Vampire Circus (1972)

A young woman (Domini Blythe) steals away children for her vampire lover (Robert Tayman), much to the obvious dismay of her husband (Laurence Payne). When he gets the locals with him, it soon becomes a standard mob situation. The woman is punished and then driven back into the castle of her lover, to die with him as it is set on fire. Some years later, the local village is suffering from a mysterious disease. It is quarantined and left to rot away while the inhabitants struggle to find a cure and end their bad luck. They believe it is a curse, laid upon them by the vampire they defeated. When a travelling circus breaks through the quarantine it at first looks set to bring some much-needed cheer and distraction to everyone, but it soon becomes clear that they have other reasons for visiting the area.

While there are some familiar faces onscreen here (with Thorley Walters being probably the one most recognisable to Hammer fans), this is very much a film populated by lesser-known names on both sides of the camera. Adrienne Corri makes quite an impression as the gypsy woman leading the circus into town, young John Moulder-Brown isn't too bad and Dave Prowse is strong and silent as the Strongman, of course.

The screenplay by Judson Kinberg doesn't have much in the way of great, memorable dialogue, but it does have a selection of nice ideas throughout, nicely executed by director Robert Young. Those ideas include a fantastic routine between a circus man and a feral woman fighting/dancing with him, some interesting use of mirrors and the fun being had by some of the circus performers before they show their true colours.

The mix of vampirism and carnival atmosphere should be a winner, but the film never takes off. It's surprisingly flat throughout, before spoiling everything with a finale that just throws together too many silly moments to make it worthwhile. As the end credits roll, viewers will be left feeling majorly dissatisfied. Which is never good.

5/10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Vampire-Circus-DVD-Adrienne-Corri/dp/B004FN7JCK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1382300097&sr=8-1&keywords=vampire+circus

The Phantom Of The Opera (1962)

A version of the classic Gaston Leroux tale that never seems to receive much love from fans, Hammer take on The Phantom Of The Opera and provide horror fans with a delightful interpretation of the famous story.

Herbert Lom, obviously masked for most of the runtime, plays the Phantom this time around. Eschewing the doomed romance at the heart of the classic tale, the Phantom till ends up after a young singer named Christine (Heather Sears) to make her into an unforgettable star of the stage. Christine, for her part, seems nice enough. When she's not being uncomfortably chatted up by Lord Ambrose D'Arcy (Michael Gough) she is developing a relationship with the handsome Harry Hunter (Edward de Souza). But the Phantom has a habit of reminding people that he's around.

Directed by Terence Fisher, The Phantom Of The Opera is as lavish and baroque as you'd expect, at times. The main opera being performed is all about the life of Joan Of Arc and the sets and design are both wonderfully theatrical and also nicely settled within a typical Hammer budget. In fact, there are only a few sets used in the movie, or it at least seems that way, but each one is so carefully put together and made into such a nice showpiece that the relatively small scale of the production is covered up, and even turned into an asset.

The script by Anthony Hinds takes the classic tale and adds some nice twists to it, making it fresh while never betraying the essence of the material. This has never been my favourite of the beloved horror classics and, personally, I enjoyed the changes that were made. Perhaps the fact that this is overlooked so often tells me hat other Phantom fans didn't like the changes as much as I did.

Sears is fine in the role of Christine, and de Souza is an okay leading man, but this movie belongs to two men, Lom and Gough. The former gives a great physical performance, and also does sterling work in a pre-Phantom flashback sequence that reveals the backstory of the character and the cause of his rage, while the latter has so much fun being nasty to everyone around him that this ends up being one of his best roles. Michael Ripper has a VERY small role (billed, I believe, as Cabbie #1) and Patrick Troughton steals his main scene, playing a callous and carefree ratcatcher.

Give this one a go sometime, especially if you've forgotten about it while catching other interpretations of the story. You might just end up liking it as much as I did.

7/10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Phantom-Opera-Region-Hammer/dp/B001MZXAZE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1381237284&sr=8-1&keywords=the+phantom+of+the+opera+1962

Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed (1969)

Terence Fisher is once again at the helm of a Hammer horror, directing this entry in the Frankenstein series, but he's hampered by the script (written by Bert Batts) that mixes too much of the familiar with too much of the mildly despicable.

Peter Cushing plays the Baron and still mesmerises me every moment he's on screen but this time around the character has been warped and changed beyond recognition. What I always liked about Baron Frankenstein, in the Hammer incarnations anyway, was the fact that he was ever so slightly justified in his actions and conviction but when things started to slip out of his control he would easily go too far. THAT made him an interesting "bad guy" you could still root for and this was always made easier to accept when he was played by the constant gentleman, Mr. Cushing. In this movie he is a murdering, blackmailing rapist with no redeeming qualities whatsoever and that has always been offputting for me.

Simon Ward and the beautiful Veronica Carlson play the young couple caught up in his nefarious scheme, which this time involves a brain transplant procedure to help one of the Baron's ex-colleagues, and Freddie Jones is the possible brain recipient.

