Frankenstein's Daughter

Frankenstein's Daughter

D: Richard Cunha (1958); with Donald Murphy, John Ashley, Sandra Knight, Felix Locher, Sally Todd, Harold Lloyd Jr. Forget Clive. Forget Cushing. Dr. Frankenstein was never slimier than when he was portrayed by Donald Murphy in the 1958 bomb Frankenstein's Daughter. Not to be confused with Jesse James Meets Frankenstein's Daughter, this film centers around Murphy as Dr. Oliver Frank (aka Frankenstein) and his mad experiments with small-town teenagers. Although he feigns scientific inferiority to his employer, the gentle Dr. Morgan (Locher), Frank has big plans. These include seducing the old doc's niece Trudy (Knight) and spiking her fruit punch with monster potions. Poor Trudy. Not only is she constantly pawed by the pipe-smoking mad scientist but she's also transformed into a raving she-beast. Lucky for her, teen queen Suzy (Todd) is on the make and lets Oliver take her to the submarine races. But this guy's way too fast! After his advances are rejected, he goes berserk and drives over a fleeing Suzy. Her loss is Doctor Frank's gain as he uses her body to complete his ancestors' experiments in raising the dead. After some patchwork stitching and quick neurosurgery, he creates a hulking mannish figure with a disfigured noggin (whom he calls his daughter). The creature soon begins wreaking havoc on the town, so it's up to Trudy and her pompadoured beau, John (Ashley) to save the day. Made by Astor pictures, this drive-in quickie was no doubt designed to cash in on the I Was a Teenage ... craze of the Fifties. And like those films, this one's filled with awful acting and even worse rock & roll and dance numbers. Despite the film's overall mindlessness, Murphy is entertaining as Oliver Frankenstein. Part mad scientist, part Ivy League jerk, this is one of the more lecherous and humorous characters to bear the legendary doctor's name. Overall, not bad for an evening of nostalgia and laughs. Not to mention a reminder of an era when fun "creature features" were cranked out by the dozen.