST BE DESTROYED is without a doubt the best entry in the
film since the original CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN. And if you watch both
films back to back you would notice how drastically the character of
Baron Frankenstein has changed. Originally, Cushing played the Baron as
a scientific genius with a human touch, performing his research for the
benefit of medical science—quite different from his
"super-villain" status of today. You must credit Warner Home
Video for their treatment of FRANKENSTEIN MUST BE DESTROYED for not only
the masterful video presentation but also by restoring the film to it’s
original running time. The only downside to the DVD is the near-complete
lack of extras. Warner Home Video released this Hammer classic on DVD,
along with two others, TASTE THE BLOOD OF DRACULA and DRACULA HAS RISEN
FROM THE GRAVE.
FRANKENSTEIN
MUST BE DESTROYED is available from DVDEmpire.com
DRACULA
HAS RISEN FROM THE GRAVE is available from DVDEmpire.com
TASTE
THE BLOOD OF DRACULA is available from DVDEmpire.com
