The Mummy (1959) Starring: Peter Cushing, Yvonne Furneaux, and Christopher Lee Director: Terence Fisher Rating: Eight of Ten Stars
A Victorian archeology expedition unearths and carries off the treasures from the tomb of Egyptian princess Ananka, so the secret society devoted to protecting it pursues the members back to England. Here, the fanatics unleash her eternal protector, a mummy (Lee), onto the British countryside. Whether the expedition members are in manor houses or insane asylums, the mummy finds and kills them, until only John Banning (Cushing) remains. When the mummy confronts Banning, however, it becomes captivated with his wife (Furneaux), who bears a strinking resemblance to his long-dead mistress.
Hammer Films' revival of "The Mummy" in gorgeous color is one of the best films that production house was responsible for. Better than "Horror of Dracula", but not quite as good as "The Curse of Frankenstein," it is a suspenseful movie. Cushing is as good as ever, and Lee also turns in a good performance as Kharis, whether as the shambling mummy, or as the living man during the flashback to ancient Egypt. The entirety of the final confrontation between Banning and the mummy is movie-making excellence.
The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959) Starring: Peter Cushing, Andre Morell, Christopher Lee, and Marla Landi Director: Terence Fisher Rating: Eight of Ten Stars
Sherlock Holmes (Cushing) is retained to find the root of and bring to an end the curse that's been haunting the Baskervilles family for centuries before it claims the family's final male member, Sir Henry Baskervilles (Lee). With Dr. Watson (Morell) at this side, Holmes ventures onto the haunted moor to seperate fact from fiction and legend from the all-too-real killer who lurks there.
The Hammer Films adaptation of "The Hounds of the Baskervilles" is one of the best Sherlock Holmes movies ever made. Peter Cushing is excellent as Holmes, Morell is a fine Watson (and he is playing the part in a script that doesn't portray Watson as a bumbling idiot whose only reason for being around is for Holmes to made rude comments about--Watson is an intelligent, capable partner to Holmes here, just like he is in the Arthur Conan Doyle tales--and the rest of the cast is likewise perfect in their various parts.
This version may take some liberties with the novel here and there, but Cushing and Morell should definately be near the top of any list of "Great Homes & Watsons of the Movies." It's a must-see for fans of any of the stars or anyone who loves a well-done Sherlock Holmes adaptation. Lovers of director Terence Fisher's other films for Hammer (such as the Frankenstein series) will also definately want to check this one out.
Horror of Dracula (1958) Starring: Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee, Melissa Stribling, Michael Gough Director: Terence Fisher Rating: Eight of Ten Stars
"The Horror of Dracula" starts out looking like a straight adaptation of Bram Stoker's novel, but ten minutes in, the film takes a hard left when its revealed that Jonathan Harker has come to Castle Dracula not as a hapless victim but as an agent of vampire hunter Dr. Van Helsing and that Harker is fully aware of Dracula's true nature.
But it all works, because when Van Helsing appears on screen (played by the late, great Peter Cushing), we get a different interpretation of him than offered in Stoker's novel, and a different spin on vampirism as well. In the Hammer version, Dracula is devoted to spreading a cult of undeath that consists not only of vampires but of human minions who thirst for everlasting life and who are committed to turning the world into a cesspool of evil and corruption. Van Helsing is a man both of action and letters who is the center of a network of brave men and women who have dedicated themselves to eradicating this sinister evil, which, by the close of the 19th century, is viewed as so much superstitious poppycock.
As "Horror of Dracula" unfolds, Dracula claims Mina and Lucy as victims, mostly because he wants to take revenge against Harker and Van Helsing for being pains in his rear... but this vindictive streak becomes his downfall, as Van Helsing penetrates Dracula's lair and confronts him in one of the neatest climaxes of any of Hammer's Dracula films.
