Oh boy, I’ve been meaning to write about these fellows for a while now and watching Mark Gatiss’ A History of Horror has finally prompted me to act. I adore both men, even more than Karloff and Lugosi, horror’s original dynamic duo. Together, Lee and Cushing played in 24 movies and produced a handsome output. Many of these films were made cheaply and some might have even been consigned to the ash heap of celluloid history if not for the presence of these two men. I’d like to highlight some of the films they starred in together, but not all of them, but this should cover a good portion.
By the time Hammer Films released the first full-color horror movie, The Curse of Frankenstein in 1957, Cushing had already started to make a name for himself. He played in numerous productions, especially as the lead in the BBC’s adaptation of 1984, he would be cast as Victor Frankenstein. Lee was an experienced actor by the time he had the opportunity to play the creature in Hammer’s new production, but the reputation of both men really started to take hold when The Curse of Frankenstein made them famous. As if to prove that Curse wasn’t just a fluke in its success (having made back 70 times its budget), Hammer produced Horror of Dracula in 1958, casting Lee as Dracula and Cushing as Van Helsing. This film was enormously successful, and these two movies serve as some of the best examples in the resurgence of Gothic Horror in twentieth century movies. They broke numerous conventions: Frankenstein was not a misunderstood, deranged genius but a cold, calculating Machiavellian; blood (at least really bright, fake blood) and violence was abundant in both movies; we saw the actresses in revealing outfits, their heaving cleavage for all to see; and we finally saw vampire fangs for the first time with an ever-chilling image of Lee and his red eyes. Horror was becoming hot again in England.
Hammer’s adaptation of The Hound of the Baskervilles took the story of Sir Henry Baskerville in a more horrific direction with Cushing as Sherlock Holmes and Lee as Baskerville. While Doyle’s novel is more about the suggestion of evil, this one is more depraved in its denouement. The Mummy, with Cushing as the protagonist and Lee as the monster, is a great story overall if a little slow.
As if they weren’t busy enough, both men also made movies with another English film studio, Amicus, starting with Dr. Terror’s House of Horrors in 1965. What stood out much more to me was Amicus’ film, The Skull, based on Robert Bloch’s short story “The Skull of Marquis de Sade” about the marquis’ skull taking a life of its own. While a bit clunky by today’s standards, it’s still a fun movie. Probably the best of their Amicus collaborations is The House that Dripped Blood (based on more of Bloch’s short stories), an anthology horror film in which Cushing and Lee played in separate stories and shared grim fate of being victims of the house’s evil. To me, the movie is always great fun.
Cushing and Lee played in Hammer’s horror movies well into the 70s. They played as hero and villain respectively in Dracula A.D. 1972 and Hammer tried too hard to sound hip and contemporary to the point that this is the most dated movie of the whole bunch that I’m talking about. They even had a Rolling Stones knockoff band play music in it. It’s corny, hokey, and the only reason it stands out to me now in a good way was that Caroline Munro had a small part in it. By the time Cushing and Lee starred in The Satanic Rites of Dracula a year later, Hammer was all but played out.
One of the standouts that Lee and Cushing starred together in was The Creeping Flesh (1973) about an ancient creature that was brought back to chilling life, and the ending felt especially disconcerting to me. By this time, Lee had branched out into non-horrific roles, but he was still a villain actor for the most part. In the 70s, Cushing had buried himself in taking role after role when his wife died. Of course, his most memorable role came in the form of Grand Moff Tarkin in Star Wars, released in 1977 (A New Hope was it would be dubbed later on). By the 80s, Cushing’s age was beginning to show, and he seemed to have lost a lot of the energy that he brought to his roles only a few years before. The last movie Cushing and Lee would play in together was The House of Long Shadows (1983), which feels like a love letter to the gothic horror school of storytelling, in which Desi Arnez Jr. plays a writer who takes the challenge to write a novel in one night at a creepy mansion and he quickly realizes that he’s not alone.
One of the most touching aspects of these two men was the friendship they shared. They had genuine respect and love for each other. I remember reading that they were kicked out of a movie theater once for laughing like maniacs while watching Looney Tunes cartoons. We would lose Peter Cushing in 1994, and thankfully he had the chance to visit with Lee shortly before he passed. Lee, of course, would move to other roles, and would have made a name for himself again, if not for his already immense filmography by playing Count Dooku in the Star Wars prequels and Saraman in The Lord of the Rings. Lee passed away in 2015.
