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Originally titled Victor Frankenstein when released in 1976, this Irish-Swedish coproduction (which was filmed in English) remains the most faithful film adaptation of Mary Shelley's gothic tale. Avoiding the sensationalism of most Frankenstein films, producer-director Calvin Floyd opts instead for a more direct approach, resulting in an artfully somber rendition that benefits from budgetary limitations and a decidely European flavor. Leon Vitali stars as young medical-school graduate Victor Frankenstein, whose obsessive, clandestine experiments in the rejuvenation of dead tissue reach their tragic apex with the creation of a living man (Per Oscarsson) assembled from parts of corpses and revived by an electrical charge of lightning. As with Shelley's novel, the film holds sympathy for the melancholy monster, whose deathly appearance (blackened lips, sad, heavy-lidded eyes, complexion pale as bleached bone), aching loneliness, and murderous quest for revenge make him the bane of Frankenstein's existence. The film's subdued tone proves surprisingly apt (arguably more effective than Kenneth Branagh's frenetic 1994 production), and the lead performances are simultaneously understated and suitably intense. (It's worth noting that this was Leon Vitali's most prominent film role; after appearing as Lord Bullingdon in Barry Lyndon, he spent the bulk of his career as director's assistant and casting director for all of Stanley Kubrick's subsequent films.) --Jeff Shannon
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