Frankenstein Created Woman
Encyclopedia
Frankenstein Created Woman is a 1967 British Hammer Horror
film directed by Terence Fisher
. It stars Peter Cushing
as Baron Frankenstein
and Susan Denberg
as his new creation. It is the fourth film in Hammer's Frankenstein series.
Where Hammer's previous Frankenstein films were concerned with the physical aspects of the Baron's work, the interest here is in the metaphysical
dimensions of life, such as the question of the soul
, and its relationship to the body.
during its production in 1958, at a time when Roger Vadim
's Et Dieu créa la femme (And God Created Woman
) was successful. The film finally went into production at Bray Studios
on 4 July, 1966. It was Hammer's penultimate production there.
), assisted by Dr Hertz (Thorley Walters
) and Hans Werner (Robert Morris
), discovers a way of trapping the soul of a recently deceased person. Frankenstein believes he can transfer that soul into another recently deceased body to restore it to life.
Hans is the lover of Christina (Susan Denberg
), daughter of innkeeper Herr Kleve. Christina's entire left side is disfigured and partly paralysed. Young dandies Anton (Peter Blythe
), Johann (Derek Fowlds
) and Karl (Barry Warren
) frequent Kleve's inn where they taunt Christina and refuse to pay. Johann threatens to have his father revoke Kleve's license if he complains. The taunting angers Hans, who gets in a fight with the three of them and cuts Anton's face with a knife.
Eventually Kleve throws the dandies out for non-payment. They return in the night to steal wine from his inn. Kleve catches them and they beat him to death. Hans, the son of a murderer known for his short temper, is convicted and beheaded. Frankenstein gets hold of Hans' fresh body and traps his soul.
Christina drowns herself. The peasants bring her body to Dr Hertz to see if he can do anything. Frankenstein and Hertz transfer Hans' soul into her body. Over months of treatment they completely cure her physical deformities. The result is a physically healthy female with no memory. She keeps asking who she is. Frankenstein insists on telling her nothing but her name and keeping her in Hertz's house.
She kills Anton, Karl and Johann, driven mostly by the ghostly insistence of Hans. Frankenstein and Dr. Hertz become rather suspicious of her behavior surrounding the killings and take her to where Hans was executed. However, they believe she subconsciously retains her memories of her father's death rather than Hans. By the time they realize the truth, they find her already murdering Johann. Upon holding the severed head of Hans, she tells Christina she's avenged his death; though before either one can talk to her, she runs to the edge where there's a waterfall. Despite the doctor's pleas, Christina's made up her mind. She has no one left to live for and then drowns herself again.
atmosphere and revenge plot. Martin Scorsese
picked the movie as part of a 1987 National Film Theatre season of his favourite films, saying "If I single this one out it's because here they actually isolate the soul
... The implied metaphysics
are close to something sublime."
Hammer Film Productions
Hammer Film Productions is a film production company based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1934, the company is best known for a series of Gothic "Hammer Horror" films made from the mid-1950s until the 1970s. Hammer also produced science fiction, thrillers, film noir and comedies and in later...
film directed by Terence Fisher
Terence Fisher
Terence Fisher was a film director who worked for Hammer Films. He was born in Maida Vale, a district of London, England.Fisher was one of the most prominent horror directors of the second half of the 20th century...
. It stars Peter Cushing
Peter Cushing
Peter Wilton Cushing, OBE was an English actor, known for his many appearances in Hammer Films, in which he played the handsome but sinister scientist Baron Frankenstein and the vampire hunter Dr. Van Helsing, amongst many other roles, often appearing opposite Christopher Lee, and occasionally...
as Baron Frankenstein
Frankenstein
Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus is a novel about a failed experiment that produced a monster, written by Mary Shelley, with inserts of poems by Percy Bysshe Shelley. Shelley started writing the story when she was eighteen, and the novel was published when she was twenty-one. The first...
and Susan Denberg
Susan Denberg
Susan Denberg is the stage name of an Austrian model and actress, born Dietlinde Zechner...
as his new creation. It is the fourth film in Hammer's Frankenstein series.
Where Hammer's previous Frankenstein films were concerned with the physical aspects of the Baron's work, the interest here is in the metaphysical
Metaphysics
Metaphysics is a branch of philosophy concerned with explaining the fundamental nature of being and the world, although the term is not easily defined. Traditionally, metaphysics attempts to answer two basic questions in the broadest possible terms:...
dimensions of life, such as the question of the soul
Soul
A soul in certain spiritual, philosophical, and psychological traditions is the incorporeal essence of a person or living thing or object. Many philosophical and spiritual systems teach that humans have souls, and others teach that all living things and even inanimate objects have souls. The...
