Rasputin: The Mad Monk

source: Rasputin: The Mad Monk

Rasputin: The Mad Monk is not one of those films where you should expect a history lesson, about two things are true but apart from that the film does play fast and loose with Rasputin and his life, which will leave historians in despair. As a film on its own terms(which I've always found a much fairer way to judge), while not great and while nowhere near Hammer's best(somewhere in the middle for me), Rasputin: The Mad Monk is fun. It has two main flaws. One is that Rasputin: The Mad Monk has some very confined sets- in number and sometimes visually- that look like they were left over from previous Hammer films(quite a departure from Hammer's usual production values standard), when the film could have shown the beautiful Russian landscapes which would have given more of a sense of place. The wealthy also at times could have been more extravagant, the costumes are very attractive don't get me wrong but the low budget stops it from being more than that. The other flaw with Rasputin: The Mad Monk is the rather shoddy script, that contains flat dialogue, one-dimensional character writing(and this is including Rasputin, one of the 20th century's most colourful and interesting historical figures) while ignoring the political state of Russia at the time which would have brought some tension, and a few decent ideas that were sadly vaguely explored. Francis Matthews is also rather stiff and dull, very like how he was in Dracula: Prince of Darkness, and while she does a decent job still Suzan Farmer has very little to do other than look as fetching as possible. As exciting, hugely entertaining and as tense as the climax was, it also was a touch anti-climatic and Rasputin's death was handled too quickly and too easily(from personal view). However, the lighting is both colourful and eerie, and Rasputin: The Mad Monk is filmed beautifully and stylishly. So the film didn't look completely cheap, despite the obviousness of the low-budget. The music score is thunderously grandiose in the most thrilling of ways, giving off genuine chills and excitement. Sharp's direction is efficient enough, managing to mostly keep the story interesting and maintaining the appropriate mood. The story is mostly fun, and includes some horror elements that are handled with tension and creepy atmosphere without being gratuitous as well as some mystery elements that bring glimpses of suspense. The best thing about Rasputin: The Mad Monk is the cast. Barbara Shelley(better utilised than she was in Dracula: Prince of Darkness) is luminous but also brings vulnerability and vast dramatic intensity, and Richard Pasco is effectively twitchy. Christopher Lee walks away with the film though to the extent that he literally IS the film, with his larger than life presence, wild appearance, chilling penetrating stare and deep and very distinctive voice it's a towering performance in every sense of the word, and it's so much fun to watch him. On the whole, Rasputin: The Mad Monk is not a great film as such and people should look to the 1996 film starring Alan Rickman for a more accurate account of the man and his life, but it does provide some good entertainment when not taken seriously and viewed as it's meant to be and is worth catching for Lee alone. 6/10 Bethany Cox

Shown as part the Hammer double bill that gets shown on the UK Horror Channel the audience might feel rather cheated by the schedulers . Being a Hammer production and starring Christopher Lee you can be forgiven for thinking you're going to be watching a horror film of sorts . Add to that the fact that the station might be called The Horror Channel for a reason and you'll be disappointed that this is in no way a horror movie despite the studio brand name That said it does have a bizarre feel down to director Don Sharp directing everything in a way that he would have directed a horror movie . As you can imagine much of this is achieved by having intrusive scary music blasting all over the soundtrack to tell the audience this scene contains a lot of menace and any second now a monster will be appearing which being a pseudo historical film will not be the case and the only scene approaching horror is a scene where a rubber hand drops past the screen . The emphasis is on "pseudo " which means from a historical point of view there's not a lot to recommend this movie and pales in to insignicence compared to something like DOCTOR ZHIVAGO which was released at the same time and was set in the period and locale . Of some interest is that being a Hammer film the little Englander mentality is present and the characters being foreign all have prominent suntans because all foreigners even ones living in a country like Russia must have suntans . Apart from that there's little other interest to the film unless you enjoy watching the Hammer repertory cast emote and overact in a rather ludicrous manner almost as if they're having a contest to see who can shout the most which has an entertainment value of sorts

RASPUTIN: THE MAD MONK (2+ outta 5 stars) An okay movie from Hammer Pictures in the UK... resembling a Dracula movie more so than an actual historical biography. The studio probably started out wanting to make a classy historical epic but at some point they must have decided, "Aw, the heck with it" and just went with what they knew worked: murder, blood, sex, the usual. Christopher Lee goes all out in a totally over-the-top, scenery-chewing performance... which is not a bad thing, considering. Rasputin seduces, blusters and schemes his way from a small monastery to the higher classes of Russian society... leaving a trail of pain, misery and death in his wake. Don't expect to pass any history exams using what you learn from this movie... accuracy does not seem to be the movie's goal. Nor does subtlety. The finale of the movie plays out like some weird sort of precursor to "Terminator 2" or any of those slasher movies where the villain has to be killed several times before actually expiring.

