Frankenstein Created Woman is a 1967 British Hammer Horror film directed by Terence Fisher. It stars Peter Cushing as Baron Frankenstein and Susan Denberg as his new creation. It is the fourth film in Hammer's Frankenstein series.
A dead and frozen Baron Frankenstein is re-animated by his colleague Dr. Hertz proving to him that the soul does not leave the body on the instant of death. His lab assistant, young Hans, is found guilty of murdering the local pub owner with whom he had an argument where he foolishly swore to kill the man and Frankenstein acquires his body immediately after the execution. Hans had been quite friendly with the dead man's daughter Christina who returns just in time to see him guillotined. Distraught, she commits suicide and is brought back to life by the good Doctor but with Hans's brain replacing her own. As memories return to her - Hans's memories in fact - she sets out to pursue and kill those responsible for having sent him to his death.
The movie's notable for being one of Martin Scorsese's favorite horror movies.
Followed by 1969’s Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed.
Tropes in Frankenstein Created Woman:
- Asshole Victim: The obnoxious Anton who uses his position to take what he wants without paying, mercilessly mocks the crippled and disfigured Christina, and kills Kleve when the cafe owner catches Anton stealing from him. He even continues to mock the dead Christina in the moments before he dies: not realising that the womam he is with is Christina returned from the grave. At least his two companions express regret for their role in the murder, but Anton goes to his grave unrepentant.
- Chairman of the Brawl: During the fight in the cafe, Johann attempts to smash a chair over Hans's back.
- Clarke's Third Law: Mentioned as the reason Frankenstein wants to master soul transfering:Frankenstein: Everything we don't understand is magic until we understand it!
- Conspicuous Gloves: Baron Frankenstein wears black gloves at all times, concealing some unspecified damage to his hands. Dr. Hertz says that his are the hands that perform the surgery, but that Frankenstein's is the genius that guides them.
- Couldn't Find a Pen: After being mortally wounded, Karl writes the name of the killer on the floor of the cafe in his own blood. Of course, the name he writes is that of a man who has been dead for weeks.
- Diner Brawl: When Anton and his friends harass Christina in the cafe, Hans demands that they apologise. When they refuse, a brawl erupts.
- Driven to Suicide: Christina is driven to suicide after her lover Hans is executed for a crime he didn't commit.
- Gender Bender: Doctor Frankenstein successfully transfers the soul of a man into the just-drowned body of a deformed young woman. Frankenstein fixes up the woman's body, making her beautiful, but as with most of the Doctor's experiments, things start going downhill from there.
- Gotta Kill Them All: Hans's soul forces Christina to kill the three men who murdered her father and framed him for the crime.
- Grave Robbing: Christina breaks into Hans's grave to steal his head.
- A Handful for an Eye: Hans uses a pepper shaker to blind all three of the Upper Class Twits who attack him in the cafe.
- Honour Before Reason: Hans refuses to give any alibi for where he was when Kleve for murdered. This is because he was in bed with Christina, and he refuses to besmirch her honour. His remaining silent results in him being executed.
- The Hyena: Hans's father, who howls with laughter all the way to guillotine.
- Identity Amnesia: Christina's first question after being resurrected is "Who am I?". Initially, she has no memory of her prior existence as either Christina or Hans.
- I Just Want to Be Beautiful: Christina is badly disfigured down one side of her face, and her body is twisted. The desire she expresses to Hans is not even to look beautiful, but just 'to look normal'. After her death, she is reconstructed as an absolute stunner by Baron Frankenstein.
- I Need a Freaking Drink: After hearing Hans's voice calling to him in the street, Anton dashes into the cafe, grabs Karl's drink (over Karl's objections) and drains it in a single draught.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: In contrast to other Hammer Frankenstein films, Frankenstein in this film is arrogant and high-handed, but not malicious, and sincerely tries to stop Christina from killing Johann and is shocked when she kills herself for a second time.
- Off with His Head!: Both Hans and his father are executed by being guillotined. Later, Christina murders Anton, Karl and Johann by cutting their heads off.
- Pet the Dog: Frankenstein testifies on Hans' behalf.
- Possessing a Dead Body: Baron Frankenstein transplants Hans's soul into Christina's dead body. When the body awakens, it has no memory of who it is. Eventually, Hans's memories start to resurface and compel Christina to go on a Roaring Rampage of Revenge. Hans's actions seem to awaken some of Christina's own memories, and at the end of the film, she commits suicide again.
- Professor Guinea Pig: Baron Frankenstein is testing his theory that the soul does not leave the body at the moment of death by allowing himself to the buried for an hour, then frozen, and then revived by his assistant Dr. Hertz.
- Public Execution: Most of the town turns out to watch Hans's guillotining. A woman in the coach with Christina urges the driver to make better speed so she doesn't miss it.
- Same Language Dub: Susan Denberg was dubbed by Nikki van der Zyl, who did this a lot in sixties British films, because her German accent was considered to be too strong by the producers.
- Screw the Rules, I Have Money!: basically the whole motive of Anton and his friends to be as contemptuous as humanly possible
- Screw This, I'm Out of Here!: After his two companions are murdered, Johann decides that his best course of action is to flee the village and he boards the next coach out of town. Unfortunately for him, Christina has foreseen this and is waiting for him on board the coach.
- Sexy Packaging: The poster used as the illustration above shows Susan Denberg showing much more skin than she ever does in the actual film.
- Shout-Out: The title is one to And God Created Woman.
- Sins of Our Fathers: The fact that Hans's father was a murderer is why he is looked down upon by the townspeople, and is used as "evidence" against him at his trial.
- So Much for Stealth: Anton, Johann and Karl break into the cafe to continue drinking. When Kleve returns for his keys, the trio hide. They might have escaped notice, except the one hiding behind the bar knocks over a bottle and alerts Kleve to their presence.
- Sympathetic Murderer: Christina's victims are the people who murdered her father and framed Hans for the crime.
- Upper-Class Twit: Anton, Johann and Karl are a trio of young nobleman who stride the town with a sense of entitlement, demanding whatever they want. They are the ones who commit the murder Hans is accused of.
- Window Pain: After Frankenstein ignores an angry mob pounding on his door, they get his attention by throwing a cobblestone through the window.
