Icons of Horror: Hammer Films (2-disc) (The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb / The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll / Scream of Fear / The Gorgon)

Three of these 60's Hammers have great-looking color and blemish-free prints. 'Scream of Fear' is black and white and has a grainier print that is still quite satisfactory.

'The Gorgon' is the best of the four. Director Terence Fisher has given it the same stylish treatment as his Dracula films, and it is likewise set in Transylvania country, or close. The atmosphere is eerie and the coldness and remoteness of the region really come across well. And, what a cast.
Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee alone would be sufficient for a recommendation. Actually, Lee has a smaller role than usual here, though he is professional as always. Barbara Shelley brings a highly individual beauty and fragility to her role as Cushing's nurse, and Richard Pasco is excellent as a student seeking answers over his father's and brother's deaths.
'The Gorgon' may not have the best special effects of all time, but I really have no complaints.

'The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb' is pretty enjoyable, though I would rank it third, behind Hammer's 'The Mummy' and 'The Mummy's Shroud' in terms of the studio's Mummy forays. (I am not familiar with 'Blood from the Mummy's Tomb'.) The best thing about 'Curse' is Fred Clark's greedy American businessman. I would place Clark in a tie with Forrest Tucker's ugly American from 'The Abominable Snowman' as to which of them is the least sensitive and most politically incorrect. I do think 'Curse' would have been better had Fisher directed. Michael Carreras's work makes the movie look more like a competent TV thriller, albeit with good production design.

'The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll' has a pretty interesting spin on Robert Louis Stevenson's story and a good evocation of 1890's London. The cast is good--didn't know Christopher Lee could play a compulsive gambler/gigolo so well--and Paul Massie is acceptable in the title role(s). Dawn Addams plays unfaithful wives as well as anyone I have seen. One look at her and you immediately know her husband needs a good lawyer. The biggest problem with 'Two Faces' is, once past the initial premise the plot quickly becomes rather routine.

'Scream of Fear' was written by Hammer staple Jimmy Sangster, and if you liked the movies 'Nightmare' or 'Paranoiac' this one is on a par. It's impossible to guess where the plot goes in 'Scream' and credibility does get pushed a bit far, but since it's Hammer it's not like we're asking for a story ripped from the headlines.

Unlike 'Icons of Adventure' this set has no extras. Still, the price is reasonable for four movies issued in mostly outstanding quality prints.

Just about all the Hammer I had been waiting for is now on DVD. The one I'm still missing is 1965's 'She', which I thought was excellent and needs to be issued in Region 1.

Sort of like the "B" side of Hammer Film's greatest hits, "Hammer Films: Four Creepy Classics" is a blast and, in some cases, surpasses some of the film company's better known classics. In order to truly appreciate these films, it may help to have viewed them as a child (when they had more power to terrify), or, at least, to watch them without the expectation of non-stop action and graphic gore that typifies most horror films in today's market.

First up is "Curse of the Mummy's Tomb", the first sequel to Hammer's 1959 Peter Cushing classic, "The Mummy" (itself a remake of, and improvement upon, a number of Universal horror flicks of the 1940's). "Curse" once again finds blasphemous archaeologists desecrating the tomb of an ancient pharaoh, with the usual mayhem resulting after an American showman (Fred Clark channeling P.T. Barnum) decides to take the gauze-covered mummy on a roadshow exhibition. After the usual suspects get wind of this, they resurrect the dusty fellow, who cuts a murderous swath through London before beauty and innocence prove to be his undoing. Terence Morgan, Ronald Howard (no relation to the director), and Jeanne Roland round out the perfectly acceptable cast. Not great, but still quite fun, "Curse" may suffer in comparison to its predecessor, but it's still better than the tired Mummy retreads that Universal has been belching out lately.

"The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll" is a surprisingly sexy (for its time) look at the infamous doctor and his alter-ego's sordid doings. Beautiful cinematography and a good cast enhance this story about stuffy Doctor J's transformation into good-looking, sophisticated, man-about-town, Mr. Hyde (both excellently played by Paul Massie). While the good doctor's wife (Dawn Addams) canoodles with his best friend (Christopher Lee), Mr. Hyde hooks up with a snake-charmer in a colorful den of iniquity overseen by bouncer Oliver Reed (in an early screen role). Everyone is lusty and having a grand old time (except for poor old Jekyll) until Hyde's nasty temper begins getting the better of him, and then it's curtains for a number of characters. This is, perhaps, my favorite film on the DVD, although the scene where a seemingly agile, healthy adult stands perfectly still and screams while an extremely slow-moving python slithers over to dispatch said victim is irritatingly ludicrous.

"The Gorgon" pairs Hammer faves Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee as two Eastern European doctors at odds with one another as they try to track down the mysterious titular creature responsible for a number of deaths in the local village. Flame-haired Barbara Shelley co-stars as Cushing's beautiful nurse, with Richard Pasco on hand as her suitor. There are some slow moments in "The Gorgon", and the monster, herself, is best seen when reflected in mirrors and pools of water, because the make-up department didn't do anyone any favors with this get-up of rubber snakes and bloodshot eyeballs. Still, it's a pretty good film with high production values, decent acting, and a certain amount of suspense.

