Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - Captain Kronos, Vampire Hunter

Starring Horst Janson, John Carson, Caroline Munro and John Cater

Written and directed by Brian Clemens

Let's end Horrorfest 2020 on a mostly high note with the energetic horror adventure CAPTAIN KRONOS, VAMPIRE HUNTER, starring square-jawed Horst Janson as Captain Kronos himself, a former military captain who wanders 17th century Europe, picking up work as a professional vampire hunter. He is a master swordsman, carries a samurai sword and even has a hunchback sidekick/mentor who joins him on his adventures.

A village doctor calls for Kronos' help when young girls in the village start aging unnaturally rapidly. Clearly the work of vampires, right? Why not! So, it's Kronos to save the day.

The movie has lots of exciting sword fights, little vignettes where Kronos saves women from being executed and beats up jerks in a tavern. There's even a good amount of morbid comedy, especially in a sequence in which one of Kronos' companions is transformed into a vampire, begs to be killed, and then Kronos has to try out a bunch of different methods of killing him, all failing until he eventually does it on accident.

Reading up on this movie, apparently it was intended to be the first of many Kronos adventures, but alas, so far it stands alone. Like Quatermass, I think Kronos is a fascinating character who should be brought back for a remake. With a charismatic swashbuckling lead, a Hollywood budget and today's special effects behind it, I think a Captain Kronos remake could be a big hit.

So there you have it -- 31 horror movies in 31 days, all Hammer. There are plenty more Hammer horror movies to see, including some fairly recent releases as the studio has recently revived itself, but at least I've now seen each and every one of Hammer's DRACULA, FRANKENSTEIN and MUMMY movies, as well as several horror flicks and thrillers I may have never seen otherwise.

There aren't many better ways to spend October than with the likes of Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing. If you have the means, I highly recommend it. Happy Halloween!

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires

Starring Peter Cushing, David Chiang, Julie Ege, Robin Stewart and John Forbes-Robertson

Written by Don Houghton and directed by Roy Ward Baker and Chang Cheh

What would you say Hammer's DRACULA films have been missing so far? If you said martial arts, you're in luck, because that's just what Hammer's last attempt at a DRACULA flick is -- a collaboration between Hammer and the Shaw Bros. studio on the first Dracula martial arts flick.

Christopher Lee does not return as the count, and John Forbes-Robertson is not a great replacement -- though filling Lee's fangs seems almost impossible. Luckily, Dracula's not in the movie much, as he almost immediately transforms himself into Kah, a Taoist monk and high priest of the temple of the seven golden vampires in China.

You'd think with Dracula's aversion to all things religious he'd have a problem transforming into a monk, or going to a temple. But maybe he's only allergic to Western religion. Who knows.

I guess the only guy who would know is Professor Van Helsing who just so happens to be lecturing at Chungking university in China! In the course of his lecture he mentions a vampire being destroyed by touching a jade Buddha, so I guess they can be done in by Eastern religion after all.

One of Van Helsing's students enlists Van Helsing to travel to a remote village and take care of the local vampire problem. One thing leads to another and it isn't long before Van Helsing and his martial arts crew are kung fu fighting the seven golden vampires, their army of undead and eventually, Dracula himself.

The final showdown between Van Helsing and Dracula lacks a little gravity because Cushing's there and Lee isn't. Still, you can't blame Lee for skipping this one. Watching it unfold, you do begin to wonder what anyone involved was thinking. I don't think it's necessarily impossible to make a great kung fu Dracula movie. This just doesn't happen to be it. 

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - The Satanic Rites of Dracula

Starring Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing, Michael Coles, William Franklyn, Freddie Jones and Joanna Lumley

Written by Don Houghton and directed by Alan Gibson

Here we have the final Hammer DRACULA film to star Christopher Lee, and the third to reunite Lee with Cushing as Dracula and Van Helsing go at it once again, this time in 1974 -- contemporaneous with the movie's release. This was the sequel to DRACULA A.D. 1972, which was the first of the Hammer Dracula movies to move Dracula into then-modern times, but I didn't cover it this year because I touched on it in a previous Horrorfest.

This is one of the lesser entries in the series, but at least does have some good scenes between Lee and Cushing, so it's still worth checking out. This time around Dracula has started a Satanic cult and has a plan to develop a virulent strain of the bubonic plague and unleash it against humanity, thus bringing about the end of mankind. You might wonder what Dracula will eat if there aren't any people left, but maybe that's just it -- maybe he's so pissed off and sick of being Dracula that he's ready to just take the whole world out.

Seemingly unsure of simply selling the movie as horror, this production is all mixed up with spy stuff and action stuff and cop stuff. It's weird to see Dracula mixed up in all of it, but sort of amusing in its own way.

Spoiler warning: this time around Dracula is weakened when he's driven into a hawthorn bush, stopping him just long enough for Van Helsing to stake him. This is an interesting and unique stab at vampire lore -- the idea is that Jesus Christ's crown of thorns was made from a hawthorn bush, and therefore the bushes are deadly to vampires. This was a new one on me, so good job, Hammer.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell

Starring Peter Cushing, Shane Briant, David Prowse, Madeline Smith, John Stratton and Patrick Troughton

Written by John Elder and directed by Terence Fisher

The last of the Hammer FRANKENSTEIN films brings Peter Cushing back and returns to the pre-HORROR OF FRANKENSTEIN continuity. David Prowse also returns as the monster, though it's a different monster, as usual. It's a fitting end to the series, and one of my favorites, due to its inspired setting in an insane asylum.

The movie starts with a young scientist and admirer of the "late" Dr. Frankenstein, who is caught red handed with the dead bodies he is trying to reanimate. He's sent to an insane asylum and upon arrival learns that Dr. Frankenstein is not only alive, but through blackmail, manipulation and his own smarts has gone from inmate to master of the asylum, exploiting his access to the patients to continue his lifelong obsession: building monsters.

Frankenstein and his new protege set about building a new monster, though the protege does not know it's built from the parts of murdered patients. Needless to say, when the creature comes to life it sets out on a murderous rampage, all within the confines of the asylum.

What a perfect setting for a film like this, and the logical conclusion to Hammer's version of Frankenstein -- ignoring some attempts to "reboot" the franchise, Cushing's Dr. Frankenstein starts out evil and gets even worse the more he eludes the authorities and cheats death. It's as if his continued existence in the face of all of his oppositions bolsters his own opinion of himself as better than everyone else, and deserving of the role of playing God through his twisted experiments.

The monster is visually more interesting this time than in the previous outings, as well, literally looking monstrous rather than just being a reanimated corpse. He's a big hairy brute that truly looks like he's from hell, and it's fun once again to see David Prowse do his thing, especially with Cushing back as the mad doctor, because now we have Tarkin and Vader sharing the screen together!

Now that I've seen all of the Hammer FRANKENSTEIN films, I think the series holds together better than its more famous cousin, the DRACULA series. They both have their faults and missteps, and Christopher Lee is more memorable as a horror icon, but I just love how Hammer picked the mad doctor to be the recurring character in the series, rather than following the monster the way Universal did. It really transforms Frankenstein into a super villain, and super villains are fun to watch. Though I suppose Christopher Lee's Dracula also grows into a super villain so, I don't know. Maybe I just love them both the same.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - Lust for a Vampire

Starring Ralph Bates, Barbara Jefford and Suzanna Leigh

Written by Tudor Gates and directed by Jimmy Sangster

The famous franchises from Hammer are DRACULA, FRANKENSTEIN and THE MUMMY. Then there's the lesser known QUATERMASS trilogy. But did you know there's even another Hammer trilogy? There are three films following the Karnstein family of vampires, two of which I've covered in previous Horrorfests -- the first one, THE VAMPIRE LOVERS, and the third one, TWINS OF EVIL.

Unfortunately, this middle entry in the series is the least of them. Like the others, it's about female vampires who prey on other women, so the homoerotic content was the ticket seller (and source of controversy) at the time of release, in the early 70s. Unlike the others, it does not star Peter Cushing, Ingrid Pitt or a set of bodacious twins.

Good old Ralph Bates is on hand though, as the headmaster of a finishing school. It's a thankless role and pales in comparison to his flamboyant turns as the mad scientists Frankenstein and Dr. Jekyll. An author of books on witchcraft and black magic infiltrates the school undercover as a teacher when he both suspects one of the students is a vampire and falls in love with her.

The film apparently has a cult following, though some say it's too campy for its own good. I don't know, maybe I was in a bad mood when I watched it or something, but I could have gone with a little more camp, thank you very much.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde

Starring Ralph Bates and Martine Beswick

Written by Brian Clemens and directed by Roy Ward Baker

Hey, it's two Jack the Ripper Hammer movies back to back, and just like HANDS OF THE RIPPER, this one's not really about Jack the Ripper -- it's about Henry Jekyll! You might wonder what a guy hell bent on developing a cure for all human illness has to do with Jack the Ripper, but then again, maybe you don't -- after all, most Dr. Jekylls end up turning into Mr. Hyde, and, after all, maybe the answer to the Ripper mystery is that it was Hyde all along?

Told a cure for all human illness will take too long to develop, and Jekyll will be dead before his research is done, Jekyll becomes obsessed with developing an elixir to extend his life indefinitely, so he can complete his research. Now, I'm not scientist, but I feel like if you create an eternal life potion, you can set aside your attempts to cure all illnesses, right? I mean, doesn't one trump the other?

Ralph Bates stars as Jekyll and brings the same arrogant, smug energy to the role as he did with his one outing as Frankenstein -- and like that scientist, he needs bodies to experiment on. Enter a couple more macabre true life London legends, infamous grave robbers Burke and Hare. They should have called this movie DR. JEKYLL & JACK THE RIPPER MEET BURKE & HARE. Except that leaves out Sister Hyde.

That's right! This time out when Dr. Jekyll's elixir surprisingly transforms him into someone else, it's not Edward Hyde, but instead, Edwina Hyde. You see, Jekyll needed women's hormones for his work, because they live longer than men, so it only stands to reason blah blah, etc. Side effect: he transforms into a woman.

Martine Beswick plays his feminine side and I gotta say they did a pretty good job of pairing up a couple actors who could convincingly play two genders of the same person. They should remake this movie, though, and have one person play both parts. Now that would be something.

As is becoming common with this later-stage Hammer flicks, once the premise is exhausted, the movie slows down and staggers to an end instead of rushing to an exciting climax. So if you check out the first half and nod off for the second, you're not missing much, except a sexist ending.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - Hands of the Ripper

Starring Eric Porter, Angharad Rees, Jane Morrow, Keith Bell and Derek Godfrey

Written by L.W. Davidson and Edward Spencer Shaw and directed by Peter Sasdy

This film starts with Jack the Ripper and why not? Seems like a perfect fit for Hammer! Horror, gore, Victorian era England. It's a match made in heaven... er, hell. It's a wonder they didn't get to saucy Jack sooner.

It's also a wonder why they don't stick with him, because this is not the tale of the Ripper but of his daughter who, as an infant, witnesses Jack killing her mother. She grows up an orphan servant of a con-woman posing as a spirit medium, who also serves as her madam, and is rescued by an early Freudian psychiatrist after she is suspected of the con woman's murder.

It's clear early on somehow the spirit of Jack the Ripper lives inside of his daughter, and comes out when she is threatened or otherwise triggered (usually by a flashy piece of jewelry). Then her hands literally transform into that of her dead father's, and she goes on a stabbing spree.

Interestingly, the psychiatrist believes she's probably the murder and isn't out to prove her innocence -- instead he's out to keep a watchful eye on her so that he can probe into the mind of a murderer and find out why murderers do the things they do. It's a dangerous game, though, and he fails to control his patient as bodies pile up.

Eric Porter is very good as the psychiatrist -- at once crazy and sympathetic. You believe in his obsession. This movie was directed by the same guy who did COUNTESS DRACULA, and it suffers the same problem -- the opening sucks you in easily, the action continues at a good pace, and then maybe 75% of the way in, just when things should be ramping up, they slow way down and you start checking your watch.

The ultimate ending is worth stick around for, though -- it's more operatic, over the top and beautifully shot in a unique location than most of the abrupt Hammer endings. Yes, it's a little drawn out, but it looks like something from one of the Italian masters, rather than the usual humble men behind the Hammer camera.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - Countess Dracula

Starring Ingrid Pitt, Nigel Green and Lesley-Anne Down

Written by Jeremy Paul and directed by Peter Sasdy

Don't worry, it's not yet another Dracula sequel -- no, this misleadingly titled entry into Hammer's annals of horror is a very loose telling of the "true" story of Hungarian Countess Elizabeth Bathory. Bathory was probably one of the earliest examples of a serial killer, arrested in the early 1600s for killing up to 650 young girls and women, though who knows how close that number is to being accurate. There were plenty of witnesses to make it clear the real Bathory probably was actually a murderer, however, the tales of her drinking the blood of virgins are probably made up.

But that's where this movie picks up! The recently widowed and aging Countess discovers through complete accident that bathing in the blood of young girls (later refined through trial and error to specifically virgins) restores her youth and beauty. It soon wears off, however, so she has to kill again and again in order to continue looking young and beautiful, and each time it wears off, she looks older and more gross.

She takes on the identity of her own daughter in order to explain her own presence in the castle, which means her actual daughter, who had been on her way to visit before all this went down, has to be held captive by a mute brute in the woods. 

An army captain who has always been in love with the Countess reluctantly helps her procure virgins as she strings him along with promises of a relationship later on down the line. Meanwhile, in her young and beautiful state, the countess pursues a relationship with a younger and more dashing lieutenant.

The set up for this movie all works great and moves along at a good pace, cutting back and forth between the goings on with the countess and the plight of her captive daughter. Unfortunately, just as you think the movie is heading for a climax, when the countess is exposed in all her glory, mid blood bath, instead of rushing to an end it slams to a halt and slowly crawls through a slow and meandering third act that isn't worthy of the first two.

Still, I'd say this is a better than average entry into the Hammer series of horror films, and probably the best female-lead-driven tale among them. So, despite its flaws, it is worth a watch.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - Blood from the Mummy's Tomb

Starring Valerie Leon, Andrew Keir, Mark Edwards, James Villiers, Hugh Burden and Aubrey Morris

Written by Christopher Wicking, based on the book by Bram Stoker 

Directed by Seth Holt

By movie four, the Hammer MUMMY series has more than worn out its welcome, but at least you can say this about BLOOD FROM THE MUMMY'S TOMB -- it's sorta unique. For instance, there's no bandaged mummy to speak of. Just an evil Egyptian queen in suspended animation who is brought back from Egypt and set up in a recreated tomb in an obsessed professor's basement.

And, it's based on THE JEWEL OF THE SEVEN STARS by none other than Bram "Dracula" Stoker himself! So it has that going for it, which is nice.

The obsessed professor coincidentally (or maybe not coincidentally?) has a daughter who looks exactly like the Egyptian queen. The daughter has been having crazy nightmares, and is enlisted by a rival of her father's to resurrect the Egyptian queen. For this, they need the relics missing from the queen's rebuilt basement tomb, but each time they get one the person they got it from ends up dead.

There's some question throughout as to whether or not the daughter has some magical link to the Egyptian queen, and whether or not they'll both survive if the queen is resurrected, etc. You know, mummy stuff. At least it's not a lumbering guy in bandages acting as a hitman under the influence of some other guy. Still, it's kinda boring.

The final shot is funny and clever, though. Spoiler warning: after the carnage of the climactic final battle, only one person survives and ends up in the hospital -- we know it's either the daughter or the Egyptian queen, but we can't tell which because she's covered head-to-toe in bandages.

Get it? Like a mummy!

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - Scars of Dracula

Starring Christopher Lee, Patrick Troughton, Dennis Waterman, Jenny Hanley, Michael Gwynn and Michael Ripper

Written by Anthony Hinds and directed by Roy Ward Baker

I know what you're thinking: so many Dracula movies and so few bats! Well, you're in luck. SCARS OF DRACULA is lousy with bats. Or a bat, anyway. Honestly I can't remember which. These movies have started running together so much it's hard to tell. But if you like big rubber bats, SCARS OF DRACULA is the hammer Dracula for you.

Dracula's resurrected yet again (by a bat) and sets up shop in his old Transylvanian castle. It's nice to return to the castle after so many movies away. In most straight up DRACULA adaptations, the most interesting section is always the section that takes place at Castle Dracula. Because of this, SCARS OF DRACULA sort of works as a weird remake of the original, with a visitor to the castle working as a Harker stand-in, trying to escape, getting caught by Dracula, seduced by female vampires, etc. All that good stuff.

Later his brother and fiancee come looking for him and we get more good stuff from the book, like Dracula climbing up the side of the castle like a spider.

Christopher Lee's still doing his thing so the movie's not a total waste, but at this point the franchise has started to show signs of fatigue. Dracula goes out with a bang, though, struck by a bolt of lightning that sets him on fire. I was about to say I didn't know lightning could kill vampires, but I guess fire is a tried and true method, so there you go.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - Taste the Blood of Dracula

Starring Christopher Lee, Linda Hayden, Geoffrey Keen and Gwen Watford

Written by Anthony Hinds and directed by Peter Sasdy

A Black Mass celebrating hedonistic lord purchases Dracula's remains from a traveling salesman, and embroils three bored and debauched gentleman in a plot to resurrect the oft-killed vampire. One thing leads to another and it's not long before Dracula is resurrected, and hunting down each of the three gentlemen.

I hate to say it but even with Christopher Lee at front and center, this is where the Dracula movies start to sort of run out of steam and blur together. At the very least you can say this is an interesting idea -- there's no real "good" guys, at least not for most of the movie -- no Van Helsing stand in, just three selfish, debauched, hypocritical "gentlemen" who want to party in brothels and instead run afoul of a vampire. So you sort of don't feel bad for them when Dracula does them in.

At this point one of the only reasons to watch these is to see the variety of ways they do away with Dracula and this time, spoiler warning, he's done away by... a church. See, he set up his home base in a de-sanctified church, and then returns to it after it has been re-sanctified. Unable to put up with being surrounded by so many holy things, he turns to dust.

I wonder if he'll be back? Just kidding, of course he will.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - The Horror of Frankenstein

Starring Ralph Bates, Kate O'Mara, Veronica Carlson and David Prowse

Written by Jeremy Bunrham and Jimmy Sangster, directed by Jimmy Sangster

This is the sixth Hammer FRANKENSTEIN movie and the first one to be made without Peter Cushing in the title role. That's because it's a remake of sorts - retelling Frankenstein's origins as a young student, and his first time building a monster. And this isn't the first time Hammer has "rebooted" the franchise, as we say today -- technically one of the previous Cushing entries was sort of a redo, as well.

I've read from a bunch of different sources that this movie was also intended to be a parody of the FRANKENSTEIN story. However, it's not a laugh-out-loud funny parody, and it doesn't do a point-by-point retread of any of the previous FRANKENSTEIN movies, instead introducing a bunch of unique spins on the story itself. It is funny in parts, but not a straight up comedy, at least, not to my eye. However, this does give it its own sense of style and kind of makes it a brisk watch.