While Cushing's energetic, action-hero Van Helsing is a sharp departure from how the character comes across in Stoker's novel, the Dracula in this and subsequent films in what I designate as the "Van Helsing Papers" is truer to Stoker's portrayal of him than any other film version I've come across. He's not the incongruously eveningwear-sporting-but-decaying-castle-dwelling Bela Lugosi, nor is he the pathetic whiner that Gary Oldman portrayed in so so-very-inaccurately named "Bram Stoker's Dracula"... no, the Lee Dracula is a blood-thirsty monster who preys on the life and emotions of the living. He is a strange and alien fearsome outsider, just as Stoker wrote him.
It's over 50 years since "Horror of Dracula" was released, yet it's still a an exciting item to pop in the VCR or DVD player when you're looking for a chilling, adventuresome diversion.
The Abominable Snowman (aka The Abominable Snowman of the Himalayas) (1954) Starring: Peter Cushing, Forrest Tucker, and Maureen Connell Director: Val Guest Rating: Seven of Ten Stars
English botanist John Rollson (Cushing) joins an expedition led by American explorer Tom Friend (Tucker) to find proof of the existence of Yeti, the Abominable Snowmen of the title. Once the expedition is deep within the frozen wastes of the Himalyas, Rollson and his fellow explorers learn that they aren't hunting some subhuman primate, but are instead tracking what seems to be highly intelligent creatures with supernatural abilities. What's worse... the hunters eventually become the hunted.
"The Abominable Snowman" is an average thriller with great sets, great performances from all the featured actors, and a tense, suspenseful finale. Unfortunately, it moves a bit too slowly, but when it does get to the action or the drama, the pay-off is worth it.
The greatest weakness of the movie is the fact that it doesn't just wear its message on its sleeve, it shoves it down the viewers throat with a number of long speeches delivered in turn by Tucker and Cushing. Yes... man is a destroyer, and man is but a guest on this planet, and life is precious and nature is precious.... The viewer gets the message just from the way the various characters behave, and the way the Yeti behave. The speechifying gets dull after the first run-through, despite the fact that the lines are delivered with great skill and fervor by the actors.
Despite this flaw, I enjoyed the film for the great performances by its actors and the sets. The story also has a numer of chilling moments. In balance, it's worth seeing.
One of my favorite versions of monster-maker Victor Frankenstein is the one portrayed by Peter Cushing. Although Cushing appeared in a total of six Frankenstein movies from Hammer Films, it is the following four films--the ones I think of as "The Frankenstein Chronicles"--that are his best.
The Curse of Frankenstein (1957) Starring: Peter Cushing, Paul Urqhart, Christopher Lee, and Hazel Court Director: Terence Fisher Rating: Seven of Ten Stars
In this first movie in Hammer's Frankenstein cycle, scientific genius Victor Frankenstein embarks on his life-long quest to be the first human being to create life. He is initially aided and abetted by a fellow scientist, his boyhood tutor, but as Frankenstein turns to murder in order to ensure his success, the assistant turns against him. Soon, Frankenstein's cold-blooded schemes are spinning out of control, and all his evil is turned back upon him. The technical aspects of the film are top-notch, the acting by all the principals is excellent, and on every other level this is a fine horror film.
Although Christopher Lee is present as the creature Frankenstein creates, the real monster is Victor Frankenstein, a man who becomes consumed first by ambition, then arrogance, and eventually madness. Cushing's portrayal of Frankenstein, however, makes this monster personable and likableóthe viewer almost wishes at times that he succeeds in the end. This effect is further enhanced by the fact that the film actually provides a solid reason for why Victor Frankenstein is the way he is. (We have a character who grew up under the tualage of a morally questionable mentor, and who was undoubtedly scarred by the early death of his parents. In fact, although I think he was intended to be sympathetic character, Urqhart's Paul Krempe is as big a villain as Frankenstein, perhaps even bigger. Paul was supposed to be the older, wiser man, but he never instilled his young charge with proper morals... and he never really tried to stop him. He just stole his girlfriend!)
