COLLECTOR'S CRYPT - FRANKENSTEIN '80 (CAULDRON FILMS BLU RAY)
The Universal Monsters are one of the most recognizable aspects of the horror genre. Across continents, countries, and campuses almost everyone knows the famous look of Boris Karloff from Frankenstein (1931). While Karloff may be the iconography of the character, he is certainly not the only one to do the makeup of literature's most famous monster. In fact, there is an entire sub-genre of films that riff on the success of the Universal Monsters from the likes of Hammer Films to Kenneth Branagh with varying degrees of success. It wasn’t just the British who found inspiration from Frankenstein’s Monster, but also their “amiche” in Italy as well. One of the hallmarks of Italian Exploitation films is that nothing is off-limits. Copyright law violations be damned, and no subject is too taboo for the screen and that is precisely what makes so many of these films so much fun. Thanks to the fine folks at up-and-coming label Cauldron Films, we now have a prime example of this Italian Exploitation with 1972’s Frankenstein ‘80. Is this monster a creation worthy of your time or is it just a bunch of spare parts you can pass on?
WHAT’S IT ABOUT?
When Professor Schwarz invents a new serum that helps transplant patients better accept their new organs, Dr. Frankenstein quickly steals it to bring to life his greatest creation... Mosaic! Once alive, Mosaic is uncontrollable and escapes from the lab nightly to solicit prostitutes and leave a trail of corpses across the city that only seems to baffle the police and create a wave of fear.
HOW IS IT?
Adaptations just aren’t easy, and often in the pursuit of perfection, adaptations end up alienating the objectors and promoters alike. Nevertheless, adaptations offer new perspectives on characters embedded into our shared cultural archetypes that can bring new life to old ideas and challenge material to maintain relevance under different periodic contexts. Take The Nutty Professor, a film where the premise between Jerry Lewis’ version and Eddie Murphy’s remake is essentially the same, but the cultural touchstones have adapted to modern problems. The similarities usually stop there, and that is about as close to the source material as Frankenstein ‘80 gets. While it is certainly entertaining, and sleazy, the mileage will vary depending on how much you enjoy the latter.
Narratively, there isn’t a lot in common with Shelley’s original texts. Here we have the monster, referred to as Mosiac, who hunts down women to steal their livers. Mosaic is the creation of Dr. Frankenstein, who steals a serum from his rival to experiment with bringing more dead people back to life. If that sounds bonkers, it absolutely is. Within the first 5 minutes of the movie, there is an organ being removed and for the first third, it feels like you’re lost in a lucid dream of an Italian medical soap opera Giallo. There are a lot of hallmarks of late-era Italian Exploitation on display here; hyped-up sexuality and misogyny, over-the-top gory violence, and caricatures of people as main characters. To its credit, this is all really entertaining, and for the first two acts of the movie you will either be all-in or on your way out depending on your definition of “taste”.
The problem with Frankenstein ‘80 is that it doesn’t know how to land the silly plane it has invited you on. While there are some exciting and interesting practical effects, special mention of the morphing Mosiac head, the final act of the film feels oddly pedestrian when compared to what came before it. Not only does the action come to a halt, but things also happen at the end of the second act that very well seem like story-ending affairs. Maybe there just wasn’t enough gas in this tank to carry it for almost 90 minutes, which is a shame since there is some fun to be had here even if it really isn’t easy to take very seriously. The audience for this isn’t your average horror fan, rather, it is the discerning lover of filth who will get the most out of this. Consider me the latter.
HOW DOES IT LOOK?
Cauldron Films carries the torch first lit by the likes of Vinegar Syndrome, Arrow, and Severin prioritizing restoration and quality above all. Frankenstein ‘80 looks gorgeous for a film of its age, and at times is deceptively crisp to trick you into thinking you’re watching something more recent and not made over 40 years ago. The film is presented in a 1.85:1 aspect ratio with a 2K restoration and 1080p HD picture. Similar to Cauldron’s City of the Living Dead release, this picture quality is setting a high benchmark for even tertiary content.
Images from this disc are used throughout this review as well as below:
HOW DOES IT SOUND?
Frankenstein ‘80 has a couple of audio options depending on your listening preference. The first is an English audio track and the other is the original Italian audio track. Both are offered in 2.0 stereo DTS-HD, alongside two subtitle options for the hearing impaired. The sound was just right for this release with no noticeable pops or hisses, and overall a good balance with dialogue, music, and diegetic sound.
ANYTHING SPECIAL?
For a film with very little broad name recognition, Cauldron Films puts forth some really fascinating supplementary material. One of the first is the Dalila Forever: The Recorded Memories of Dalila Di Lazzaro. This 27+ minute audio interview covers the life of actress Dalila Di Lazzaro who starred not just in this film, but many others across continents. This is really a fascinating first-hand account of a different time, place, and perspective on the film industry in Italy. Di Lazzaro’s journey has all the hallmarks of Hollywood even though much of her adventures occur elsewhere, and is a must-listen/watch for those who devour the history of the industry.
In addition to the above, a list of additional features on this release is below:
Extras
Dalila Forever: The Recorded Memories of Dalila Di Lazzaro
Little Frankensteins: History of Italian Frankenstein films with Domenico Monetti
Audio commentary by film historian Heather Drain
Reversible Blu-ray wrap with alternate artwork
LAST RITES
Frankenstein ‘80 isn’t going to win over die-hard fans of literary accuracy, but for those genre fans who enjoy heaps of sleaze in their adaptations, this release is a must-buy. And lest we forget that Cauldron Films aces the restoration and the supplemental material to sweeten the deal!
THE GORY DETAILS
Thank you to the fine fiends over at MVD ENTERTAINMENT for providing a review copy for the crypt! Frankenstein ‘80 is available NOW and can be purchased via MVD DIRECT or CAULDRON FILMS DIRECT!
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