Ironically, in some ways, this version of the young doctor Frankenstein is even more evil than usual -- odd choice for a comedy. As played by Ralph Bates, he inherits his family's fortune by murdering his father (and making it look like an accident) and then gets kicked out of medical school for getting the dean's daughter pregnant. This is all before he fixates on putting together a dead body and reanimating it.

Interestingly, David Prowse, the actor who wore the Darth Vader costume for the first three STAR WARS movie, stars as the monster, here. He's an imposing presence, obviously, being tall and muscle bound, and it is clear why a guy like him was chosen for a part like Darth Vader. It's fun to see his face after only seeing him behind a mask for so many years.

Bates' Frankenstein has a smugness and over-confidence about him that sort of reminds me of some of Jason Schwartzman's characters over the years, so if you're wondering if I'd be into a Jason Schwartzman mad scientist movie the answer is yes.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - The Devil Rides Out

Starring Christopher Lee, Charles Gray, Nike Arrighi, Leon Greene, Patrick Mower, Gwen Ffrangcon-Davies, Sarah Lawson and Paul Eddington

Written by Richard Matheson, based on the book by Dennis Wheatley

Directed by Terence Fisher

A Satanic cult attempts to induct two new members as their friends attempt to save them. Initially successful, this only brings on the wrath of Satan himself.

Here's a twist: Christopher Lee's in this movie but he's not the bad guy! He's the hero. Many things make this movie great, but this might be the one single thing that makes it the greatest. 

The bad guy's pretty good too: it's Charles Gray, who you may recognize as the criminologist from THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW. He's very convincing as a charismatic cult leader who can get you to do his bidding just by looking at you a certain way.

But back to Christopher Lee -- he's so great as a character who has a no-nonsense approach to things. Upon visiting his friend, who is secretly being lured in by the cult, Lee almost instantly figures out what's going on and takes quick, decisive action to stop it.

The movie is similarly quick and decisive -- it never slows down and has as many action scenes as it has horror scenes, including a Satanic ritual that would be the climax of any other movie, but oh no, this one's just beginning!

If I had to make a top ten or maybe even top five list of Hammer horror films, this would be on it. So if you dabble in Hammer, make sure to check out THE DEVIL RIDES OUT.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - Dracula Has Risen from the Grave

Starring Christopher Lee, Rupert Davies, Veronica Carlson and Barbara Ewing

Written by Anthony Hinds and directed by Freddie Francis

Christopher Lee as Dracula is back, this time accidentally resurrected by a couple priests who intended to exorcise Dracula's castle by saying a prayer before it and blocking the doors with a cross. One priest successfully blocks Dracula's castle off from Dracula by exorcising it, but the other unwittingly brings Dracula back to life and becomes his mind-controlled slave. Upon learning he can't get back into his castle, Dracula seeks revenge against the priest responsible.

An interesting aspect of this entry into the Dracula series is that it deals directly with the influence of faith and religion on the vampire. Of course, crosses and religious symbols are always a part of the lore, but this time there's an interesting twist -- Dracula transforms a priest into his minion, and the young hero happens to be an atheist. 

There's a scene where our atheist hero attempts to stake Dracula but it doesn't work because the hero technically doesn't believe in it -- in other words, he's doing the actions but doesn't believe in the power behind them. Dracula yanks the stake out and throws it right back at him. It's awesome. Of course it won't be giving anything away to reveal that Dracula is eventually dispatched, this time impaled on a giant cross after falling from his own castle tower.

This is a fun entry into the Dracula series, with some striking images, including a rooftop chase, that sets it apart a little from the others. And, this time, Dracula is back to talking, though he's a man of few words.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - The Mummy's Shroud

Starring Andre Morell, John Phillips, David Buck, Maggie Kimberly and Elizabeth Sellers

Written by Michael Carreras and directed by John Gilling

These MUMMY sequels just keep getting worse and worse. This one's more of the same -- yet another expedition brings back yet another mummy, the mummy comes back to life and murders the members of the expedition, until it's eventually defeated.

As is sort of tradition in MUMMY movies (especially the Universal ones), this one spends a lot of screen time on flashbacks detailing the life and death of the boy pharaoh who would eventually become the undead mummy. None of it really has any bearing on the revenge plot, though.

I guess the most unique thing about this movie is the design of the mummy himself -- instead of just being wrapped up in boring old bandages, this mummy is both wrapped up in bandages and also sports a couple of interesting design flares and patterns in his costume.

Unfortunately if what your mummy is wearing is the high point of your mummy movie, you messed up.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - Frankenstein Created Woman

Starring Peter Cushing, Susan Denberg and Thorley Walters

Written by John Elder and directed by Terence Fisher

Provocative title, huh? And all the posters, video box art, and probably stills that come up when you Google the movie are provocative, too -- even the photo here! They all feature Peter Cushing as Dr. Frankenstein with his latest creation -- a scantily clad Susan Denberg in all her glory. But guess what? That stuff's not even in the movie. Sure, Frankenstein creates a woman, but none of the popular images associated with this movie are actually in the movie. At first I thought maybe I fell asleep when I was watching it and missed them. But nope.

This movie's weird. I mean all these Hammer movies are weird, but this one's needlessly weird. The basic gist of it is simple enough -- Frankenstein is now interested in trying to transfer a soul from one body to another, and does so -- transferring the soul of a wrongfully accused man who has recently been executed into the body of the woman who loved him, who is recently dead by her own hand. Once the soul transfer is complete, the woman with the soul of the man goes on a quest for revenge against the people responsible for his death.

Simple enough, right? Well, that premise isn't reached until well into the running time of the film. First you see the wrongfully accused guy's whole life. Which is actually pretty entertaining, but narratively unsatisfying when you find out it's all needless backstory. He sees his father executed as a child, he's wrongfully accused of killing an innkeeper and then he's executed himself. Meanwhile the disfigured woman he loves (but can't have because of her father) witnesses his execution and kills herself. I'm breezing through this pretty quickly but it takes up like half the movie, just to get us to the body swapping. Or soul swapping. Whatever.

So, points for being different, I guess, but the movie's greatest sin is that Peter Cushing as Frankenstein is sidelined much of the time. Also, he's not quite as maniacally evil this time out. Sure he doesn't take into account the consequences of his actions, but that's day one Frankenstein stuff ! We're several sequels deep, here.