All in all, I thought "Scream of Fear"--not a horror film, per se--was the creepiest film of the bunch. A wheelchair-bound American heiress (Susan Strasberg) arrives at the French Riviera estate of her estranged father, only to find him missing and her stepmother (Ann Todd) acting suspiciously cozy with the local doctor (Christopher Lee, again, adopting a French accent). The only one of the four movies to be filmed in black and white, "Scream of Fear" has a weird, scary quality that recalls such low budget shockers as "Dementia 13" and "Paranoiac"; there's something claustrophobic about that black-and-white estate that invites cautious looks over the shoulder when characters enter darkened rooms they know they should stay out of. Though not as bloody and violent as "Dementia 13" and its ilk (which are tame by today's standards), "Scream of Fear" succeeds in creeping out the viewer with what it doesn't show. Again, the acting is first-rate with both Strasberg and Todd, in totally opposing roles, giving sympathetic performances, and Lee and actor, Ronald Lewis, fine as the male stand-bys. Again, I was bothered by a perfectly ludicrous scene in this film, when one character is brutally (and unnecessarily) killed while the rest of the cast hovers around the edges, waiting to "make their move".

While they have certainly produced better films in the past, the four included on this collection are more than worthy of Hammer's growing DVD canon and a nice addition for collectors.

This is truly a nice gift for the Halloween season. Hammer films of England has been a great purveyor of gothic horror movies during the 1950s and 1960s. This collection is fairly representative of Hammer's work from 1959 through 1964. The presentation of the films in this DVD package was very clear and crisp. The colors were simply sumptuous! I first saw the Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll in a VHS tape. The colors and the look were very faded and muddy. In this DVD, we saw the film as if we were at the movie theater back in 1959. The other three films also look great. Kudos goes to Sony Pictures for the great work done in making these four films available for our viewing pleasure! Finally, it should be noted that all four films are available with closed captions and also have English subtitles for those who are hearing impaired. I only wished the folks at Universal who produced that horrendous DVD package of The Hammer Horror Series (Brides of Dracula, Curse of the Werewolf, etc.), with its flawed and mostly unviewable disks, used the same care which Sony did with this DVD collection. The only problem with this Sony collection is that only trailers are available as special features. But, hey, it is great to have these Hammer films finally in DVD. I look forward to seeing more Hammer classics coming out in the future.

[This review is part of my 31 days of Halloween Series]

I will only comment on THE GORGON, as it is a really great Hammer Production film, created at the height of the company's prestige. The attention to detail & production values are of the highest caliber & the cast headed by Peter Cushing is excellent. The plot at first sight seems ridiculous: One of the original 3 Gorgon's fled her homeland in Greece & eventually settled in Great Britain. All three hideous sisters could turn to stone anyone who dared to look upon their frightening faces & writhing serpent hair. The details of how all this came about don't matter either. The movie opens in an appropriately abandoned mansion--well, it looks abandoned, but we all know who lives there. This atmosphere of suspense is maintained throughout the picture by the subplot: The creature appears as a beautiful woman most of the time, and only exhibits her less savory aspects on the night of the full moon (what else?) Another plot twist: Even the creature herself doesn't realize who she is when in human form. Of course it doesn't take too long to figure which character it is, but what the hell? Throughout the movie you get little tantalizing glimpses of the creature, but the complete Gorgon is only revealed at the end, and it's well worth the wait.

I loved it and I'm sure other kids will love it too.

NOTE: The movie deviates from mythology in that while it's true that Medusa was not immortal & could be killed, her two sisters were immortal. In fact, they are probably alive today, possibly living somewhere on the south coast of France.

Hammer Horror Collection (The Curse of Frankenstein / Dracula Has Risen from the Grave / Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed / Horror of Dracula / The Mummy / Taste the Blood of Dracula)
Hammer Horror Series (Brides of Dracula / Curse of the Werewolf / Phantom of the Opera (1962) / Paranoiac / Kiss of the Vampire / Nightmare / Night Creatures / Evil of Frankenstein)
Draculas: 4 Film Favorites - Horror of Dracula / Dracula Has Risen from the Grave / Taste the Blood of Dracula / Dracula A.D. 1972 (2DVD)
Countess Dracula / The Vampire Lovers

"Icons of Horror 3" is a two-disc set containing the uncut UK versions of four Hammer Films features made between 1960 and 1964. These are lesser Hammer films and aren't in the same league as the studio's Frankenstein and Dracula movies. "The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb" follows an expedition to Egypt as its members open a cursed crypt. The leader of the crew decides to give the ruins to a museum, but a fast-talking American grabs the tomb for a sideshow attraction. In "Scream of Fear," wheelchair-bound Penny (Susan Strasberg) pays a visit to her father's Riviera resort and finds her father's corpse propped up in the back yard. Everyone thinks she's crazy, but she believes she's the victim of a plot to drive her mad.
"The Gorgon," starring Hammer regulars Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee, takes place in a Balkan village where a professor is investigating the suicide of his youngest son. No one is willing to help the professor, so he enters the ruins of a local castle, where he encounters the legendary monster whose gaze turns men to stone. Before dying, the professor warns his eldest son, who continues the investigation.
"The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll" is yet another variation on the Robert Louis Stevenson tale. Absorbed in research to isolate the good and evil natures of man, Dr. Jekyll (Paul Massie) degenerates into the vengeful maniac, Mr. Hyde. While Hyde seeks revenge against a gambler whom his wife loves, Dr. Jekyll, revolted by his second nature, takes steps to do away with his evil self. Look for a young Oliver Reed in the small role of a nightclub bouncer.