Rasputin the Mad Monk [Blu-ray]

Overview

The life story of the legendary Russian mystic Grigori Rasputin gets the highly fictionalized Hammer Films treatment with this liberal mix of horror and history that presents the mysterious sage as a demonic, otherworldly creature. Christopher Lee stars as the titular monk, who gains entr?e to the world of the tsar by casting a hypnotic spell on two courtiers, Dr. Zargo (Richard Pasco) and the beautiful Sonia (Barbara Shelley). Becoming a trusted aide and confidant of the tsarina (Renee Ashershon), Rasputin threatens the national power structure. After Sonia kills herself, Zargo resolves to kill the interloper, but stabbing, poisoning, and even bullets don't seem to be able to kill the diabolical Rasputin.

Product Details

Release Date:	02/18/2020
UPC:	0826663207255
Original Release:	1966
Rating:	NR
Source:	Shout Factory
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Mono]
Language:	English
Time:	1:32:00
Sales rank:	16,739

Special Features

1080p High Definition; SDH subtitles

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Christopher Lee	Grigori Rasputin
Barbara Shelley	Sonia
Richard Pasco	Dr. Zargo
Francis Matthews	Ivan
Suzan Farmer	Vanessa
Nicholas Pennell	Peter
Renee Asherson	Csarina
Derek Francis	Innkeeper
Alan Tilvern	Patron
Joss Ackland	The Bishop
John Welsh	The Abbott
Robert Duncan	Csarvitch
John Bailey	Court Physician
Dinsdale Landen	Actor
Renée Ashershon	Csarina
Don Banks	Composer

Technical Credits

Anthony Hinds

John Elder

Don Sharp	Director
Anthony Nelson Keys	Producer
Anthony Hinds	Screenwriter
John Elder	Screenwriter

Editorial Reviews

The legend of Rasputin has always held elements of the bizarre and supernatural, but this Hammer Films script -- by Anthony Hinds under his pseudonym of "John Elder" -- reinvents the tale as a full-blown horror story. Christopher Lee gives a smashingly over-the-top performance as the crazed monk, who uses his mystic healing ability and powers of hypnosis to worm his way into the confidence of the Russian Czarina (Renee Asherson), destroying anyone who stands in his way. Lee gets to scream, bellow, rape women, chop a guy's hand off with an adze, throw acid in another man's face, and command a former bedmate to kill herself. As if that's not enough fun for one actor to have, he gets to hypnotize several people, drink poison, dance a wicked two-step, and get a syringe stuck in his neck before being thrown out a window. Made on the same sets as Terence Fisher's Dracula: Prince of Darkness, with much of the same cast, this is a much more flamboyant and energetic film. Perhaps it's a bit too flamboyant and energetic, for between Lee's hammy tooth-gnashing mime and Don Banks' thunderous musical score, the film feels like a particularly overwrought 1920s silent melodrama to which some mad editor has added unnecessary dialogue. It's still a real hoot, though, as long as one doesn't take it to be a serious representation of historical fact.