, and its relationship to the body.
Production
Frankenstein Created Woman was originally mooted as a follow-up to The Revenge of FrankensteinThe Revenge of Frankenstein
The Revenge of Frankenstein is a 1958 British horror film made by Hammer Film Productions. Directed by Terence Fisher, the film stars Peter Cushing, Francis Matthews, Michael Gwynn and Eunice Gayson....
during its production in 1958, at a time when Roger Vadim
Roger Vadim
Roger Vadim was a French screenwriter, director, and producer as well as a journalist, author and actor, who launched Brigitte Bardot's career in the film And God Created Woman.-Early life:...
's Et Dieu créa la femme (And God Created Woman
And God Created Woman (1956 film)
And God Created Woman is a French drama film directed by Roger Vadim and starring Brigitte Bardot. Though by no means her first film, it is widely recognized as the vehicle that launched Bardot into the public spotlight and immediately created her "sex kitten" persona, making her an overnight...
) was successful. The film finally went into production at Bray Studios
Bray Studios (UK)
Bray Studios is a film and television facility at Bray, near Windsor, Berkshire, England. The films Alien and The Rocky Horror Picture Show were shot there...
on 4 July, 1966. It was Hammer's penultimate production there.
Plot
Baron Frankenstein (Peter CushingPeter Cushing
Peter Wilton Cushing, OBE was an English actor, known for his many appearances in Hammer Films, in which he played the handsome but sinister scientist Baron Frankenstein and the vampire hunter Dr. Van Helsing, amongst many other roles, often appearing opposite Christopher Lee, and occasionally...
), assisted by Dr Hertz (Thorley Walters
Thorley Walters
Thorley Walters was an English character actor.He is probably best remembered for his comedy film roles such as in Two-Way Stretch and Carlton-Browne of the FO...
) and Hans Werner (Robert Morris
Robert Morris (actor)
Robert Morris is a British actor.His film credits include: Frankenstein Created Woman and Quatermass and the Pit....
), discovers a way of trapping the soul of a recently deceased person. Frankenstein believes he can transfer that soul into another recently deceased body to restore it to life.
Hans is the lover of Christina (Susan Denberg
Susan Denberg
Susan Denberg is the stage name of an Austrian model and actress, born Dietlinde Zechner...
), daughter of innkeeper Herr Kleve. Christina's entire left side is disfigured and partly paralysed. Young dandies Anton (Peter Blythe
Peter Blythe
Peter Blythe was a British character actor, best known as Samuel "Soapy Sam" Ballard on Rumpole of the Bailey.-Early life:...
), Johann (Derek Fowlds
Derek Fowlds
Derek Fowlds is an English actor, known for playing Bernard Woolley in popular British television comedies Yes, Minister and Yes, Prime Minister and Oscar Blaketon in the long-running ITV police drama Heartbeat....
) and Karl (Barry Warren
Barry Warren
Barry Warren is a British actor. As well as several stage and TV appearances, he played three major characters for Hammer Studios: Carl Ravna in The Kiss of the Vampire ; Don Manuel Rodriguez de Savilla in The Devil-Ship Pirates ; and Karl in Frankenstein Created Woman .-External links:...
) frequent Kleve's inn where they taunt Christina and refuse to pay. Johann threatens to have his father revoke Kleve's license if he complains. The taunting angers Hans, who gets in a fight with the three of them and cuts Anton's face with a knife.
Eventually Kleve throws the dandies out for non-payment. They return in the night to steal wine from his inn. Kleve catches them and they beat him to death. Hans, the son of a murderer known for his short temper, is convicted and beheaded. Frankenstein gets hold of Hans' fresh body and traps his soul.
Christina drowns herself. The peasants bring her body to Dr Hertz to see if he can do anything. Frankenstein and Hertz transfer Hans' soul into her body. Over months of treatment they completely cure her physical deformities. The result is a physically healthy female with no memory. She keeps asking who she is. Frankenstein insists on telling her nothing but her name and keeping her in Hertz's house.
She kills Anton, Karl and Johann, driven mostly by the ghostly insistence of Hans. Frankenstein and Dr. Hertz become rather suspicious of her behavior surrounding the killings and take her to where Hans was executed. However, they believe she subconsciously retains her memories of her father's death rather than Hans. By the time they realize the truth, they find her already murdering Johann. Upon holding the severed head of Hans, she tells Christina she's avenged his death; though before either one can talk to her, she runs to the edge where there's a waterfall. Despite the doctor's pleas, Christina's made up her mind. She has no one left to live for and then drowns herself again.
