Ketchup and Cleavage: The 20 Best Hammer Horror Films
A list of what are, in my opinion, the 20 finest horror films produced by Hammer Films. The list is in no particular order, and represents what I believe to be the finest of the films produced by this wonderful studio. Many of these films rescued the dwindling horror genre in the late '50s and '60s, and along with A.I.P, ushered in a new era of horror that combined lush colors, historical settings, sex, and blood... lots of blood.
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- DirectorTerence FisherStarsPeter CushingChristopher LeeMichael GoughWhen Jonathan Harker rouses the ire of Count Dracula for accepting a job at the vampire's castle under false pretenses, his friend Dr. Van Helsing pursues the predatory villain.For the first time, Dracula is presented as youthful, agile, and sneeringly aristocratic. Wonderful Victorian sets and top-notch performances from Lee and Cushing make this one of Hammer's best.
- DirectorTerence FisherStarsPeter CushingHazel CourtRobert UrquhartWhile awaiting execution for murder, Baron Victor Frankenstein tells the story of a creature he built and brought to life - only for it to behave not as he intended.The film that kicked off the gothic revival in horror cinema. Shot in glorious color, this film broke new bounds in horror violence that was more than a bit shocking for 1957. Wonderful performances again from Lee and Cushing, and a representation of the monster that was the closest ever to Shelley's novel at the time.
- DirectorTerence FisherStarsPeter CushingChristopher LeeYvonne FurneauxIn 1895, British archaeologists find and open the tomb of Egyptian Princess Ananka with nefarious consequences.As with Hammer's previous two forays into reviving the old Universal Studios monsters, Hammer jettisons the plot of the Karloff original. Directed by Hammer stalwart Terence Fisher from a screenplay from the great Jimmy Sangster, this features one of the series moments in Hammer history, as the mummy (Lee), slowly emerges from an English bog.
- DirectorJohn GillingStarsAndré MorellDiane ClareBrook WilliamsDuring a mysterious epidemic in a small Cornish village, the local doctor summons his professor friend for help.Released years before Romero would redefine the zombie genre with Night of the Living Dead, this film still has the power to chill. The zombie makeup is quite horrifying, and the film perfectly balances historical setting and contemporary gruesomeness. And the political subtext involving workers and capitalists is quite fascinating.
- DirectorDon SharpStarsClifford EvansEdward de SouzaNoel WillmanWhen car trouble strands a honeymooning couple in a small Southern European village, an aristocratic family in the area reaches out to help them with sinister consequences.One of Hammer's off-Dracula productions of an original Vampire tale, this film features wonderful performances and a gruesome ending featuring a hoard of vampire bats. A coven of vampires prey upon an unsuspecting village, and the only hope lies in a rather hapless hero and a roving vampire hunter.
- DirectorTerence FisherStarsPeter CushingShane BriantMadeline SmithBaron Frankenstein works with a mental patient to reanimate the dead.In directing the last of Hammer's Frankenstein films, Terence Fisher pulls out all the stops here and literally paints the walls with blood. After assuming a false identity, the Baron (Cushing once again) finds refuge in a insane asylum, which allows him to continue his experiments. The monster he creates is nothing like anything previously seen: hideous, simian, a Darwinian nightmare. The anatomy and dissection scenes are gruesome, yet Cushing has a great time with it all, infusing the Baron's character with great gusto.
- DirectorTerence FisherStarsChristopher LeeBarbara ShelleyAndrew KeirTen years after his demise, Count Dracula is resurrected by his servant and preys on four unsuspecting English tourists who have taken shelter in his castle.The first true remake in a long line of Hammer Dracula pictures, this film boasts a wonderful sense of atmosphere and a truly menacing performance by Lee.
- DirectorTerence FisherStarsPeter CushingMartita HuntYvonne MonlaurVampire hunter Dr. Van Helsing returns to Transylvania to destroy handsome bloodsucker Baron Meinster, who has designs on a beautiful young schoolteacher.A kind-of/sort-of semi-sequel to Horror of Dracula, Brides of Dracula tells the story of a young man and his mother who are the last remaining disciples of Dracula and prey upon the inhabitant of a remote village. Cushing reprises his role as Van Helsing in this moody and atmospheric film.
- DirectorJohn GillingStarsNoel WillmanJennifer DanielRay BarrettIn a Cornish village, various locals die from mysterious snake bites, but the coroner rules the deaths as heart attacks, until a family of newcomers starts an investigation.A real oddity, The Reptile is yet another Victorian horror from Hammer, but is an original tale of a family suffering under a hideous curse. The makeup was quite startling for its time, and the film offers many eerie sense on the moors. A great, not-so-well-known thriller about the horrors of colonialism.