So the first half is pretty good, but it belongs in a another movie, and the second half isn't Frankenstein-y enough for my liking. All in all, one of the lesser of the Hammer Frankensteins.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - Quatermass and the Pit

Starring James Donald, Andrew Keir, Barbara Shelley and Julian Glover

Written by Nigel Kneale and directed by Roy Ward Baker

And now for the thrilling conclusion of the QUATERMASS trilogy in which Quatermass STILL doesn't get any guys into a rocket and onto the moon. But, he does fight monsters while dealing with skeptical army brass, so it's just another day at the office for ol' Quatermass.

Only it's a different Quatermass! Well, the actor's different, anyway. This time out Andrew Kier has replaced Brian Donlevy, apparently because the writer of the series never really liked Donlevy's portrayal, anyway. You might remember Kier from DRACULA: PRINCE OF DARKNESS as a better-than-average Van Helsing replacement. So, he has what it takes for the role. His interpretation of the character is a little kinder and less socially awkward professor -- we lose some of the crankiness and misanthropy Donlevy brought to the role, which I think is a big part of what makes Quatermass a memorable character. Still, it's not a distracting change, and for the most part, QUATERMASS AND THE PIT is a worthy sequel.

In this one, excavators discover weird skulls and skeletons and stuff in the London Underground, predating anything similar that's every been dug up before. As scientists get involved, further digging turns up a strange metal object, so in comes the military. More digging later and I'm gonna go out on a limb and say it's an alien spaceship!

The lead military dude is not convinced, however, and he's played by Julian Glover, who has fought both Indiana Jones and James Bond. He's not even convinced when Quatermass weigh in with his opinion: aliens. Not just aliens! Martians. And they're here to take over the world.

Of course, not if Quatermass has anything to say about it. One thing leads to another and it isn't long before the entire city is being torn apart by Martian psychic energy, regular citizens are under Martian mind control, and a huge Martian monster towers over everything.

While this Quatermass production is probably the biggest in scope and most ambitious, it is also probably the least of the series. While it's still entertaining, it lags somewhat in the middle, and the ending, without giving too much away, is oddly bitter and downbeat, with a very strange end credits sequence in which a stunned Quatermass just looks tired and worn out from always having to save the world.

I still think Quatermass is ready for a remake -- maybe even a TV series. Who should play him, though? Hugh Laurie? Bring this character back, give him a big budget, and get his rocket men on the moon once and for all.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - Rasputin the Mad Monk

Starring Christopher Lee, Barbara Shelley, Francis Matthews, Richard Pasco and Suzan Farmer

Written by Anthony Hinds and directed by Don Sharp

Based on the true story of the mysterious figure who inserted himself into the Russian royal family just before the revolution and apparently had some influence in their affairs (and the affairs of the country), RASPUTIN THE MAD MONK stars Christopher Lee in the title role.

Now, when I say this is based on a true story, of course I mean just the bare bones -- this is the pulp fiction, comic book, sensationalized version of "history," casting Rasputin as a monster the likes of which Dracula might even be jealous of, who is both a con man while also apparently possessing actual healing powers and seemingly super natural levels of mind control (especially over women).

If you only see one Christopher Lee movie in your life, it should probably be this one. He really brings it and gives it his all. Sure, Dracula might be more famous and later the LORD OF THE RINGS films made bank, but this has got to be Christopher Lee's greatest and most over the top performance. Rasputin is a great character because he is so unabashedly terrible -- he's a drunk, a pervert, abuses both men and women, and uses anyone he can get under his influence, which is most people. He's crafty and conniving while also being outrightly and outrageously cruel and in-your-face about his debauchery.

You might wonder how a monk, of all people, can reconcile sleeping around and getting trashed all the time. Rasputin actually has an answer to this: if Christianity is about seeking forgiveness for our sins from God, why not give God sins actually worth forgiving? It sort of misses the point of a deep and honest theological discussion but it does honestly exploit a loophole in surface-level dogma, which is often all anyone really cares about anyway, except those who are most mystic.

RASPUTIN THE MAD MONK does not suffer any of the pacing issues of some of the other Hammer films because Lee is in almost every scene and is always endlessly compelling. What's this guy going to do next? You never know except that it'll be worse than whatever the last thing he did was.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - The Reptile

Starring Noel Willman, Jennifer Daniel, Ray Barrett, Jacqueline Pearce and Michael Ripper

Written by Anthony Hinds and directed by John Gilling

Here's something interesting -- a Hammer monster movie featuring a new, unique monster -- not one plundered from the depths of literature or Universal's vaults.

THE REPTILE is the tale of a newlywed couple that move to a small village when they inherit a cottage. The deceased owner of the cottage died under strange circumstances, and several other locals are dying the same way, including the town drunk who seems to know something about the deaths but then turns up dead himself -- with blackened skin and a foaming mouth.

The newlyweds' neighbors are a creepy doctor (of divinity, not medicine), his daughter who he treats like crap and their servant who always seems like he's up to something.

Of course we know from early on that a humanoid reptile is behind these deaths -- jumping out of the shadows to attack its victims with a venomous bite. But who is the reptile and where did it come from?

To the movie's credit, this is a bit of a mystery -- it might be obvious to some, but there's a red herring and everything, which is more than you can say for most of these monster movies. Also, the creature design is legitimately creepy. The Reptile is truly unsettling. Most of the movie is not that scary, but when the titular monster pops up, yikes.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - The Witches

Starring Joan Fontaine, Kay Walsh, Alec McCowen, Ann Bell and Ingrid Boulting

Written by Nigel Kneale, based on the novel by Norah Lofts

Directed by Cyril Frankel

A teacher suffering PTSD from a frightening experience in Africa takes up a new position at a small school in an equally small village in England, where everyone in town seems to be slightly off and concealing something, particularly when it comes to a seemingly innocent budding relationship between a couple of her students.

So right off the bat, from the title, we can safely assume some witchcraft is involved? There's a black cat hanging around, emphasis on dolls, a guy who calls himself a reverend and wears a clerical collar but isn't associated with any church or religion and other suspicious stuff.

This is interesting for about the first half hour but then suspense runs out and things slow down a little too much. Eventually the teacher is sent away to an asylum and everyone attempts to gaslight her into thinking nothing weird's going on, but she perseveres in her investigation, which leads to a weird and orgiastic witchcraft ceremony in a "surprise" ending that comes a little too late.

I wish this movie was a little more interesting because it is notable among Hammer films for having an adult woman protagonist. I'm sure others do, too, but they're rare, so it's sorry to see the character and performance sort of go to waste.