Critical reaction
Frankenstein Created Woman is one of the most critically acclaimed Hammer films, with some commentators appreciating its fairy taleFairy tale
A fairy tale is a type of short story that typically features such folkloric characters, such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, dwarves, giants or gnomes, and usually magic or enchantments. However, only a small number of the stories refer to fairies...
atmosphere and revenge plot. Martin Scorsese
Martin Scorsese
Martin Charles Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. In 1990 he founded The Film Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation, and in 2007 he founded the World Cinema Foundation...
picked the movie as part of a 1987 National Film Theatre season of his favourite films, saying "If I single this one out it's because here they actually isolate the soul
Soul
A soul in certain spiritual, philosophical, and psychological traditions is the incorporeal essence of a person or living thing or object. Many philosophical and spiritual systems teach that humans have souls, and others teach that all living things and even inanimate objects have souls. The...
... The implied metaphysics
Metaphysics
Metaphysics is a branch of philosophy concerned with explaining the fundamental nature of being and the world, although the term is not easily defined. Traditionally, metaphysics attempts to answer two basic questions in the broadest possible terms:...
are close to something sublime."
Cast
- Peter CushingPeter CushingPeter Wilton Cushing, OBE was an English actor, known for his many appearances in Hammer Films, in which he played the handsome but sinister scientist Baron Frankenstein and the vampire hunter Dr. Van Helsing, amongst many other roles, often appearing opposite Christopher Lee, and occasionally...
as Baron Victor Frankenstein - Susan DenbergSusan DenbergSusan Denberg is the stage name of an Austrian model and actress, born Dietlinde Zechner...
as Christina - Thorley WaltersThorley WaltersThorley Walters was an English character actor.He is probably best remembered for his comedy film roles such as in Two-Way Stretch and Carlton-Browne of the FO...
as Doctor Hertz - Robert MorrisRobert Morris (actor)Robert Morris is a British actor.His film credits include: Frankenstein Created Woman and Quatermass and the Pit....
as Hans - Peter BlythePeter BlythePeter Blythe was a British character actor, best known as Samuel "Soapy Sam" Ballard on Rumpole of the Bailey.-Early life:...
as Anton - Derek FowldsDerek FowldsDerek Fowlds is an English actor, known for playing Bernard Woolley in popular British television comedies Yes, Minister and Yes, Prime Minister and Oscar Blaketon in the long-running ITV police drama Heartbeat....
as Johann - Duncan LamontDuncan LamontDuncan William Ferguson Lamont was a British actor. Born in Lisbon, Portugal, but brought up in Scotland, he had a long and successful career in film and television, appearing in a variety of high-profile productions....
as The Prisoner - Barry WarrenBarry WarrenBarry Warren is a British actor. As well as several stage and TV appearances, he played three major characters for Hammer Studios: Carl Ravna in The Kiss of the Vampire ; Don Manuel Rodriguez de Savilla in The Devil-Ship Pirates ; and Karl in Frankenstein Created Woman .-External links:...
as Karl - Alan MacNaughtanAlan MacNaughtanAlan MacNaughtan was a Scottish actor, born in Bearsden, Dunbartonshire, Scotland. An experienced Old Vic, West End and Broadway actor, he became active in television and certain films between 1954 and 1999....
as Kleve - Peter MaddenPeter Madden (actor)Peter Madden was a British actor who was born in Kuala Lumpur in Malaya.Madden was a character actor who made several notable appearances in Hammer films...
as Chief of Police - Philip RayPhilip Ray-Selected filmography:* Head Office * The Perfect Crime * The Man Who Made Diamonds * Send for Paul Temple * Fame is the Spur * No Place for Jennifer * Derby Day * Before I Wake...
as Mayor - Ivan Beavis as Landlord
- Colin JeavonsColin JeavonsColin Jeavons is a Welsh television actor.-Career:Jeavons is best known as Inspector Lestrade in the Granada television serials The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, or the part of the undertaker, Shadrack, in the television situation comedy written by Keith Waterhouse and Willis Hall from...
as Priest - Bartlett Mullins as Bystander
- Alec MangoAlec MangoAlec Mango was an English actor. He is best known for portraying El Supremo in the 1951 Captain Horatio Hornblower R.N., he also appeared in South of Algiers , The Strange World of Planet X , The 7th Voyage of Sinbad , Danger Man , and Frankenstein Created Woman, .-Selected filmography:* They Who...
as Spokesman
External links
- Frankenstein Created Woman A review and analysis of the Hammer Studios film