In the first of this Franco monster mayhem double bill, Draucla Prisoner of Frankenstein, we see Jonathan Seward (Alberto Dalbés) drive a stake through the heart of the Prince of Darkness himself, Count Dracula (Howard Vernon) in an attempt to end his reign of terror. However, with the aid of his assistant Morpho (Luis Barboo) and his newly re-animated monster (Fernando Bilbao), Dr. Frankenstein (Dennis Price) revives Dracula’s corpse by covering it in bat form with the fresh blood of Estela, a cabaret singer (Josyane Gilbert). Along with a female vampire companion (Britt Nichols), Dracula is set loose upon the locals to carry out Frankenstein’s evil bidding.
A rather inept Jonathan Seward tries to halt the proceedings, but is beaten by the monster, so is lent a helping hand by Amira the Gypsy (Genevieve Deloir), who summons up a werewolf to do battle against the forces of darkness in an all out monster throw down!
Although influenced by, don’t go expecting the stylish quality of Universal or Hammer monster movies here, hell this is more comparable to the trash outing of Al Adamson’s Dracula vs. Frankenstein. With Howard Vernon’s Dracula looking as if he had an accident with an exploding jam donut, while kindergarten kids put together Frankenstein’s monster with poster paint and crayons, this is a total laugh riot. Although featuring a cast of Franco movie regulars, Dracula Prisoner of Frankenstein is surprisingly absent of nudity and quite tame by his usual standards.
The monster mash continues with Dr. Frankenstein (this time played by Dennis Price) finally bestowing his monster with the gift of life, only to be murdered by the bizarre bird-woman, Melissa (Anne Libert) who steals his creation for her master, Cagliostro (as in the 18th century occultist & alchemist – played by Howard Vernon) in his bid to create a race of devout superhuman followers. Hot on the heels of her fathers murderer, Vera Frankenstein (yes, Vera Frankenstein – Beatriz Savón) tracks down Cagliostro for a battle of wills to become the master of Frankenstein’s monster.
Featuring a cameo by Franco himself as Frankenstein’s assistant Morpho and with appearances again by Britt Nichols, Fernando Bilbao, Alberto Dalbés & Luis Barboo, Curse of Frankenstein begins to stray slightly more towards Franco’s usual output of sex & sadism, with Howard Vernon portraying Caglistro in a manner not a million miles away from Franco’s classic The Awful Dr Orloff.
We also see a small role by Franco muse, Lina Romay playing Esmeralda The Gypsy, in an almost unrelated subplot that serves little more than to slow the proceedings down and is something that Franco himself said is not something he would see in his own final cut.
As with many of Franco’s films of the time, Curse of Frankenstein was filmed with different edits for home and export markets. The version shown here is the Spanish “clothed” version (the unclothed alternative takes from the export Erotic Rites of Frankenstein appear as extras on the disc). Personally, I think the unclothed scenes actually add more of Franco’s usual spice to the film, so it’s maybe unfortunate that the choice had to be made to go with the better quality print material of the clothed version, although the clothed version is the editon also on general release in other territories.
With an almost fetish looking silver sprayed Frankenstein’s monster, the bird-woman, Melissa and her feathered / talon gloved hands, some whipping, some freaky looking undead minions, Howard Vernon camping it up as ever and OTT set-pieces, Curse of Frankenstein is a lot of trashy fun and of the two movies the more entertaining.
It has to be said, even with his most accessible works, Jess Franco’s movies are an acquired taste and something that you’ll either simply love or hate, there’s very little middle ground for most people. Both of these films are considerably restrained efforts when compared to much of Franco’s more infamous output, so aren’t really a good introduction for the uninitiated or likely to gain him any new fans.
Still, it has to be said that even in Franco’s lesser movies, there are still flashes of inspiration that can draw a viewer in if they let it. While I personally enjoy the sheer kitsch, trashy quality of these films and am a Franco enthusiast overall, I’m sure many people won’t understand the attraction, therefore I would recommend them more to fellow Francophiles and diehard Eurotrash fans.
Tartan Video have done a great job with this double disc release, being the best DVD release available globally of Dracula Prisoner of Frankenstein, with an Anomorphic 1.85:1 transfer. The picture quality in places for both is maybe a little grainy, but far from serious and a far better job than would be expected considering the source material. Both films have a solid mono dolby digital soundtrack in Spanish, with removable English subtitles. I’m sure Franco detractors would argue these films have received far better treatment than they deserve!
Extra features include:
Alternate and Deleted Scenes
Includes collectible reproduction art cards for both films
This disc can be puchased directly from Tartan Video or from any other good on-line stockists in the UK or from Xploitedcinema.com in the US.
Tartan have also released a Jess Franco Double Bill Volume 2, featuring Devil’s Island Lovers & Night of the Assassins which I will be reviewing shortly.
6 / 10
Find All the Colours of the Dark at MySpace.com
