Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed

Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed
film poster by Tom Chantrell
Directed by	Terence Fisher
Produced by	Anthony Nelson Keys
Written by	Bert Batt
Starring	Peter Cushing Freddie Jones Simon Ward Veronica Carlson
Music by	James Bernard
Cinematography	Arthur Grant
Edited by	Gordon Hales
Distributed by	Hammer Studios Warner Bros.-Seven Arts
Release dates	22 May 1969 (1969-05-22) 11 February 1970 (1970-02-11) US
Running time	98 min/USA: 101 min.
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Box office	586,439 admissions (France)

Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed is a British horror film directed by Terence Fisher for Hammer Film Productions from 1969. The cast includes Peter Cushing, Freddie Jones, Veronica Carlson and Simon Ward. The film is the fifth in a series of Hammer films centering on Dr. Frankenstein, who, in this entry, tries brain surgery to save an associate who went mad.

Plot summary

Baron Victor Frankenstein is staying at a boarding house while a former fellow-scientist resides in a nearby insane asylum, slowly dying through lack of oxygen in the brain.

After discovering that the landlady's fiance has been stealing narcotics in order to support an ailing mother, Frankenstein blackmails them to help to transfer the brain of his friend into another body, thus saving him.

While he recovers, Frankenstein and the lovers relocate the Creature to a deserted manor house as the police begin to close in. The Creature awakens, and horrified by his appearance, escapes to his wife, who is too terrified to believe he is her husband. Wanting revenge, he pours paraffin around the house and allows his wife to go free.

Meanwhile, Frankenstein notices the Creature has escaped. He then finds the Creature at its wife's house where the Creature sets it alight, stating:

"...You must choose between the flames and the police, Frankenstein..."

Cast

• Peter Cushing as Baron Victor Frankenstein
• Veronica Carlson as Anna Spengler
• George Pravda as Dr. Frederick Brandt/the Creature (Brain)
• Freddie Jones as Professor Richter/the Creature (Body)
• Simon Ward as Dr. Karl Holst
• Thorley Walters as Inspector Frisch
• Windsor Davies as Police Sergeant
• Allan Surtees as Police Sergeant
• Maxine Audley as Ella Brandt
• Geoffrey Bayldon as Police Doctor
• Colette O'Neil as Madwoman
• Frank Middlemass as Guest - Plumber
• George Belbin as Guest - Playing chess
• Norman Shelley as Guest - Smoking pipe
• Michael Gover as Guest - Reading newspaper
• Peter Copley as Principal

Production

The scene where Frankenstein rapes Anna was filmed over the objections of both Peter Cushing and Veronica Carlson, and director Terence Fisher, who halted it when he felt enough was enough. It was not in the original script but the scene was added at the insistence of Hammer executive James Carreras, who was under pressure to keep American distributors happy. This explains why there is no mention of the rape subsequently by Anna or Frankenstein.

Welsh version

In 1978, the Welsh television station HTV Cymru/Wales broadcast a version dubbed into the Welsh language called Rhaid Dinistrio Frankenstein, a more-or-less literal translation of the English title. This was one of three films that were dubbed into Welsh, another being Shane, with Alan Ladd. Both these were rebroadcast on the new Welsh language channel S4C on its launch in 1982.

Reception

Like its predecessor, Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed currently holds an average 60% on Rotten Tomatoes.

See also

• Frankenstein in popular culture
• List of films featuring Frankenstein's monster

References

• Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed at AllMovie

External links

• Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed at IMDb

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