6.9 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.5 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
A tormented girl (Susan Denberg) drowns herself after her lover is framed for her father s murder and guillotined. Baron Frankenstein (Peter Cushing), experimenting with the transfer of souls, places her lover s soul into her body, bringing Christina back to life. With no memories of her past life, she becomes driven by a ghostly revenge and carries out a violent retribution on those responsible for both deaths.
Starring: Peter Cushing, Susan Denberg, Thorley Walters, Duncan Lamont, Barry WarrenHorror | 100% |
Sci-Fi | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.67:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono
German: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono
German
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region B (A, C untested)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 4.0 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
As is discussed in one of the supplements included on this disc, Hammer had a tendency to almost stumble into some of its most successful films, and maybe arguably even into some of its most successful franchises. While a joke made by Hammer executives after the release of Roger Vadim’s ...And God Created Woman ultimately led to the film currently under review, it’s perhaps a “meta” joke itself that the Vadim film appeared just a few months before Hammer’s first foray into “mad doctors and their monsters” territory with The Curse of Frankenstein. Two sequels then appeared, with 1958’s The Revenge of Frankenstein (available in Hammer Films Double Feature: The Revenge of Frankenstein / The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb in what looks like a less than spectacular transfer) is thought by at least some fans as topping its progenitor. Unfortunately, that upward trajectory encountered a pretty significant stumbling block with the third film in the series, The Evil of Frankenstein, a perceived failure which the long and interesting background documentary included on this disc actually lays at the feet of Freddie Francis, who took over directing duties on this outing from Terence Fisher, who had helmed the first two Frankenstein opuses. That said, it's probably salient to note that there was a more or less six year gap between the second and third films, which may have added to a feeling of entropy. Fisher was back (“with a vengeance”, as the documentary avers) for Frankenstein Created Woman, a film which seems to have a rather interestingly bifurcated reputation among both Hammer fans in particular and horror film lovers in general.
Frankenstein Created Woman is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Anolis Entertainment with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.67:1. Frankenstein Created Woman has had a number of previous releases on Blu-ray, including this pretty shoddy looking effort from Millenium Media, and this much better looking release from Shout! Factory. The good news is for all intents and purposes this Anolis release is extremely similar if not downright identical to the Shout! Factory release, though the Shout! version looks just a tad darker and slightly more purplish to my eyes (in that regard, I found the color timing and brightness of this version at least as good as, if not better, than the Shout! version). While there are a few passing issues with clarity and grain resolution, especially in some opticals, for the most part this is a really engagingly organic looking presentation that also offers a rather sumptuous accounting of the often lurid palette. In that regard, reds pop especially well and help to provide a little of that traditional Hammer ambience. There are still a few of the very minor signs of age related wear and tear that Brian mentions in his review of the Shout! version, but overall this is a beautiful looking transfer of an often surprisingly scenic film.
Frankenstein Created Woman features DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono tracks in either German or English (with optional German subtitles). The track has a somewhat boxy sound that is probably most evident in some of the more bombastic score cues, but overall both dialogue and effects reverberate with quite a bit of force and no real issues in terms of distortion, dropouts or other damage. While I spent most of time on the English language track, I did toggle back and forth quite a bit and I noticed no discernable difference in the overall mixes other than the obvious language differences.
- 60 seconds (HD; 1:01) also includes The Mummy's Shroud (in black and white)
- 30 seconds (HD; 00:21) also includes The Mummy's Shroud (in black and white)
- 60 seconds (HD; 00:55) also includes The Mummy's Shroud and plays to key art.
- 30 seconds (HD; 00:26) also includes The Mummy's Shroud and plays to key art.
- 20 seconds (HD; 00:18) also includes The Mummy's Shroud and plays to key art.
One of the more heartbreaking comments I uncovered in my decades long research into what actually happened to Golden Era actress Frances Farmer was a question Farmer posed to a priest when she was considering converting to Catholicism. She asked the Father where her soul went when she was undergoing electroconvulsive shock therapy (ECT), and he was evidently unable to give an "authoritative" answer, other than that it must not have gone very far, since it was still part and parcel of her being. That same sort of metaphysical questioning gives this particular entry in Hammer's Frankenstein series a kind of melancholic aspect that isn't always as much on display in some of its "siblings". You'll note that my score for the film is a bit higher than Brian's was in his reviews of the two Blu-rays released for the North American market (links above), so for a somewhat opposing opinion, I recommend checking out the entirety of Brian's reviews. Technical merits are solid, the supplementary content and packaging are both excellent, and Frankenstein Created Woman comes Recommended.
Frankenstein schuf ein Weib - Hammer Edition Nr. 30 | inkl. Postkarte
1967
Frankenstein schuf ein Weib | Mediabook Cover C | Limited Edition - Hammer Edition Nr. 30 | inkl. Postkarte
1967
Frankenstein schuf ein Weib Mediabook - Cover B - Limited Edition - Hammer Edition Nr. 30 | inkl. Postkarte
1967
(Still not reliable for this title)
Frankenstein and the Monster From Hell | Hammer Edition 12 | Limited Edition
1974
The Evil of Frankenstein
1964
Frankenstein muss sterben | Cover C | Hammer Edition #41
1969
Frankensteins Rache
1958
Blut für Dracula
1966
Frankensteins Fluch / Hammer Film Mediabook / Cover A
1957
Die Braut des Teufels | Hammer Edition Nr. 28
1968
Dracula Jagt Mini-Mädchen | Limited Edition Mediabook
1972
Horror of Dracula / Restaurierte Fassung
1958
Frankensteins Schrecken
1970
2019
Ghostland
2018
2015
Wie schmeckt das Blut von Dracula | Limited Edition Mediabook Cover A
1970
Dracula – Nächte des Entsetzens
1970
Das Schwarze Reptil
1966
Der Unsichtbare
1933
Die Folterkammer des Hexenjägers
1963
XX... Unbekannt | Hammer Edition Nr. 35
1956
Inclusive 3D version / Die Rache des Ungeheuers
1955