This movie features the acting debut of a young ballerina/model named Ingrid Boulting (credited as Ingrid Brett), and she puts some of her dance skills to use in the climactic ending sequence, so that was sort of interesting but again, a little late.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - Dracula: Prince of Darkness

Starring Christopher Lee, Barbara Shelley and Andrew Keir

Written by John Sansom and directed by Terence Fisher

Finally, we get to our first DRACULA film of Horrorfest 2020! This is the third Hammer DRACULA movie, but first sequel that has Christopher Lee returning in the role as the vampire count. 

This movie's famous for the fact that Dracula, a monster more apt to hold a conversation than, say, Frankenstein's monster or the mummy, does not utter one word of dialogue in the whole run time. Lee claims this is because he refused to speak the ridiculous dialogue. Writer John Sansom claims he never wrote any dialogue for Lee in the first place. Who's right? Who knows!

This time around, a group of travelers ignore the advice of locals and end up spending the night at Dracula's castle, where his familiar has a plot to revive the Van Helsing-killed count. Thus follows a spectacular sequence in which a crazy blood ritual reanimates Dracula from a pile of dust back to Christopher Lee status, and soon Dracula's on a kill crazy rampage.

This movie benefits from having Lee back as the title character and even in a wordless performance Lee has presence for days, as previously evidenced by his performance in THE MUMMY. This time he has his face to work with, as well, since Dracula requires minimal makeup, and although Lee is not the best Dracula of all time, he is the most expressive and the one that is most convincing as a monster. Runner up for most expressive count goes to Carlos Villarias, though Bela Lugosi will always be the greatest.

But I digress.

One thing that's kind of a bummer about this movie is that it does not feature the return of Peter Cushing as Van Helsing, aside from reused footage at the beginning. However, unlike some other Hammer sequels, this movie's Cushing replacement is pretty good -- Father Sandor, played by Andrew Keir.

One cool thing about the Hammer DRACULA movies is they make sure to come up with new ways to kill Dracula each time, rather than always relying on the stake. In the first one it was sunlight, in this one they use the rarely-used method of burying him below running water. There's more than one way to kill a vampire!

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb

Starring Terence Morgan, Fred Clark, Ronal Howard and Jeanne Roland

Written by Michael Carreras and Alvin Rakeoff, directed by Michael Carreras

Uh oh. Time for a MUMMY sequel -- usually a bad sign. This doesn't actually continue the story of THE MUMMY. Much like the Universal MUMMY sequels, this one simply tells the tale of a different mummy.

This time out, a group of Egyptologists discover a mummy and bring it back to London where an American exploitation promoter puts the mummy and other artifacts in a sideshow-type display. Unfortunately, turns out the mummy walks among us, and starts to knock off the Egyptologists one by one.

For an 80 minute film, this is another one that seems slooooow and loooong. I think part of the reason for that is that the mummy doesn't start doing his thing until late in the run time. Or at least, that's the way it seems. There are famous examples of movies that save their monsters for critical moments, like JAWS and KING KONG, but those movies have one thing this movie doesn't have: suspense.

One interestingly creepy thing about this take on the mummy is that the mummy's creepy breathing is emphasized. This is unique to this movie over all the other mummy movies, and is the most legitimately frightening thing about it. You know the mummy's around and about to kill you when you hear this creepy, hollow, ancient, dead "breath" coming from him.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - Paranoiac

Starring Janette Scott, Oliver Reed, Sheila Burrell and Alexander Davion

Written by Jimmy Sangster, based on the novel by Josephine They

Directed by Freddie Francis

After losing his parents to a plane crash and brother to suicide, an irresponsible and misanthropic drunk attempts to get his sister committed to an insane asylum in an effort to become the sole heir to his family's fortune. But there's a twist: the supposedly dead-by-suicide brother suddenly shows up, alive. Or does he?

Meanwhile there's ghostly music coming from the family chapel and a masked killer with a hook on the loose.

This is another black and white PSYCHO-inspired thriller like MANIAC, although it's not quite as good -- this one has a little too much going on. And I don't mean that in the sense that it moves quickly -- it's a little slow and has too many moving parts, making it less efficient and satisfying than MANIAC.

That said, it does have a bunch of interesting psychological dynamics involving guilt, jealousy, depression and conflicted sexual feelings, which makes it a little more interesting than your average thriller of the era.

Perhaps the best reason to watch this movie is the great Oliver Reed's performance as the drunken brother. He went on to star in Hammer's one and only werewolf movie, THE CURSE OF THE WEREWOLF, which is an uglier movie than this one, though more typical of Hammer's output. I won't be reviewing it this year since I've already seen it, but I'd remiss if I didn't praise Oliver Reed who is always magnetic to watch, especially when he plays a complete jerk.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - Maniac

Starring Kerwin Mathews, Nadia Gray, Liliane Brousse and Donald Houston

Written by Jimmy Sangster and directed by Michael Carreras

Aside from making bold and colorful monster movies, Hammer also knocked out a bunch of black and white psychological thrillers in the 60s, probably inspired by Hitchcock's output around the same time, notably PSYCHO.

So here comes MANIAC! Although the Hitchcock inspiration is clear here I think the movie owes just as much to the world of noir, specifically the works of James M. Cain like THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE where a femme fatale gets under the skin of a morally gray drifter and together they enter into a life of crime.

That's exactly what happens here -- a drifter inserts himself into the life of an older woman in southern France who also happens to have an attractive younger daughter. Turns out, years before, the daughter was raped, and in revenge, her father, now in an insane asylum, took a blow torch to the rapist, killing him. The drifter gets roped into helping an escape attempt for the revenge killer in an effort to get in good with girls, but not all is as it seems.

At a glance you might get fooled into thinking this is a French new wave film. The cinematography is that stark black and white and the framing and shot composition is more artistic than you'd expect from what might otherwise amount to a pulp story.

Watching the movie unfold, two things made me wonder if Quentin Tarantino's a fan. First, the scene early on in which the father attacks the rapist with a blow torch. Reminds me of Marcellus Wallace specifically saying he's going to get medieval on a rapist, with a blow torch. Then, later, we pause the action long enough for our main characters to do the twist in the middle of a busy restaurant while the other customers look on. The dance scene in BANDE A PART (the film Tarantino named his production company after) has been cited as Tarantino's influence in the past, and that's definitely a classier and more exotic choice, but I feel like MANIAC is the real culprit here, and is more Tarantino's speed, anyway -- exploitation.