This is a quota quickie in which the shots are called so fast that no-one has time to tell the cast how to pronounce the name of the lead character. Mr Lee calls himself "Raspoot'n", but the princess calls him, "Raspewtin". It's also one of those movies that unwind at so snail-like a pace – and with such economy of production values – that one has to do something to wile away the time. Not only is the plot agonizingly slow, but it's predictable. Worse still, it's packed to the gunwales with trite, tedious, banal dialogue, and acted by trite, tedious, banal characters like scenery-chewing Christopher Lee. Considering the poor quality of the cast, incompetent director Don Sharp is remarkably free with his close-ups. He obviously wants to make sure that even the most unobservant, half-asleep audiences would be sure to recognize what rotten acting is being presented for their entertainment. Even the women are an unattractive lot – and that is unusual for a Hammer film. Of course, unadventurous photography doesn't help any. Even the most unattractive lass can look like Marilyn Monroe with the proper lighting. Aside from two or three obvious stock shots, the sets are unashamedly "B"-grade. True, there's occasionally a bit of action, but on a scale of one to ten, Hammer fans are likely to give this one a duck. It's way below Hammer's usual blood-and-thunder standard, and even a free beard is unlikely to attract any but the most sold-out Hammer customers.

Title: Rasputin: The Mad Monk (1966) Director: Don Sharp Cast: Christopher Lee, Barbara Shelly, Richard Pasco Review: Having heard that Christopher Lee acknowledges his portrayal of Gregori Rasputin as one of his favorite performances, I quickly picked this up as soon as I saw the box at my local video store! Seeing Lee playing something other then Count Dracula was nice to see, but I also couldn't help but notice the similarities. The story is about Gregori Rasputin, a monk who was exiled by the church for being a drunk and a womanizer. He has great powers which he uses in benevolent acts like healing people but also uses them for evil things like taking over Russia! In this Hammer film we see Rasputing slowly working his way up the social ladder by using his mind controlling powers on certain key individuals who will no doubt help him become more prominent and powerful. The strength of this film no doubt lies in Lees performance. His incredibly evil and selfish Rasputin is a memorable performance by Lee and one that will be enjoyed very much by Lee and Hammer fans alike. Hey he is a Monk who escapes to the local pub to drink and get it on! Here we see Lee actually engage in conversations! Here we see Lee dancing! Here we see Lee going after the chicks! Drinking and getting drunk like a skunk! Lee obviously had a ball breaking away from playing the ever classy and quiet Count Dracula and it shows. On the downside the film is kind of low on production values. You can tell when a Hammer film is cheap because usually the action takes place in one or two rooms. And the action doesn't go anywhere else. Here from what I could read on the film they used the sets from "Dracula Prince of Darkness" and you can tell this specially when you see the outside of the Czars castle. It has a strange resemblance to Draculas castle in Prince of Darkness. But putting that aside the main fun here is watching Lees Rasputin being evil. No matter how historically inaccurate this film might be, its great to see Rasputin use his powers to lure women to bed, to kill anyone who will get in his way in his quest for power. This movie is not a history lesson, its a Hammer film! And Hammer is good at being sleazy and fun. Hammer just took the basic idea of Rasputin and some minor historical details and made a fun flick out of it. All in all it was a fun film, with some budgetary limitations. Still, that didn't stop it from being a lot of fun. Specially by watching Lee devour the screen being so evil. I've seen a few Hammer duds and this ain't one of them. Rating: 3/5

I watched RASPUTIN THE MAD MONK and I was shocked by how brief and short the movie was. There's very little detail about Rasputin here. Just one or two events and Hammer made a 90 minutes movie out of them. It's a true Cliff Notes version of the Rasputin myth. Christopher Lee is very well cast but the rest of the cast is forgettable. It's a shame they didn't make the movie more complex and detailed. Oh, and even though this film is sold as a horror film, it's not. There's very little horror action in RASPUTIN THE MAD MONK to categorize it as a horror film. Yes, it stars Chris Lee and was made by Hammer but this is a history flick, not a horror flick.

