Frankenstein Created Woman (1967)

The Bride of Hammer's Frankenstein, 19 May 2006

This entry in Hammer's Frankenstein series finds Baron Frankenstein (Peter Cushing) continuing his experiments with the help of Dr. Hertz and his servant, Hans. The Baron is working on capturing a soul and placing it in another body. When Hans is accused of killing his girlfriend's father and put to death, the Baron has the chance to put part of his theories to the test by capturing Hans' soul. As chance would have it, Hans' girlfriend, Christina, commits suicide providing Baron Frankenstein a body for Hans' soul. While it seems the Baron has finally succeeded, his new creation, a combination of the wrongly accused Hans and grief-stricken Christina, is actually plotting and carrying out a series of revenge killings against those responsible for her father's death.

The differences between Frankenstein Created Woman and the other entries in the series should be quite obvious to anyone familiar with Hammer. The most obvious is the Baron's creation. Unlike the other films where Baron Frankenstein succeeds in creating a monster, here he has created a being capable of moving undetected throughout society. She's a beautiful woman adept at using her charms to help her ensnare her would be victims. She's bright, cunning, and deadly. It's quite the lethal combination.

Peter Cushing was never better. Cushing is such a pleasure to watch in most anything he did. He's a whirlwind of energy and never dull. In Frankenstein Created Woman, he's given more of an opportunity to show the human side of the Baron. He's allowed to actually be funny and show a sympathetic nature toward his creation. Yet he's completely focused and believable in the pursuit of his goals. Some of my favorite moments in the film involve the Baron's quips directed toward the rather addle minded Dr. Hertz. Thorley Walters couldn't be better as Dr. Hertz. He makes a perfect target for Frankenstein's barbs. The pair are a lot of fun to watch. Susan Denberg is more than adequate as the Baron's creation. It's a shame that she appears to have "burned out" so early in her career. She may not have been the greatest actress of all time, but I would have enjoyed the opportunity to see her in other films.

7/10