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HORRORHOUND #35

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    Since the 1931 version of FRANKENSTEIN has always been one of my favorite films, it stands to reason that one of those reasons is because of the character of Dr. Frankenstein. While Colin Clive’s portrayal of the character may not be evil per say, he was at the very least misguided, if not a little crazy. But there are some of those doctors in movie history that are truly evil. For example, Peter Cushing’s version of the same character, Dr. Frankenstein, is about as evil as you can get. Throughout movie history, there are many others of these doctors and scientists who “play God” or experiment with things that man was not suppose to know or discover.
    And yet, most of the attention is given to the creations, the monsters, the mistakes that these people have made. But very little has been written about them, these twisted geniuses throughout movie history? Where is their credit? Where is their notoriety?
    So it is here, within this room, that we honor these wonderful, if not crazy characters, and the actors that gave these characters life on the screen, just as their characters gave life to their mad ideas or creations.

DR. HENRY FRANKENSTEIN
Portrayed by Colin Clive
Films: FRANKENSTEIN (1931), BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1935)
He is probably the most famous of all Mad Scientists, with his immortal cries of "It's alive!" His dream of creating life with his own hands had driven him to the borders of insanity and obsessions. With no thoughts of consequences, he continued on his work until he succeeded in knowing "what it's like to be God", only to abandon his creation afterwards. And once it looked like he had put these mad ideas behind him, he was blackmailed back into the obsession.
Colin Clive gives the performance of a deeply troubled man. His mind filled with obsession, wanting to go beyond the barriers set by man. And that troubled, manic personality comes through wonderfully.

BARON VICTOR FRANKENSTEIN
Portrayed by Peter Cushing
Films: CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1957), REVENGE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1958), EVIL OF FRANKENSTEIN (1964), FRANKENSTEIN CREATED WOMAN (1967), FRANKENSTEIN MUST BE DESTROYED (1969), FRANKENSTEIN AND THE MONSTER FROM HELL (1974)
He may be a brilliant doctor searching to break through into the unknown for the advancement of medical science, but how he gets there or who dies on the way is no concern of his. At times, he gives reasoning behind his theories that almost make you think his ideas are for the better of mankind. But when it comes down to it, anybody and everybody is expendable to meet his devilish means.
No other actor has played Dr. Frankenstein in more films than Peter Cushing. Hammer decided to make the doctor the real monster of their Frankenstein movies. And Cushing always delivered an incredible performance in each of those.

HERBERT WEST
Portrayed by Jeffrey Combs
Films: RE-ANIMATOR (1985), BRIDE OF RE-ANIMATOR (1990), BEYOND RE-ANIMATOR (2003)
Like his forefathers, West is a very driven man. He is determined to discover the mysterious of life and death and will let nobody get in his way. Even if that means people will die. With his little re-agent fluid, bringing the dead to some sort of life, West and whoever he can con into being his helper, are always trying something new to unlock those doors to the beyond. He has no feelings towards anybody else, and basically sees them as tools, or steps in his path to progress.
Jeffrey Combs became an overnight sensation in the horror genre after the release of RE-ANIMATOR. While he has played many memorable characters in other horror movies, especially Peter Jackson’s FRIGHTENERS, Herbert West is what he’s remembered the most for to horror fans. While the RE-ANIMATOR movies are funny or camp, Combs’ performance is so straight and so believable, that he shines brighter than that glowing green fluid that he’s always carrying around.

DOCTOR HENRY LOGAN
Portrayed by Richard Liberty
Film: DAY OF THE DEAD (1985)
Dr. Logan, or Dr. Frankenstein, as he's called by the ignorant military thugs that he's forced to work with, is trying to discover the mysteries of the living dead...zombies. What drives them to eat human flesh? What keeps them alive? Can we train them to our advantage? These are the questions that Dr. Logan was working on. Granted, if solving these questions might take sacraficing a soldier here and there, it was all in the good of mankind, right?
Richard Liberty, who had previously worked with Romero in his film THE CRAZIES, gives one hell of a performance here. On one side, his portrayal of Dr. Logan is a very scientific and has a determined drive to learn more about these creatures. But on the other side, he's just plain crazy. And Liberty does an incredible job bringing out that performance. Even just by the look in his eyes, you can tell that the lights are on, but there's a few empty rooms in there. Every time I watched DAY again, I find more entertainment and awe out of Liberty's performance. It's a shame that he didn't get the attention he deserved before passing away. At least here, we can give him the honor he much so deserved.