Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed poster & wallpaper

Peter Cushing, Veronica Carlson, Freddie Jones

Baron Frankenstein is once again working with illegal medical experiments. Together with a young doctor, Karl and his fiancée Anna they kidnap the mentally sick Dr. Brandt, to perform the first brain ...( read more  read more... )transplantation ever.

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61% liked it

1,864 ratings

PG-13, 1 hr. 38 min.

Directed by: Terence Fisher

Release Date: February 11, 1969

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DVD Release Date: April 27, 2004

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Stats: 81 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (81)

  • ohagankieran
    May 28, 2009
    ohagankieran
    t is always difficult to make a fair and accurate assessment of a Hammer horror production, particularly one with the superlative quality of this particular work. ?Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed' is something of a change in pace for the series as Frankenstein himself appears to h...( read more)ave fallen into madness rather than practicing misunderstood and unethical medicine as in the previous instalments. His methods are still unethical, that cannot be debated, but there is a noticeable emphasis this time around on the Baron's work being for his own advancement rather than for the benefit of man. Although the typical self-promoting dialogue from Frankenstein would indicate that he is attempting the surgery for the benefit of mankind, there is an undoubted distinction between the Frankenstein of this movie and the ones of the past. This new direction for the character is coupled with a monstrous personality that continually dictates that nobody matters as long as the Baron gets what he desires. Frankenstein is willing to go to any lengths necessary in order to accomplish his goal and his pure focus towards his goal only wanes a mere couple of times. The Baron's deterioration into lunacy is exceedingly well portrayed during a particularly violent (but short) rape sequence. The intensity on Cushing's face adds to the believability of the scene and the image is so powerful that it could linger in the viewers mind and give the movie a new, raw and brutal edge. Peter Cushing is able to adapt his style of acting to fit the new persona of the Baron and offers a remarkably visceral performance rather than the calculated performances of the past. As with almost every movie that Cushing participated in, his on-screen presence is powerful and commanding and this alerts the viewer to the necessity of paying attention to his character.

    The film follows the archetypal pattern for Hammer horrors. The film starts off powerfully with two predominantly memorable sequences, the most sensational of which is the entrance of the diabolical Baron when he terrifies a petty thief. From there, the film moves towards the mechanics of the Baron's actions and his resolution to accomplish all that he seeks out to undertake. It is during this `mid-section' of the film that everything slows down while the emphasis is no longer on scares or action. However, through some very proficient direction from Terence Fisher the pacing and structure of this movie almost makes ?Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed' pre-eminent when compared to other movies of the era. Without a shadow of a doubt, ?Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed' should be held in the highest echelon of excellence within the Hammer family if only for its superb composition alone. The movie ends with an exhilarating climax yet the viewer could feel cheated by the abrupt nature in which the film ends. The hasty ending is one of the few faults in this movie but in retrospect serves the series well as it does leave certain questions unanswered. The other faults with the movie are so intermittent that although they are noticeable, they rarely detract from the viewing experience. Having said that, there are a couple of scenes which seem to be unnecessarily prolonged which temporarily obstruct the otherwise smooth, flowing feel that the movie has. These scenes represent the very few moments where a viewer could temporarily lose their concentration on the movie. However, even considering the prolonged nature of the scenes in question, one cannot fault the pacing of the movie as Terence Fisher's direction shows impressive capability and he makes these scenes fit into the movie almost seamlessly.

    Even with the sporadic lapses in quality ?Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed' is fundamental viewing for any serious horror movie fan. This is a movie based around great performances, stunning visuals, a haunting and atmospheric soundtrack as well as quintessential Hammer-style horror. My rating for ?Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed'
  • rubystevens
    April 18, 2009
    rubystevens
    one of the best hammers i've seen. peter cushing is brilliant as the diabolical baron. however there's a rape scene in this which just feels gratuitous to me so i'm dropping it half star for that. how did it advance the plot in any way and why is it never mentioned again?
  • BloodyKitten
    July 25, 2008
    BloodyKitten
    Another great Gothic classic featuring Peter Cushing. Although the presence of a monster is sorely amiss for most of the movie, it's still a great flick for a rainy day.
  • betomovies
    August 3, 2009
    betomovies
    El Dr Frankenstein mas malvado y el monstruo mas humanizado de la saga
  • mpghoul1973
    May 7, 2009
    mpghoul1973
    Cushing decent into madness is at its peak! Great shot in the film were a woman is forced to hide a body and the local authorities show up.
  • UglyThing
    January 26, 2009
    UglyThing
    damn where is the scene of rape?? i have a copy of movie from italian Tv only.
    I WANNA SEE THE RAPE SCENE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! is it true?
  • cancercapricorn2002
    November 10, 2008
    cancercapricorn2002
    Dr. Baron Victor Frankenstein (Peter Cushing) has seen his experiments fail time and again, regardless of his intense personal effort. He has put his heart and soul, not to mention people's organs, into his creations, only to foiled with each one. The latest work has been ruined ...( read more)also, this time by the poor timed invasion of Dr. Frankenstein's workspace. The incident has convinced the doctor that he needs to bring in some help, as he can't handle the entire load himself. He turns his attention toward Dr. Karl Holst (Simon Ward), a local doctor who isn't as on edge as Frankenstein, but isn't above underhanded deeds. Frankenstein blackmails Holst into his service, to iron some research that could be the solution to Frankenstein's problems. The solution could rest within the mind of Dr. Frederick Brandt (George Pravda), who has cracked the code on cryogenics. He has been able to freeze a human brain, a process which Frankenstein is dying to put into motion. But Brandt has gone insane and is locked up in a mental institution, which of course means his precious data is locked up as well. Frankenstein believes if he can transplant Brandt's brain into a normal donor, the madness will vanish. Can Dr. Frankenstein make this experiment work and unlock the cryogenic data, or will this be another failure?

    As Hammer rolled out sequels, the studio's flame seemed to be close to extinction, but as it turned out, the fire still burned. In Terence Fisher's Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed, we see that with the right assortment of talent, in front of and behind the camera, Hammer could knock out some terrific horror cinema. In this, Hammer's fifth Frankenstein picture, you'd think the source would be thin, as it was with the studio's Dracula movies. But instead, Fisher is able to weave in some great new twists and retain the tone of the series, which results in a well crafted production, perhaps one of the director's finest projects. I do think the writing, which is superb on the whole, does abandon some subplots in haste, which is a disappointment. If these smaller lines were fleshed out more, who knows how good this film could have been. The cast is excellent as well, with Peter Cushing out in front of the pack. His turn is one of his best in the series, focused and on his game, which adds a lot to the movie. The rest of the cast is solid also, which is good news, since the movie follows a decent number of characters. I would rank this with Hammer's top genre pictures and right behind Frankenstein Created Women ( which to me is the best in the series)
  • sleepykiss
    October 24, 2008
    sleepykiss
    Major fav Hammer/Frankenstein/ PCushing flick. And that female mental patient should win an Oscar for Best Horror Scream, it just goes on & on... lol.
  • thomasscott2
    March 22, 2008
    thomasscott2
    With this film it usually really enjoy the classic Hammer horror fiilms, this is just a bad adaption of the story. Rather boring, but it has it's moments.
  • mikezillatron
    January 11, 2008
    mikezillatron
    not one of favorite hammer films.

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