THE HORROR OF FRANKENSTEIN <br /><br />Aspect ratio: 1.85:1<br /><br />Sound format: Mono<br /><br />Jimmy Sangster's feeble hybrid is a misguided attempt to fulfil two ambitions: First to remake THE CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1957) - the film which launched Hammer Studios to worldwide fame - with half the budget and twice the irony; and second, to promote Ralph Bates as their new 'youth-oriented' star. The film fails on both counts because of the cheapjack production values and the general air of mockery, and because Bates plays the Baron as an arrogant, dissolute youth with few redeeming features, completely lacking the ice-cold authority of Peter Cushing in his prime. Hammer could never appeal to the 'youth' market without falling flat on its face, and this one is no exception. Here, the Baron works his way through a threadbare cast-list, seeking spare parts to build a monster that ends up looking like a pro-wrestler! Naturally, the brain is damaged before he manages to sew it into the creature's cranium, providing an excuse for some lacklustre mayhem once the monster is up and running. <br /><br />There are minor virtues: Dennis Price enjoys himself as a graverobber who goes about his business with an unseemly glee, and the wonderful Kate O'Mara is upstaged by her own cleavage, but horror fans won't be amused by the film's rambling plot and half-hearted attempts at humor. Thankfully, the series bowed out in style three years later when Peter Cushing re-teamed with director Terence Fisher for the dignified swan song FRANKENSTEIN AND THE MONSTER FROM HELL (1973).