I hesitate to say what I'm about to say because at face value it sounds ludicrous but it's true.....slowly, alot of Hammer films are getting as enjoyable to me as Universal. There I said it.
I watched this film the other night uninterrupted from start to finish and absolutely loved it. I'm now fairly certain if Cushing and Lee are within 50ft of each other awesome things will happen.
Once again (much like Universal) I found that this Hammer film had it's very own look and feel and I fell right into that. Lee's monster was fantastic. You can clearly see how he made his take on the monster unique, while almost paying a subtle homage to Karloff's. Watching Lee slowly but surely become obsessed with his work was just as fantastic as anything else I've seen him do.
Maybe I never got a chance to sit down and "plug in" with this one or maybe I just forgot how good it is. Either way it's definitely going to be in rotation for the next little while!
Hammer movies are awesome, period. Most of them anyway lol
I started watching Hammer films about a year ago....awesome movies in their own right.
To me, Hammer is Universal in color. I just love them both.
Quote from: Type3Toys on June 05, 2012, 08:49:45 PM
To me, Hammer is Universal in color. I just love them both.
Well said man.
Hammer films are true joys to watch - dig the ambience!
I've always held the Hammer Films in the same esteem as the Universal Pictures horror films.
Quote from: Count_Zirock on June 05, 2012, 10:00:10 PM
I've always held the Hammer Films in the same esteem as the Universal Pictures horror films.
I have, as well.
Hammer's main strength above all is their literacy. In their best movies, their characters speak intelligently, take things seriously, use science to combat monsters, and their hero/villains can suffer from Ahab-ian obsession/
"Curse of Frankenstein" is one of the best of these. I love it.
Matt
I'll take the "Brides of Dracula" as my favorite one. Great sets, the score, the color, and Peter Cushing, and the vampire girls of course. Did you ever notice how far down the in the credits David Peel was?
Funny, I just had surgery and was laid out for a couple of weeks. I spent a good chunk of my time revisiting my Hammer DVDs (especially the Dracula and Frankenstein series). I really love them all (even the weaker ones). Yep, they definitely are on a par with the Universal classics. Even enjoyed the recent entry, "Let Me In".
One thing I loved about Hammer's Frankenstein series, was it being about Baron Frankenstein, rather than the Monster. Cushing was easily the equal to Basil Rathbone, when it came to playing Sherlock Holmes.
Cushing's Baron Frankenstein is one of the most powerful characterizations in horror cinema, even cinema as a whole. He did superior work on every character he ever played, and there were many as we all know, but it was his take on the Baron that really endeared the man to me.
Echoing the same sentiments as others....Hammer films are excellent been a fan since I was a wee lad!! Still gotta compile a collection of these though, I only have the Dracula 4 Film Favorites and the Hammer Horror Series!
I love Hammer, especially the vampire films, and the Frankensteins are all good too, but I hve to say, i am not a fan of Cushing's Baron Frankenstein. I love Peter, but his mean spirited obsessive take on Frankenstein always left me cold. Give me Colin Clive anyday! I greatly prefer Clive's neurotic, fragile Henry.Just my opinion of course.
This and Evil are my favorite of the series. I love how Cushing just dominates the screen. Also this is my favorite version of the monster. In the long black coat, looking dead and wrecking the countryside.
Hammer did an admirable job of revisiting something classic and not just ruining it (as too often happens). I was just a bit too young to have caught their first efforts on the big screen. I think the Spook Theater cards were my little black & white hand-held intros! Finally seeing a decent transfer of Horror of Dracula was a revelation. Seeing the vampires in full chroma, licking their chops was way beyond Lugosi. It's all good though!
Quote from: mjaycox on June 06, 2012, 01:37:20 AM
Hammer's main strength above all is their literacy. In their best movies, their characters speak intelligently, take things seriously, use science to combat monsters, and their hero/villains can suffer from Ahab-ian obsession/
"Curse of Frankenstein" is one of the best of these. I love it.
Matt
Hammer brought some more comtemporary principles to the genre. By inserting more explicit elements and a touch of eroticism they have contributed to set the new standards.
Curse of Frankenstein is as you said, a perfect example.
HAMMER had some films I consider "THEIR PERFECT LOT". Later on, of course, they chose to compete with what other companies were doing. sacrificing what made them successful to begin with (in my opinion, of course). This brought in an influx of films that I thought were ridiculous and exploitative.
The films that I consider ''THE PERFECT" for Hammer Films consists of:
Curse of Frankenstein
Dracula (Horror of)
The Mummy (in my opinion the finest Mummy to ever be filmed by anyone. ever.)
The Hound of the Baskervilles (my first ever introduction to Holmes and Watson)
The Man Who Cheated Death
Revenge of Frankenstein
The Brides of Dracula (magnificent. Showing the protagonist or 'hero' can carry a picture just fine)
Dracula--Prince of Darkness
Curse of the Werewolf
Phantom of the opera
Paranoiac (Psycho rip---but good)
The Gorgon
The Reptile (absolutely magnificent)
The Plague of the Zombies
The Devil Rides Out
Frankenstein Must be Destroyed
(I also really liked Scars of Dracula---because Lee actually got to play Dracula in it and not someone totally devoid of the character's traits as in previous films)
I do enjoy other Hammer vehicles....but when you are getting into gratuitous soft core pronography just to get someone to watch your movie, you've lost what you originally had. They originally had Sex appeal with class, great story and cast, terrific soundtracks, rich colors and terrific art direction, etc..... and traded it in exchange for more concentration of boobies and booty, and a focus of making everything "Satanic". Because Satanism was all the rage in the 1970's for some reason,lol. Not trying to sound overly prudish---but has there ever really been a shortage of booby and booty flicks? ::) I think not,lol. Hammer equated to Gothic Horror in its hey day and threw it all away just to be "one of the guys" of the 70's. :angel:
I cannot tell you how many Amicus films I watched growing up, thinking they were Hammer pictures. They seem to have captured what Hammer pitched to the curb. Even though many of their films weren't period pieces at all. There will always be a demand for well done Horror films that arent overly gore filled (althoguh I do like some modern horror films with gore a plenty), and rely on atmosphere, great story, good casting, and plot. Amicus filled that niche when Hammer left it. Now---it appears--Hammer has gone back to its roots more or less with the re-makes of 'Let me In" and "The Woman in Black". God---I am long winded. :laugh: