Terrific Fisher Frankenstein Movie

There's more going on in this little Hammer than meets the eye. The script reaches for something beyond the usual Frankenstein story, and Terence Fisher accommodates with keenly focused, at times inspired, direction. Start thinking about what is inferred when the soul of a boy, the son of a murderer, is transfered to the body of a crippled, deformed girl. The resulting action does not follow a clear and easy "good verses evil" scenario. Within the confines of a Hammer movie's melodrama, Fisher, a classical stylist and at times a superb artist, often created magic. This is one of those times. The performances are all equally compelling. Cushing gives the Baron more texture here than in any of the other films. Thorley Walters is a good foil, and his befuddled affection and respect for the Baron makes some of this really rather touching. Arther Grant's photography has never been better. I urge viewers to watch the film with an open mine. This is not the usual horror film; it's more a fantasy, a fairy tale-like parable. The story being told is simple, but what it means is not. Given the Hammer formula combined with Fisher's directorial sensibility, both being models of measured economy, it's easy to take "meaning" for granted. But don't.