After being thrown out of his monastery for his carefree sinful behaviour of drinking, womanising and gluttony. Rasputin a mysterious Russian monk heads to St Petersburg to use his hypnotic and healing abilities to gain power and influence, by manipulating Tsarina and the people around her. Forget about the historical context of this icon, and simply enjoy Hammer's glum and hysterical fictional take on the factual story. Christopher Lee looking all scruffy and beady-eyed basically goes bananas in his tremendously larger than life portrayal of the unsettling figure. He bellows out his dialogue with plenty of blunt intensity and an underlining creepiness. Watch him dance, drink, dance, laughing, pigging out, drinking… etc. Lee is unforgettable and simply having the time of his life as the "Love-machine"! The inventive premise keeps clear from the politics and actual events, and its unique spin seems more concern of drawing up the interesting Rasputin character and how he played everyone he saw that was important to his development of his own needs. The hot-and-cold script is rather lukewarm and boggy to tell the truth, but this aspect was mainly overshadowed due to its fast pacing and brazen performances. A stylistic Barby Shelley is sensationally strong and a twitchy Richard Pasco is impeccably solid. There's also capable support by Susan Farmer, Francis Mathews and Dinsdale Landen. Director Don Sharp vividly heightens the film with suspenseful thrills, powerful visuals and convincingly raw and atmospheric set pieces. The baroque set-designs are assuredly handled and the murky backdrop is well conceived from its cheap origins to look a tad classier. Photography is constantly leering and the music score has that untamed grandiose sound we've come to expect in their presentations. Maniac, volume changing fun by Hammer that's well worth the gander for a toweringly juicy Lee performance.

This viewer is not surprised to learn that this Hammer production is far from being an accurate portrayal of the real-life Russian peasant monk. It's to be expected that for the sake of a good show that films such as this will play fast and loose with the facts. However, it must be said that this IS a damn good show. Lee is allowed the chance to really cut loose for once, and he does a marvelous job of going over the top as the lusty, life-of-the-party Rasputin, who has genuine healing abilities but also a very conniving and self-serving nature. After gaining some attention for curing a sick woman, he soon finds a means of manipulating his way into the royal family of early 20th century Czarist Russia. Naturally, there are those who aren't fooled by him and will seek to destroy him once they have the chance. The Hammer studio does an immaculate job, as always, in recreating the sights and sounds of a period piece. Top talents such as production designer Bernard Robinson and (supervising) editor James Needs are at the top of their game. Don Banks composed the very unsubtle, thunderous music score, which does come in handy when Rasputin is required to make an entrance. The excellent cast includes beautiful Barbara Shelley and Suzan Farmer, Francis Matthews, Dinsdale Landen, Renee Asherson, Derek Francis, and Joss Ackland; other than Lee, the performer that really stands out is Richard Pasco as Dr. Bruno Zargo, an alcoholic who becomes putty in the hands of the mad Rasputin. Lee himself is a delight, his rich voice booming with authority. He simply commands the screen, and keeps the right insane, evil glint in his eyes at all times. The most entertaining of all the scenes is one in which a furious Landen unthinkingly rushes into a confrontation with Lee only to find himself outmatched. The final battle is an exciting one, with Rasputin proving to be exceedingly difficult to finish off. Overall, this isn't top drawer Hammer, but it's still quite enjoyable, and worth a viewing for fans of the studio and star. Seven out of 10.

Hammer delves into Russian history with Christopher Lee as the mysterious monk who worms his way into the royal family. Ignoring political aspects(The czar isn't even shown!), Rasputin is presented as a purely evil figure, the same as Dracula. Lee's over-the-top performance raises this a little above routine, but not much. Excellent production values though. Image Quality: Anchor Bay's dvd looks very good. The letter-boxed, anamorphic transfer is presented at a 2:1 aspect ratio, cropped slightly from the original 2.35:1 Sound: mono, acceptable quality Extras: The audio commentary, with Lee, Barbara Shelley and others, makes this disc worth getting. Very enjoyable and informative, with Lee being the obvious highlight