Continuing a recent ‘Spree’ on the Hammer ‘Frankenstein’ movies I arrive at ‘Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed’ a DREARY little picture thats as dull as it is unwelcoming.

The film once again kind of severs with continuity, not revealing WHEN the film takes place, or if its connected to any of the other films…Not that that really matters because the film establishes fairly early on a strong character change for Baron Frankenstein. Where previously he’d been an ethically grey character with good points and bad ones, tarred with a very morally questionable practice…Here? Frankensteins just flat out malevolent and evil for most of the runtime. Very different from how he’s been seen previously.

The plot? is a bit of a confusing mish mash, not helped at all by the fact this things an HOUR AND FORTY minutes long…and the longest ‘Frankenstein’ movie up to this point. As far as I can recall, the plot involves the Baron blackmailing a young couple who are drug smuggling into a plan involving drugging insane asylum inmates and taking them back to Frankensteins makeshift lab for experimental treatment.

And thats the first problem this film has, a whole lot of subplots and not a whole lot to show for it. our characters spend most of the time planning out verious activities that then either never happen, or if they do take 10 minutes to plan and 2 minutes to orchestrate. Which is frustrating.

Mild spoilers here, but the total lack of a ‘monster’ through this only further drags the film down, I liked a morally questionable Frankenstein. I liked being able to have characters who, maybe wernt perfect, but at least had enough depth and complexity that I could wish SOMETHING…ANYTHING towards them.

Here? not one single character is likeable, noone does anything to really define what the films supposed to be doing. and given that the ‘creature’ in this film is actually just a slightly mind altered asylum patient. AND that that patient doesnt get to do anything till 15 minutes off the end of the film…Well, you best have a phone on hand because you are going to be bored out of your wits for at least an hour of this thing.

The tones all over the place, this is easily the most mean spirited Hammer Frankenstein film. Theres a rape scene mid way through that I really didnt think was needed (and nor did the cast and crew seemingly) and the finale is very underwhelming compared to the other entries (which again, is saying something!)

Similarly to ‘Evil of Frankenstein’ at multiple points through this film I stopped and asked myself ‘Whats the point of this film? why does it exist’ and the only answer I could really find after thinking about it is that they just…Hadnt made a Frankenstein movie in a while…and decided they should…but not out of a hunger of WANTING to make one…more out of a feeling of sheepish obligation to do one, just because they hadnt in a while.

As such, the end product feels bland, overly generic, runs AT LEAST 30 minutes longer than it should. is unlikable, and worst of all. DULL to sit through.

The direction and cine dont fare much better. for the most part this feels like a film thats almost parodying the style of earlier Hammer films. This thing came out in 1969, The same year as ‘I drink your blood’…and it LOOKS like a film made in the mid 50s.

Everything is underlit, to the point it becomes hard to make out what your actually looking at, colour use is underplayed and looks like a production going through the motions, rather than a film WANTING to impress. the direction feels largely on auto pilot for the most part. its ‘on the level’ in terms of a creative vision…But never rises above that.

There were allgedly tensions on set with this one. as director Terrance Fischer was not well, and was having chronic arguments with the distribution company, who seemingly had never SEEN a Hammer horror film, and didnt care to…Who wanted more nudity, sex and violence in the picture. to the point that Peter Cushing regularly refused to participate in the production if the changes pushed by the distributor had to be done.

Depite this, most of the cast involved said that this was one of their favourite movies to shoot. and that, barring the rape scene…which was allegedly the WORST thing they ever had to shoot. a lot of very good friendships were made on this set, and Terrance considers this one of his favourite films to work on…so im glad SOME good came from this thing.

The cine is just continual drab, lifeless sequences that dont really hang together well and regularly fail to satisfy. composition of shots was fine enough. But nothing here pushed the envelope and the final results are underwhelming to say the least.

Performance wise, noone really stood out barring Cushing. Who inverts his character here and comes across as genuinely inpleasent. While I applaud a truely nasty performance. its hard for me to enjoy a film where the lead is an antagonist with NO likable traits whatsoever, who doenst really get much in the way of commupence.

All in all, ‘Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed’ is a tired picture. a film seemingly made out of obligation rather than love or drive. its firmly planted a decade in the past and having decisions made on its behalf by people who dont care, and dont understand Hammer as a studio. Its a deathly boring film. and i’ll genuinely be surprised if things get worse from here.

source https://letterboxd.com/tytdreviews/film/frankenstein-must-be-destroyed/