As you can tell, these men have had a large impact on me individually and collectively. To me, there is no horror without them, and I will always find myself returning to their work. As a matter of fact, I feel like turning on a movie now. Until next time. . .
Written by Nick Montelongo
By the time Hammer Films released the first full-color horror movie, The Curse of Frankenstein in 1957, Cushing had already started to make a name for himself. He played in numerous productions, especially as the lead in the BBC’s adaptation of 1984, he would be cast as Victor Frankenstein. Lee was an experienced actor by the time he had the opportunity to play the creature in Hammer’s new production, but the reputation of both men really started to take hold when The Curse of Frankenstein made them famous. As if to prove that Curse wasn’t just a fluke in its success (having made back 70 times its budget), Hammer produced Horror of Dracula in 1958, casting Lee as Dracula and Cushing as Van Helsing. This film was enormously successful, and these two movies serve as some of the best examples in the resurgence of Gothic Horror in twentieth century movies. They broke numerous conventions: Frankenstein was not a misunderstood, deranged genius but a cold, calculating Machiavellian; blood (at least really bright, fake blood) and violence was abundant in both movies; we saw the actresses in revealing outfits, their heaving cleavage for all to see; and we finally saw vampire fangs for the first time with an ever-chilling image of Lee and his red eyes. Horror was becoming hot again in England.
Hammer’s adaptation of The Hound of the Baskervilles took the story of Sir Henry Baskerville in a more horrific direction with Cushing as Sherlock Holmes and Lee as Baskerville. While Doyle’s novel is more about the suggestion of evil, this one is more depraved in its denouement. The Mummy, with Cushing as the protagonist and Lee as the monster, is a great story overall if a little slow.
As if they weren’t busy enough, both men also made movies with another English film studio, Amicus, starting with Dr. Terror’s House of Horrors in 1965. What stood out much more to me was Amicus’ film, The Skull, based on Robert Bloch’s short story “The Skull of Marquis de Sade” about the marquis’ skull taking a life of its own. While a bit clunky by today’s standards, it’s still a fun movie. Probably the best of their Amicus collaborations is The House that Dripped Blood (based on more of Bloch’s short stories), an anthology horror film in which Cushing and Lee played in separate stories and shared grim fate of being victims of the house’s evil. To me, the movie is always great fun.
Cushing and Lee played in Hammer’s horror movies well into the 70s. They played as hero and villain respectively in Dracula A.D. 1972 and Hammer tried too hard to sound hip and contemporary to the point that this is the most dated movie of the whole bunch that I’m talking about. They even had a Rolling Stones knockoff band play music in it. It’s corny, hokey, and the only reason it stands out to me now in a good way was that Caroline Munro had a small part in it. By the time Cushing and Lee starred in The Satanic Rites of Dracula a year later, Hammer was all but played out.
One of the standouts that Lee and Cushing starred together in was The Creeping Flesh (1973) about an ancient creature that was brought back to chilling life, and the ending felt especially disconcerting to me. By this time, Lee had branched out into non-horrific roles, but he was still a villain actor for the most part. In the 70s, Cushing had buried himself in taking role after role when his wife died. Of course, his most memorable role came in the form of Grand Moff Tarkin in Star Wars, released in 1977 (A New Hope was it would be dubbed later on). By the 80s, Cushing’s age was beginning to show, and he seemed to have lost a lot of the energy that he brought to his roles only a few years before. The last movie Cushing and Lee would play in together was The House of Long Shadows (1983), which feels like a love letter to the gothic horror school of storytelling, in which Desi Arnez Jr. plays a writer who takes the challenge to write a novel in one night at a creepy mansion and he quickly realizes that he’s not alone.
One of the most touching aspects of these two men was the friendship they shared. They had genuine respect and love for each other. I remember reading that they were kicked out of a movie theater once for laughing like maniacs while watching Looney Tunes cartoons. We would lose Peter Cushing in 1994, and thankfully he had the chance to visit with Lee shortly before he passed. Lee, of course, would move to other roles, and would have made a name for himself again, if not for his already immense filmography by playing Count Dooku in the Star Wars prequels and Saraman in The Lord of the Rings. Lee passed away in 2015.
As you can tell, these men have had a large impact on me individually and collectively. To me, there is no horror without them, and I will always find myself returning to their work. As a matter of fact, I feel like turning on a movie now. Until next time. . .
Written by Nick Montelongo
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