Frankenstein Created Woman (1967)

"From flesh and innocence... Frankenstein has created the ultimate in evil - a beautiful woman with the soul of the Devil!"

Plot

Baron Frankenstein claims to have the knowledge to implant the soul of a dead person into another body. He just needs the right opportunity to prove it. This comes when Hans, Frankenstein's lab assistant, is wrongly convicted of the murder of a tavern owner and sent to the guillotine as a result. He was spending the night with the tavern owner's disfigured daughter, Christina, and instead of bringing shame upon her, he chose to face death. Upon seeing him executed, Christina throws herself into the river and commits suicide. Frankenstein acquires the two bodies and transplants Hans' soul into Christina's body. When she finally comes to, she only has one thing on her mind - revenge on those who really did kill the tavern owner.

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The fourth of the Hammer Frankenstein films, Frankenstein Created Woman is a return to form for the franchise after the mid-series disaster that was The Evil of Frankenstein. Hammer twiddled with the formula, tried to tie that film more closely in with the 1932 Universal Frankenstein and ended up with a disappointing sequel which alienated a lot of people. So long-time Hammer director Terence Fisher was brought back on board to steer the series back in the right direction. He does an admirable job even if the results aren't there with the best of the series. Frankenstein Created Woman doesn't really fit into the series' lore and acts almost as a soft reboot, giving Fisher some freedom to rebuild how he saw fit. Martin Scorsese names this as one of his favourite films so Fisher must have done something right!

The most conceptually challenging of the sequels, Frankenstein Created Woman borders on science fiction for a lot of its running time, tempting the audience with questions about identity, sexuality and gender fluidity. Alas it never really delves too far into these issues, instead opting for the easier route. It also spends too little time in creating a confusing character once Hans' soul is transported into Christina's body. There were possibilities to examine the obvious gender confusion that would arise from dying as a man and waking up as a woman. But all the film does is to allow Hans/Christina the chance to get even with the real killers. It's an opportunity to turn the film into something a little more challenging to the viewer but one which goes begging as the formulaic Frankenstein story rears it's ugly head and the 'monster' does what it's supposed to do by breaking free from Frankenstein's control. Even then this part of the story is confined to the final third.

Instead, Frankenstein Created Woman serves itself up more of some tragic Shakespearian romantic story between the two ultimately doomed young lovers, with their fate out of their own hands. The inversion between the usual "ugly on the outside, innocent on the inside" monster and the "ugly on the inside, beautiful on the outside" Christina makes for a serviceable change in approach to Mary Shelley's classic story. Frankenstein manages to obtain a whole body (and thus one can argue that he doesn't actually 'create' anything here) rather than build something from scratch. There's plenty of talk about trapping the soul after death and the moral implications that such a discovery would herald but the film only skirts around these issues - it's not that deep of a screenplay despite its appearance. Frankenstein Created Woman doesn't need fancy make-up effects this time, with less blood and gore on show than usual. That's not to say there isn't any blood - it is a revenge film after all and the trio of troublemakers get what's coming to them in traditional slasher style.

The Baron is reduced to a supporting role for the majority of the film and it's a tad disappointing because it means you'll see a lot less of the series' shining light, Peter Cushing. Like the rest of the Frankenstein films, Cushing is at his best when he's talking down to people he finds inferior, which is pretty much everyone else. A rude and arrogant character, there's a natural charisma to the performance which allows the audience to smile with him when he's cutting down counterparts with a verbal barrage. He doesn't murder anyone himself in this one and is more restrained in his evil shenanigans as he leaves all of the bloody carnage to Christina, beautifully played by Susan Denberg. You'll never buy the fact that she's an 'ugly' cripple at the start of the film and save for a limp and facial scar, she's pretty hot to begin with. But once she's back from the dead, she turns into a drop-dead gorgeous femme fatale mode.

As a prelude to some of the rape revenge films of the 70s such as I Spit On Your Grave, she uses her newfound attributes to seek revenge on the trio of men responsible for her father's death. They're all portrayed a little too cartoony and the script goes to extra lengths to make them unlikable and irritating from the get-go, with the trio turning into some of Hammer's most detestable characters. It's Thorley Walters as Frankenstein's assistant who steals the show here. Walters was an amazing character actor, usually playing bumbling or comedic roles during his time spent in the horror genre. His role here is more fatherly and the dynamic between him and Cushing is excellent.

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Final Verdict

Frankenstein Created Woman is good, not great, Hammer horror. One can't help wondering that with a little work here and there to flesh out the challenging concepts suggested by the plot, Frankenstein Created Woman could have been a lot better than it actually is. Still, Cushing is always worth a watch.

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Frankenstein Created Woman Director(s): Terence Fisher Writer(s): Anthony Hinds (original screenplay) Actor(s): Peter Cushing, Susan Denberg, Thorley Walters, Robert Morris, Duncan Lamont, Peter Blythe, Barry Warren, Derek Fowlds Duration: 86 mins