Revenge of Frankenstein (aka "I, Frankenstein") (1958) Starring: Peter Cushing and Francis Matthews Director: Terence Fisher Rating: Eight of Ten Stars
Although Baron Frankenstein seemed certain to pay for his sins against man and nature at the end of the first film, Hammer and director Fisher nonetheless managed to save him for an intelligently written and solidly directed sequel. Assuming a new identity and becoming the new head of a hospital for the poor, he builds a body for his crippled assistant from parts amputated from his patients. Unfortunately, body battles mind for supremacy and turns the newly ambulatory man into a shambling, murderous cannibal.
This is one of those rare sequels that is as good as the original. Cushing's Frankenstein is once again a likable character, showing himself to be the only man of medicine in a town who cares about the health of the poor... even if his concern is largely derived from a desire to keep a steady supply of raw materials available for his experiments.
Once again, Cushing is supported by a strong cast and a great script. If there's anything that dissapoints me about this this film, it's that Frankenstein didn't really get revenge on anyone. When I first heard that this film was a direct continuation of "Curse of Frankenstein," I thought the people who stood by and let him go to the guillotine would also return, but they are no where in this story. But, that's a quibble that doesn't make the actual movie any weaker.
Frankenstein Created Woman (1967) Starring: Peter Cushing, Susan Denberg, and Thorley Walters Director: Terence Fisher Rating: Nine of Ten Stars
"Frankenstein Created Woman" is one of the most unusual Hammer films. Although obstensibly a horror film, it is probably better described as a poetic mood piece steeped in gothic romanticism. As such, it ranks among most intelligent of all Frankenstein films.
The usual elements of a Frankenstein story are all but missing here, and the mad doctor isn't creating a terrible patchwork man, but instead a beautiful woman. What's more, he is endevours to inhabit the body with a soul. (It seems he is operating under the theory that previous efforts went awry because he was just dealing with brains, not souls.) The story is a quirky one, but it has all the elements of a great gothic tale--dark secrets, tragic love, and ultimate justice. The ending is also a curiously melancholy one.
While Cushing doesn't have as much screentime in this film as in other entries in the series--Frankenstein is more of a catalyst for the film's events than its focus--he gives a performance that is equal to the one in "Curse of Frankenstein." It may even be better than his original portrayal of the character, as something truly different is done with Victor Frankenstein in this film. While all the perfomances here are all superb, Cushing's more gentle portrayal of the fiendish doctor truly shines.
Frankenstein and the Monster From Hell (1974) Starring: Peter Cushing, Shane Briant, and Madeline Smith Director: Terence Fisher Rating: Six of Ten Stars
Victor Frankenstein has buried his old identity and taken control of an insane asylum that serves as a rich source of parts for his continuing experiments. With the help of a young medical student who has read Frankenstein's 20-year-old texts on his early efforts, Frankenstein creates a creature from parts of the asylum's most promising inmates. Unfortunately for the not-so-good doctor, he is once again saddled with a protoge who starts to suffer pangs of conscience when the lengths to which Frankenstein is willing to go becomes apparent. In the end, everything that can go wrong, does go wrong.
Once again, Cushing's Frankenstein comes across as likable, even kindhearted when contrasted with the officials in the insane asylum. However, any admirable qualities are quickly revealed as illusions when it becomes apparent that he no longer has within him even the slightest shred of human decency or even a genuine interest in scientific pursuits. For Frankenstein, the creation of his creature has become the means to its own end... he is through and through a heartless monster.
The dark, dank, cramped asylum where the story takes place serves as the perfect mirror of Frankenstein's spiritual state, and Cushing's intense and commanding performance of this man now totally lost in madness is spellbinding. Although Hammer Films was quickly dying as a production house, the final reunion for Cushing and Fisher, who together launched Hammer's gothic reign with "The Curse of Frankenstein" is a splendid and worthy end to an era in cinematic history.