There are some nice moments throughout this film, with an unexpected flood that may reveal the location of a corpse being one of them, but everything is too downbeat and unlikeable to simply sit back and enjoy. Cushing is as great as he always is and the supporting cast ably assist him (Thorley Walters is wonderful as Inspector Frisch) but it's just not enough to keep this film alongside the other, better outings featuring the progressive scientist that we just love to see fail. The plot has a very interesting idea at its core but it's all undone by that extreme nastiness.

To be fair, it's more of an over the top, practically operatic, tragedy than a blood-soaked horror and the movie builds towards a suitable climax in that regard. It's never easy to say what other Hammer fans will like or dislike but this is an occasion when I seem to be very much in the minority. Most of the other reviews I have seen for this movie put it at or near the very top of the Hammer Frankenstein pile. I put it in the lower half.

6/10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Frankenstein-Must-Be-Destroyed-DVD/dp/B0001XLY56/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1353886637&sr=8-1

Frankenstein Created Woman (1967)

I've said it before and I'll say it again, if you get Christopher Lee in a Hammer movie then it is often one of their more entertaining outings. If you get Peter Cushing in a Hammer movie then you are, in my opinion, guaranteed a good time.

Cushing stars here as the infamous Baron, yet again, and this time has some scheme involving transplanting the very soul of a person into a dead body so that the spark of life can be reignited. Yes, he's as brilliant/bonkers as ever and you can already figure out some of what will transpire as the movie progresses. With the help of Dr. Hertz (Thorley Walters), he ends up transforming the life of young Christina (Susan Denberg), a scarred woman surrounded by tragedy.

Strangely reminiscent of A Clockwork Orange in places (with Alex and his droogs being replaced by some posh idiots lording it over those who serve their drinks), this movie struck me much more as a black, black comedy than an outright horror but I'm not sure if that's the standard interpretation of things. It seems right, however, when you witness the details of the Baron's latest scheme and the details/results we end up seeing.

Cushing is excellent in the lead role, and he is ably supported by the likes of Robert Morris, the aforementioned Walters, Peter Blythe, Barry Warren and Derek Fowlds (now most recognisable to UK TV viewers as . . . . him from Heartbeat). Then we have the lovely Denberg, who gets to have the most fun. Her character goes through the biggest transformation and Denberg acquits herself admirably, playing both lowly and meek and then forward and confident with equal success.

Directing from Anthony Hinds' screenplay, Terence Fisher keeps most of the violence and gore offscreen, for the most part, but wrings such watchable moments from his cast throughout that you never feel shortchanged. One of the better Hammer movies though others may, like me, enjoy it more as a black comedy than outright horror.

7/10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Ultimate-Hammer-Collection-Disc/dp/B000HN31KQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1352330170&sr=8-1

Dracula: Prince Of Darkness (1966)

The third movie from Hammer in the Dracula fold, this actually follows on more from the end of Dracula than has anything to do with The Brides Of Dracula and, as such, can be accepted almost as a direct sequel in itself.

Directed by Terence Fisher, and with Jimmy Sangster also involved, I was hoping for great things and found myself, sadly, a little disappointed. The story sees our sharp-toothed count laying on some hospitality for weary travellers while he rests in piece until, about halfway through the movie, the resurrection can occur. And what a glorious, crimson-covered resurrection it is - a definite highlight in a movie I found somewhat lacking in other areas. Once Christopher Lee is back on screen it's all the usual Hammer style (i.e. keep distressed damsels safe while the silent Count tries to get his wicked way, in a manner of speaking). And there's a memorable finale that fans will recall when it appears, if not beforehand, though I won't spoil it here.

There's no Van Helsing this time around. Instead, that role is taken over by the presence of Father Sandor (played by Andrew Keir). Keir is okay in the role but I always feel, just my personal preference, that any of the Hammer Dracula or Frankenstein movies not featuring Peter Cushing automatically start with a deficit to make up. As for the rest of the cast; Lee is as good as ever with his mute performance (all bared teeth and staring, bloodshot eyes), Philip Latham is excellent as the Count's manservant and thoroughly dodgy bloke, Thorley Walters is quite amusing as a Renfield-ish type who resides in the Father's care and Barbara Shelley gets some good screen moments in the latter half of the movie. Nobody else really makes much of an impression, to be honest. Suzan Farmer is a little adorable cutie with little to do except look in peril while Francis Matthews and Charles Tingwell play the buttoned down, stiff-upper-lipped lead gents just fine.

There's just something missing here and I can't quite put my finger on what it is. The pacing isn't a problem because, despite Dracula himself not appearing till round about the halfway mark, we have the usual Hammer moments including a tavern scene, a scared coach driver, the exploration of a seemingly empty castle, etc. The script isn't that memorable, the direction seems rather "safe" (that halfway highlight aside) and everything just stands out by dint of it not standing out. Maybe I expected too much but maybe, as I personally feel to be the case, this is simply one of the average Hammer horrors. After all, not every one can be a winner eh.

6/10

This is yet another Hammer title available in this wonderful, bargain box set - http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Ultimate-Hammer-Collection-Disc/dp/B000HN31KQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1351094407&sr=8-1