This isn't actually the worst horror movie I've ever seen, but it's pretty dull. The monster who eventually makes his appearance is effectively grotesque looking, but the badly dubbed dialog and heavily censored scenes make the picture sloppy looking and hard to follow. There are several confrontations between the mad scientist and his reluctant patient that seem heavily influenced by the 1932 Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, with Frederic March, and the monster's death scene at the end reminded me of the finale of the 1935 Werewolf of London.
As often happens with old movies, time has resulted in unexpected developments that make parts of the film humorous in a way no one could possibly have foreseen when making it in the early Sixties in Italy. My first thought on beholding the mad Professor was that he bears an astonishing resemblance to comedian Will Ferrell, which seems sort of appropriate, given the unintentionally funny aspects of parts of the film. The blonde stripper who is the beleaguered heroine of the movie strongly resembles Laura Dern, adding another layer of oddity to an already over the top film. Franca Parisi as the Doctor's lover/assistant is absolutely stunning, an incredible beauty who is reminiscent of Sophia Lauren.
The movie isn't really all that bad, but rather dull, considering the outrageous possibilities. No doubt the American distributors cut out a lot of footage that would have explained more of the characters' motivations, a problem found with most imported Italian horror movies of the early Sixties. The overblown romantic dialog, with the Doctor ranting about his unrequited love for his patient is the worst part of the movie; not helped by really poor dubbing.
Worth seeing once, for fans of Sixties Italian horror flicks, but overall negligible.
As often happens with old movies, time has resulted in unexpected developments that make parts of the film humorous in a way no one could possibly have foreseen when making it in the early Sixties in Italy. My first thought on beholding the mad Professor was that he bears an astonishing resemblance to comedian Will Ferrell, which seems sort of appropriate, given the unintentionally funny aspects of parts of the film. The blonde stripper who is the beleaguered heroine of the movie strongly resembles Laura Dern, adding another layer of oddity to an already over the top film. Franca Parisi as the Doctor's lover/assistant is absolutely stunning, an incredible beauty who is reminiscent of Sophia Lauren.
The movie isn't really all that bad, but rather dull, considering the outrageous possibilities. No doubt the American distributors cut out a lot of footage that would have explained more of the characters' motivations, a problem found with most imported Italian horror movies of the early Sixties. The overblown romantic dialog, with the Doctor ranting about his unrequited love for his patient is the worst part of the movie; not helped by really poor dubbing.
Worth seeing once, for fans of Sixties Italian horror flicks, but overall negligible.