Flesh and Blood: The Hammer Heritage of Horror

I found this documentary to be very interesting. Although most of the clips from the Hammer films were in the format of theatrical trailers (due to actual film clips being too expensive), I found that there was enough of a mix of interviews and clips to keep most people happy. The narration was good (as you would expect from Peter Cushing & Christopher Lee) but was also tinged with sadness, as when it was shown in the UK (on consecutive Saturday evenings) Peter Cushing died before the second part was shown. It can truly be seen as his swansong for Hammer, for whom he made so many classic films.

Perhaps no other studio has been linked with the horror genre more so than that of the English Hammer Studio. Flesh and Blood is the story of that studio and its meteoric rise in the late fifties and its crashing demise in the late seventies. The chronicle is related to the audience through the voices of the studio's biggest stars...Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee. This was Cushing's last project before his death in 1994, and it is thrilling just to hear him speak of his days of old with Hammer. Christopher Lee adds more insights into his films and about those people that worked in front and behind the camera. Among those interviewed are Hammer starlets Raquel Welch, Veronica Carlson, Ingrid Pitt, delicious Hazel Court, and Caroline Munro, Hammer producers and directors Anthony Hinds, Michael Carreras, Jimmy Sangster, Freddie Francis, and Val Guest, and other notables such as actor Andrew Keir. This documentary starts out with the studio's success with the Quatermass movies and then spends a good amount of time going over the breakthrough film The Curse of Frankenstein and its sequels and then The Horror of Dracula and its sequels. Ted Newsom certainly has done a great job with this definitive story of the House that Hammer Built!

Hammer Films was the most successful independent production company in the history of the British film industry. Starting in the 1950's, they produced a memorable series of low budget science fiction and gothic horror films. These films were marked by high production values, solid technical work, strong acting, and intelligent writing and directing.

Their breakthrough came in 1957 with the release of THE CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN. This low budget film became one of the most profitable films in the history of British cinema, as well as the most influential genre film to be released since the end of the Second World War. Today, numerous film makers acknowledge Hammer Films as an influence on their work. They include, George Lucas, Stephen Spielberg, Martin Scorcese, Joe Dante, John Landis, and John Carpenter, to name only a few.

Ted Newsom, the writer and director of FLESH AND BLOOD, originally made it in 1994, when it was shown on British television. The Anchor Bay Video Edition is Copyright 1997. Ted Newsom has succeeded in capturing a moment in time when a number of the people who made these films were still with us. Now, a few short years later this is no longer the case.

This was the last project that Peter Cushing completed before his death in 1994. He is heard in the off camera narration and seen only in film clips. Cushing's old friend Christopher Lee joins him in the off camera narration and in an on camera interview, as well as in film clips. The other interviews are candid and informative. Most of these people remember working for Hammer with real affection.

The one drawback in this documentary is that the film clips are taken from trailers. This avoided paying fees to distributors, but limits the choice and quality of the footage. On the other hand, FLESH AND BLOOD is well organized and researched. It presents a view of a memorable era in British film production with clarity and insight. For anyone who is already a Hammer fan, this is a must. For anyone who is just getting acquainted with their films, this will serve as an excellent introduction.

I grew up watching the Hammer horror films on TV in the late 1970s. Even though some of them were severely edited (for violence and time) they still scared me silly and I was impressed by the acting and lush settings. In 1994 (a few years before Peter Cushing's death) they got together him and Christopher Lee to narrate a documentary on Hammer films. They also had tons of interview footage of Hammer directors, producers, editors, composers, executives etc etc talking about productions. Also many actors of the various Hammer movies talked about their roles and the productions themselves. Raquel Welch and Martine Beswick give very amusing commentaries and Veronica Carlson talks about a disgusting rape scene she was forced to act in for "Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed". It was (thankfully) cut from the final print but the footage is here.

If you're a horror fan (like me) this is a just engrossing insight into how some of the best horror films of the 1950s-1970s were made. This isn't a whitewash job either. The actors and executives do complain about issues and problems they had with scripts and productions. Just fascinating from beginning to end. My only complaint--the footage from Hammer films is in pretty poor shape. Couldn't they have gotten some better prints?

Documentary, narrated by Lee and Cushing charting the huge success of Hammer at Bray studios. It covers the categories of films eg Frankenstein, Dracula and others rather than opt for a straight chronological journey and as well as many great clips to jog memories there are some fascinating insights from directors and producers.

A touch stilted / unimaginative in its presentation, but worth seeing if you're interest in film history or just loved the Hammer films.