In order to take a break from today’s special effects heavy films, filled with blood and gore, I like to revisit some of the more classic horror films that shaped what the genre has become today. Always being a fan of the Universal monsters, I’ve naturally been interested in also viewing some of Hammer Films’ iterations of the famous monsters, Dracula, the Wolf-man, etc. I never did, however, get a chance to check any out… until now.
Much different than the Frankenstein’s monster tales I’ve become accustomed to, Frankenstein Created Woman is much less a monster movie than it is a revenge-driven slasher film. Christina Kleve (Susan Denberg) is a disfigured young woman who is constantly being harassed by the local men. After her lover, Hans (Robert Morris), is framed for the murder of her father and sent to be beheaded, she decides to take her own life. Through his experiments, Baron Victor Frankenstein (Peter Cushing) has come up with a way to capture and transfer a human’s soul, cheating death. It is through this means that Hans’ soul is now placed inside of Christina’s newly constructed ‘perfect body.’
The acting was fantastic throughout the entire production. It seems that bad acting has become part of so many horror films of today, but luckily when watching films from the Universal or Hammer eras, it is safe to say you will be treated to some of the best performances in horror history. Peter Cushing does a marvelous job as Dr. Frankenstein, a role which he had actually portrayed in a total of six films for Hammer studios. Susan Denberg handled the role of Christina quite masterfully, as well. From the shy, disfigured girl to the vengeful beauty, Denberg delivered in every scene.
If you are a fan of the classic monsters of yesteryear, like myself, you should definitely check this one out. While I have read that this may perhaps be the least exciting of the Hammer series, it is still worth at least one sit through.
Frankenstein Created Woman gets 2.5 guillotines out of 5.