- DirectorTerence FisherStarsClifford EvansOliver ReedYvonne RomainIn eighteenth-century Spain, an adopted boy becomes a werewolf and terrorizes the inhabitants of his town.Perhaps the finest werewolf movie ever made, this is Hammer at its best. An unusually deep script reveals the story of a young man born with a terrible curse. This film is almost operatic in its evocation of powerful emotions and true tragedy. Oliver Reed shines as the afflicted young man.
- DirectorTerence FisherStarsChristopher LeePeter CushingRichard PascoIn the early twentieth century, a Gorgon takes human form and terrorizes a small European village by turning its citizens to stone.An odd, but fascinating reuniting of Lee and Cushing in a creepy film.
- DirectorRoy Ward BakerStarsIngrid PittPippa SteelMadeline SmithSeductive vampire Carmilla Karnstein and her family target the beautiful and the rich in a remote area of late eighteenth-century Gemany.Based loosely on LeFanu's classic vampire tale Carmilla, The Vampire Lovers has perhaps the best, eeriest opening of all of Hammer's films.
- DirectorTerence FisherStarsPeter CushingFrancis MatthewsEunice GaysonHaving escaped execution and assumed an alias, Baron Frankenstein transplants his deformed underling's brain into a perfect body, but the result proves to be mortally perilous.A wonderfully menacing performance by Cushing here highlights this gruesome sequel to Curse of Frankenstein.
- DirectorRoy Ward BakerStarsJames DonaldAndrew KeirBarbara ShelleyA mysterious artifact is unearthed in London, and famous scientist Bernard Quatermass is called in to divine its origins and explain its strange effects on people.Better-known as Quatermass and the Pit, this sci/fi horror films carries a deep sense of uncanny terror. The scenes in the abandoned building are nerve-wracking and haunting.
- DirectorSeth HoltStarsBette DavisWendy CraigJill BennettThere's just something not quite right when Bette Davis stars as an English nanny. And is her 10-year-old charge an emotionally disturbed murderer or just an insolent brat?Disturbing and frightening Hammer Films chiller directed by the great Jimmy Sangster. Bette Davis stars as the seemingly-sinister nanny hired by a couple to help with their 10 year-old son, who has just been released from an asylum for disturbed children. Did young Joey really kill his sister? Is the Nanny out to kill Joey and his family? The questions mount as the film ratchets up the suspense as well as a Hitchcock film. One of Bette Davis' most chilling performances, she infuses every scene with tension and dread. A strong departure from the "Catsup and Cleavage" line of Hammer period horror films, this one still has the power to keep you on the edge of your seat until the conclusion.
- DirectorTerence FisherStarsChristopher LeeCharles GrayNike ArrighiDevil worshipers plan to convert two new victims.A very mature and terrifying horror film featuring Lee in one his few roles as the hero.
- DirectorVal GuestStarsBrian DonlevyJack WarnerRichard WordsworthProfessor Bernard Quatermass' manned rocket ship returns to Earth, but two of the astronauts are missing and the survivor seems ill and unable to communicate.Released nearly a decade before Hammer would bring fresh blood (by the gallon) to the horror film genre with its Victorian period pieces, this black and white classic still has many a chilling moment.
- DirectorSeth HoltMichael CarrerasStarsAndrew KeirValerie LeonJames VilliersAn archaeological expedition brings back to London the coffin of an Egyptian queen known for her magical powers. Her spirit returns in the form of a young girl and strange things start to happen.Based loosely... very, very loosely, on the Bram Stoker novel The Jewel of the Seven Stars," this is a sexy, frightening, and thoroughly enjoyable horror film.
- DirectorRobert YoungStarsAdrienne CorriThorley WaltersAnthony HigginsAs the plague sweeps the countryside, a quarantined village is visited by a mysterious traveling circus. Soon, young children begin to disappear, and the locals suspect the circus troupe might be hiding a horrifying secret.One of the bloodiest of Hammer's films, this is a strange, almost psychedelic vampire film that is equally sexy as it is gruesome.
- DirectorRoy Ward BakerStarsRalph BatesMartine BeswickGerald SimA Victorian scientist tests a serum that transforms him into a sensuous murderess.An interesting gender-bender from Hammer, and a very original retelling of the classic tale.