So next time we hang out I'll ask him. Yeah, right.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - The Phantom of the Opera

Starring Herbert Lom, Heather Sears, Edward de Souza and Michael Gough

Written by John Elder, based on the novel by Gaston Leroux

Directed by Terence Fisher

I've always avoided this movie because the PHANTOM just seems too big and fancy for a studio known for its modest budgets like Hammer. The design of the Phantom's mask and makeup I've seen in stills in horror movie books didn't do much to convince me otherwise, and there's no big name in the role -- Herbert Lom. Who's he? I dunno!

Well, I'm glad I finally got around to it because the Hammer version of THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA is actually better than I imagined it to be and a lot of the reason for that rests on the shoulders of Herbert Lom, who manages to inject the exact right amount of humanity and empathy into the Phantom, factors I feared would be missing in a production from a studio well-known for gore and cleavage. After all, they focus on the evil of characters like Dracula and Frankenstein, and that evil gets more and more maniacal as the sequels pile up, so what hope does the Phantom have? Apparently, plenty. Who knew?

This is a very loose adaptation of the original source material, but doesn't really suffer for it -- it wisely scales the story back a little, and they're still able to do a lot with the sets and the costumes to bring the right amount of gravitas to the production. There are also a couple little satisfying narrative twists for those of us familiar with famous sequences, like the crashing chandelier.

This adaptation isn't a straight up copy of the 40s attempt with Claude Rains, but it has more in common with that than Lon Chaney's version. I still feel the ultimate Phantom adaptation has yet to be made. The Schumacher movie a while back lacked star power (I mean I love Gerard Butler and all but he's no Phantom), what survives of the Lon Chaney version has great moments but lots of pacing issues, and the Claude Rains version just seems like such a wasted opportunity with its narrative choices.

But between all those we've got this Hammer version which is humble in its approach and nails the Phantom character, which is more than can be said for most productions. The greatest moments of the Chaney classic still eclipse this one, but it's worth a look and I'm sorry I dismissed it all these years.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - The Hound of the Baskervilles

Starring Peter Cushing, Andre Morell, Christopher Lee, Marla Landi and David Oxley

Written by Peter Bryan, based on the novel by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Directed by Terence Fisher

I know what you're thinking: since when is a Sherlock Holmes story a horror story? Well, I don't know that I have a great answer for that except to say that Universal produced a bunch of them, as well (theirs starring Basil Rathbone) and classify several of them as horror films, so I reviewed them during the two Universal Horrorfests and will now review Hammer's only Holmes movie in turn.

Peter Cushing stars as Holmes and seems like a perfect choice, born to play the role. However, he's a little less laid back than your average Holmes, instead applying his logic enthusiastically and passionately. Andre Morell as Dr. Watson is less memorable, and that's a shame, because (spoilers) by the nature of BASKERVILLE's plot, lots of screen time is devoid of Holmes and devoted to Watson. I've read this Watson is closer to his literary counterpart than some others, so that's cool, I guess, but I'd rather have an inaccurate, interesting take than a bland accurate one.

Christopher Lee's also on hand as Baskerville himself, and while it's always nice to see Cushing and Lee together, this is one of their less memorable pairings, if only because they don't get to share much screen time.

Still, the movie is rife with the usual Hammer atmosphere and it's worth watching for Cushing as Holmes alone.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - The Mummy

Starring Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee and Yvonne Furneaux

Written by Jimmy Sangster and directed by Terence Fisher

All right, now we kick Hammerfest into high gear with the kind of monster movie they were most famous for -- of course the MUMMY series is not as famed as the DRACULA and FRANKENSTEIN series, and for good reason (it's not as good) but the first entry is right up there with Hammer's greatest classics.

In this way, it's sort of like Universal's MUMMY series. The first one was great, the sequels were not so great, it's not as well remembered as Dracula or Frankenstein, but damn if there weren't a ton of sequels.

The problem with the mummy in general is that a bandaged up dead guy (or girl) doesn't have much personality. Of course this first Hammer Mummy movie gets around that in two ways: first, like the Universal MUMMY, it features the mummy outside of his wraps a bunch -- in this one, via flashbacks. Second, both movies wisely cast an electric star as the mummy -- in Universal's case, Boris Karloff. Here it's... you guessed it... Christopher Lee!

Now, you might think a great like Christopher Lee is wasted in a role where he's made up beyond recognition for most of the run time, is mostly mute, and just lumbers around murdering people. Normally you'd be right. But Christopher Lee doesn't get enough credit for what an imposing physical presence he has. Usually you're fixated on his face and his voice, but here you can't fixate on either and instead are astounded by just how big, broad and tall he is. This mummy actually looks lethal and frightening, not frail and slow.

Another thing this MUMMY has going for it is that he's pitted against Peter Cushing, reuniting Hammer's two biggest stars, who also go at it as Frankenstein and his monster, and Dracula and Van Helsing.

I guess I've said so much without getting into the plot or story or anything like that, but you don't really need to know that stuff -- just know that this one is definitely worth checking out and is quintessential Hammer horror.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - The Man Who Could Cheat Death

THE MAN WHO COULD CHEAT DEATH (1959)

Starring Anton Diffring, Hazel Court and Christopher Lee

Written by Jimmy Sangster and directed by Terence Fisher

Now, we get to Christopher Lee -- the other, perhaps even more famous than Cushing, face of Hammer Horror. With his imposing presence and baritone voice, Lee is perfect for both horror and heroic roles, and plays both throughout his filmography, though he may have been happier doing some less silly stuff. Still, I'm glad any time he's on screen.

Unfortunately, his first entry into this year's Horrorfest is not very memorable. He's relegated to third fiddle in a not-very-interesting role, supporting the story of an artist who has undergone secret transplants in order to remain young-looking even though he's well over 100 years old. He has to drink a potion to keep it up, and continue to repeat the surgery from time to time, and the professor he's in league with is getting too old to keep going. They want another doctor (Lee) to take over, though, of course, there are ethical considerations.

This one plods along at a snail's pace without much in the way of memorable set pieces. If you love period sets and costumes, it might be worth a watch for that, or if you're a Lee or Hammer completist. It's notable here as being the first color film of the season -- that was one of the things that Hammer was most known for, as opposed to their predecessors, presenting their tales of gothic horror in bright, well-shot and sometimes startling (for the time) color.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - The Abominable Snowman

THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMAN (1957)

Starring Forrest Tucker and Peter Cushing

Written by Nigel Kneale and directed by Val Guest

Now Horrorfest really picks up with this year's arrival of the great Peter Cushing! Cushing, along with Christopher Lee, who we'll get to later, is the biggest star of Hammer Horror, appearing in a ton of their pictures in both villainous and heroic roles. For example, he plays both Dr. Frankenstein and Dr. Van Helsing. How's that for two ends of the spectrum? I mean, it's not like Gregory Peck doing both Atticus Finch and Captain Ahab but it's not unlike it either.

