The Evil of Frankenstein (1964)

Director: Freddie Francis
Starring: Peter Cushing, Peter Woodthorpe, Duncan Lamont

Synopsis:
With his experiments thwarted once more, Baron Frankenstein returns to his homeland in a bid to raise funds to resume his work.

Impressions:
I don't know if anyone expects much fidelity to established lore in Hammer films, but this one retcons the original film and replaces it with something much weaker. Apparently because this was made in collaboration with Universal, they opted to adhere more closely to the Universal design for the monster, only to do a rather crappy job of it. I did think the dynamic with Frankenstein and Hans was interesting, giving him a reliable, dedicated assistant for a change. His uneasy alliance with the sleazy hypnotist "Professor" Zoltan and the way the story wove in Frankenstein's old grudges in Karlstaad is pretty good, but overall this is a rather mediocre film, even when set against other mediocre Frankenstein sequels. As usual, Peter Cushing is the main reason to see this. Take it or leave it

Rating:
50/50