Background"The Curse of Frankenstein" is a British horror movie released in 1957. The traditional film was directed by Terence Fisher and produced by Hammer Film Productions. The screenplay was composed by Jimmy Sangster and was loosely based on Mary Shelley's 1818 novel "Frankenstein". The movie, known for kickstarting the Hammer Horror series, stars Peter Cushing as Baron Victor Frankenstein and Christopher Lee as the animal.
Plot SummaryThe film begins with Victor Frankenstein telling his story from his jail cell; he is awaiting execution for murder. As a kid, Victor's mom passed away, leaving him a wealthy baron. He worked with a tutor, Paul Krempe, and ended up going into partnership with him to learn the trick of life and death. Together, they successfully reanimate a dead puppy, leading Victor to go for a higher project-- creating a fully-grown male.
The Creature's Creation and LifeVictor sends for a criminal to be his specimen, but when the lawbreaker's body shows up mutilated, they utilize the brain of a scholastic, Professor Bernstein. The transplant of the brain succeeds, and a creature, played by Christopher Lee, is born. However, the creature is not the perfect specimen Victor at first hoped for and turns violent. Despite Paul's pleas to ruin it, Victor refuses. The animal escapes, leading to a series of disturbing occasions, consisting of the murder of a blind man and his grandson.
Victor's DescentVictor's romantic life includes another layer to the plot. Regardless of being engaged to Elizabeth, the cousin who he was raised with, he starts an affair with his housemaid, Justine, who later on exposes she is pregnant with his child. To ensure his engagement to Elizabeth isn't compromised, Victor heartlessly feeds Justine to the animal. Meanwhile, the creature has actually been regained, however throughout an argument with Paul, Victor shoots it.
The ClimaxVictor and Elizabeth get married, however on the wedding night, the creature, unaffected by the bullets, escapes and assaults Elizabeth. Paul eliminates it by setting it on fire, but when he tries to tell the authorities, they don't believe him. As far as they're concerned, the creature is Victor's victim, and Victor, deserted by Paul, is left alone to face the effects.
EndingVictor's tale ends, and we go back to him in his prison cell, from where he had actually been telling. With the creature's body destroyed and no evidence to support his story, Victor is required to the guillotine, his protestations dismissed as the ravings of a lunatic. The film closes on a chilling note as we see the cell door swing shut, signifying Victor's impending doom.
Tradition"The Curse of Frankenstein" is well-regarded for deviating from Shelley's original text and the Universal scary movies of the 1930s by concentrating on the character of Victor Frankenstein and his obsession with playing God. The film went on to have several follows up and is credited with renewing the horror category in the late 1950s.
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