Cushing stars here as a climbing and botany expert on a scientific research mission in the Himalayas who hooks up with an American mercenary/promoter/hunter to track down the legendary abominable snowman. Cushing's in it for the science but the American, played by Forrest Tucker, wants to capture a beast alive and bring it home for exhibit.

Aside from the beautiful black and white photography as well as the impressive scenery that seems to have been shot on location (even though most of the action is shot on sets), the most interesting aspect of this movie is its take on the monster -- this isn't just a killing machine or dumb brute wandering around the mountains. It turns out, the abominable snowmen (yep, there's more than one) are complex, sensitive and wise creatures that have psychic abilities and human characteristics, like the ability to mourn their losses. Their plaintive wails, echoing in the mountains, are emotionally effective and memorable. So is the one clear shot of their eyes -- finally delivered after most of the movie keeping the monsters mostly hidden, for budget and suspense's sake.

This is a great and unpredictable adventure with two solid central performances, great cinematography and an above average "monster." The only drawback is that the depiction of the Himalayan locals may not always be as sensitive as the depiction of the abominable snowmen. It's a shame in an otherwise thoroughly enjoyable movie.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - Quatermass 2

QUATERMASS 2 (1957)

Starring Brian Donlevy, John Longden, Sid James, Bryan Forbes, William Franklyn and Vera Day

Written by Nigel Kneale and Val Guest, based on the 1955 TV serial by Nigel Kneale

Directed by Val Guest

The QUATERMASS trilogy is the only other series of sequels in Hammer's horror filmography outside of DRACULA, FRANKENSTEIN and the MUMMY. Not as familiar a name as those other three, huh? Still, a pretty cool character -- a rocket scientist who just wants to put men in space but keeps getting interrupted when he's embroiled in fighting monsters for the government (and for the good of mankind). He's the sort of guy who probably would be a mad scientist, if he wasn't always saving the day. Although he seems to get less mad (as in crazy) as the series goes on but continues to be just as mad (as in cranky) the whole time. He's sort of the House MD of rocket scientists -- cranky, always right, no one believes him. I reviewed the first QUATERMASS movie, THE QUATERMASS XPERIMENT in a previous Horrorfest, so here we're starting with part two, the aptly (if boringly) named QUATERMASS 2.

Brian Donlevy reprises her role as Quatermass who has ambitions to build a base on the moon, only to find out there's a similar base right on Earth in a seemingly abandoned village nearby. Mysterious guards with machine guns protect the area, and strange meteors are falling from the sky, causing gross skin deformities when they release gas onto people. Quatermass' own assistant is infected, and captured by the mysterious guards, and Quatermass goes on a journey to alert the authorities, most of whom don't believe him or are in on the conspiracy, whatever it might be.

Without going into too much detail, I will say that aliens from outerspace are attempting to take over the Earth, turning humans into their slaves. These aliens are massive blob-like creatures that tower as tall as skyscrapers and finally reveal themselves to stomp across the countryside in a memorable climax.

I feel like the QUATERMASS movies are prime for remakes -- watching this one unfold, I was struck by how modern it seemed in its pacing, action, variety of characters coming together in unexpected ways. Maybe Hugh Laurie could even play Quatermass, who knows. He's definitely an interesting character, and it's especially interesting to have a monster/sci-fi series like this center around the interesting main character instead of centering around the monsters and saddling the viewers with bland heroes. Quatermass is logical and wise while also being impulsive and decisive, taking massive risks to do what he thinks is right. It's a good mix for a hero.

Horrorfest 2020: Hammerfest - X the Unknown

The sky's gray, the rain has come, the leaves are falling... guess that means it's time for Horrorfest! Usually I try to watch and comment on 31 horror movies in 31 days during the month of October. Sometimes I have a theme -- this year is a theme year. The last couple years I tried to round out my knowledge of Universal horror by watching all the Universal horror, suspense or monster movies I'd either never seen, had only seen parts of or maybe had seen but forgotten about. 

The next logical step is to check out the horror, suspense and monster output from Hammer Film Productions, a London-based film production company that brought gothic horror back into vogue, mostly in the 60s and 70s, though technically starting in the 50s. I've seen (and loved) several of their most famous movies, and even reviewed some of them here, but I decided I'd give them the same treatment I gave Universal and watch 31 Hammer horror films this month that I've either never seen before, only seen parts of, or maybe saw and forgot about.

Hammer is probably mostly known for their Dracula and Frankenstein movies, differentiating them from their popular Universal predecessors by using blazing full color and amping up the sex and violence factors. I remember reading about these as a kid, thinking they must have been insanely excessive, full of nudity and gore. While it is true they're way more up front with skin and blood than Universal ever was, they're tame by today's standards.

I'll be skipping some of the more famous Hammer movies because I've either already reviewed them in a previous Horrorfest, or at least already seen them. Let's start with...

X THE UNKNOWN (1956)

Starring Dean Jagger and Edward Chapman

Written by Jimmy Sangster and directed by Leslie Norman and Joseph Losey

I'm going mostly in chronological order here, so my first few entries are from an era before Hammer struck gold with their series of gothic, color monster movies. X THE UNKNOWN is no less striking for having been shot in black and white, however, and is primarily a sci-fi story, though it does feature a monster.

The monster in question is a radiation-created blob. Unlike its more-famous 1958 successor, THE BLOB, which came from outer space, this amorphous blob creeps up from under the ground to spread its reign of terror. The military tries to stop it, which seems impossible, and enlists an atomic scientist (Jagger) to help.

Like most Hammer productions, the run time is brisk, though the pacing is off a little, with what should be an edge-of-the-seat thriller coming off as a little too dry in parts. Of course the military doesn't make the most interesting protagonist, and the doctor, who should be the character we can latch onto, being almost equally dry and almost laconic. Sure, everyone's worried things might not out all right, but the whole thing lacks an immediacy you'd expect from a radioactive monster movie.

All that said, it's still an efficient little thriller that gets the job done with a little more class than your average 50s-era atomic monster movie, though it doesn't rise to the heights of the greats of the genre, whether a silly crowd pleaser like TARANTULA or an ominous dirge like GODZILLA.