Rasputin: The Mad Monk

Plot synopsis:
The story begins in the Russian countryside, where Rasputin heals the sick wife of an innkeeper (Derek Francis). When he is later hauled before an Orthodox bishop for his sexual immorality and violence, the innkeeper springs to the monk's defense. Rasputin protests that he is sexually immoral because he likes to give God "sins worth forgiving" (loosely based on Rasputin's rumored connection to Khlysty, an obscure Christian sect which believed that those deliberately committing fornication, then repenting bitterly, would be closer to God). He also claims to have healing powers in his hands, and is unperturbed by the bishop's accusation that his power comes from Satan.
Rasputin heads for St. Petersburg, where he forces his way into the home of Dr Zargo (Pasco), from where he begins his campaign to gain influence over the Tsarina (Asherson). He manipulates one of the Tsarina's ladies-in-waiting, Sonia (Shelley), whom he uses to satisfy his voracious sexual appetite and gain access to the Tsarina. He places her in a trance to injure the czar's heir Alexei, so that Rasputin can be called to court to heal him. After, this success, he hypnotizes the Tsarina to replace her existing doctor with Zargo (who has previously been struck off after a scandal).
However, Rasputin's ruthless pursuit of wealth and prestige, and increasing control over the royal household attracts opposition. Sonia's brother, Peter (Landen), enraged by Rasputin's seduction of his sister, enlists the help of Ivan to bring about the monk's downfall. Peter, in challenging the monk, is horribly scarred by acid thrown in his face, and suffers a lingering death.
Tricking Rasputin into thinking his sister Vanessa (Farmer) is interested in him, Ivan arranges a supposed meeting. However, Zargo has poisoned the wine and chocolates, which the Monk starts to consume. Soon Rasputin collapses, but the poison is not enough to kill him. In the ensuing struggle between the three men, Zargo is stabbed by Rasputin and quickly dies. Ivan manages to throw Rasputin out of the window to his death.

Tags: murder

Review:
The story of the monk that rose through Russia's hierarchy to become, arguably, more powerful than the Tsar and Tsarina seems, to me anyway, to be a rather strange choice of film for Hammer to take on.
Well, sort of.As you might expect, the film isn't very historically accurate and Don Sharp appears to be more keen to focus on Rasputin himself than his place in history, which is no bad thing in my opinion as it makes for better horror.
The history surrounding Rasputin (SOME of which is shown in the film) is, actually, quite scary; how a blaspheming, crazy monk can rise through Russia's hierarchy like he did is surreal, and is made more so by the fact that it is actually true.
His screen presence and charisma combine with what we expect Rasputin would have been like to great effect and although this is a campy horror film and cant really be taken seriously as a historical study; I think Lee has captured the essence of Russia's finest love machine to a tee, and I doubt it will ever be done to the same standard again..
This film is another Hammer classic, hilarious and well-acted, excellent quality cinematography, and not to be taken the slightest bit seriously.Christopher Lee is *the* hammer actor (well...with Peter Cushing running a close second;), and he plays the *perfect* Rasputin!
And Barbara Shelley is definitely a solid, stereotypical, 'femi-victim', and she plays beautifully off of Lee.The only qualm I have about this film is the ending, which was a touch too anti-climactic...although I bought the special edition with trailers and TV spots at the end which improved the ending dramatically (I wish I could find one of those 'free Rasputin beards'...)Overall: This is not one of the best Hammer films, it's not Blood of Dracula or The Devil Rides Out...but it's up there, and it has all the great elements: cheezy soft-gore effects (love that severed hand!!), *almost* nudity, maniacal laughter, tension-riddled music...it's fun from beginning to end!
The film uses good looking set pieces and costumes but, naturally, it wouldn't be half as memorable if it weren't for Christopher Lee. Our legendary horror vet gives away one of the most energetic performances in horror-history and he really does look terrifying!
The supportive cast is more than decent, with familiar names like Barbara Shelley (Dracula Prince of Darkness, Quartermass and the Pit), Susan Farmer (Die, Monster Die) and Richard Pasco (The Gorgon) as Rasputin's petrified opponents.
Hammer Film's relatively unambitious adventure in historical exploitation is lifted above the norm by 2 major factors: the genius of set designer Robinson and the fine heavy styles of Chris Lee and Barby Shelley, pros of the genre in every sense.
This film tells the story of Rasputin with more of an eye to screen exploitation values than truth (which I think is how it should be, as Plato said that truth is rarely a likely story), including a scarring incident with acid -- what Hammer Film would be complete without facial mutilations?
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.
"Rasputin: The Mad Monk" is an average Hammer film, but with Christopher Lee and the lovely Barbara Shelley in the lead roles of the evil Rasputin and the sweet Sonia respectively.
Hammer delves into Russian history with Christopher Lee as the mysterious monk who worms his way into the royal family.
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.
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.
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.
Fleeing to Moscow after being hauled in front of the bishop for his unorthodox ways, he gains influence over a disgraced doctor and begins to plan his rise to power.The film's main strength is undoubtedly Lee's performance as the mad Russian, as he dominates every scene with his intense, piercing eyes and booming voice, with his towering frame overshadowing everyone that comes across his path.
It is a great mix of thespian presence and Gothic camp that makes the Hammer films, and more notably Christopher Lee's performances for the studio, that extra bit special.Rasputin The Mad Monk is a thoroughly enjoyable film, anchored by Lee's performance and Hammer's usual beautiful Technicolour cinematography, and is made all the better by leaving out the politics and concentrating on creating a memorable film character.www.the-wrath-of-blog.blogspot.com.
Hidden under a ton of lanky black hair and an enormous bushy beard, Christopher Lee hams it up a treat as the despicable Grigori Rasputin, the womanising, blaspheming, alcoholic monk with supernatural healing powers, who wormed his way into the court of the Russian Czars, made a few enemies in the process, and (not surprisingly) ended up being gruesomely murdered.In order to make their film as enjoyable as possible, Hammer Studios (better known for their atmospheric Gothic horrors) opt to dispense with historical accuracy in favour of sensationalism and sleaze: Lee's power-hungry Rasputin beds numerous women, mutilates those who oppose him (he severs one man's hand and throws acid in the face of another), and hypnotises unsuspecting victims into doing his bidding (including forcing one poor woman to injure a child and take her own life).Lee is obviously having the time of his life as the crazy Russian, and the actor gives one of his most memorable performances (and that's saying something, given his resumé!), cackling like an evil despot, drinking and dancing like a man possessed, and generally partying like it's 1999 (just typing that makes me feel very old).It's a shame, however, that this film wasn't made a few years later, when a struggling Hammer Studio had upped it's levels of gore and nudity in order to win back audiences: if director Don Sharp (who does a sterling job with the material) had gone 'the whole hog' and thrown in some nasty gore and a couple of topless babes (stars Barbara Shelley and Suzan Farmer don't get 'em out for the lads), then I might be awarding this film a 9 or 10, instead of (a still very good) rating of 8..
In other words, they were not about to shell out the coin to depict crowd scenes, royal processions, military parades or peasant insurrections, though it is possible to imagine the modest Bray studio stretching to the occasion had the will been there.The word "Bolshevik" is never uttered and we never once catch a fleeting glimpse of Tsar Nicholas much less his daughters.This, then, in keeping with Hammer's decision to use standing sets, (slightly revamped) from "Dracula, Prince of Darkness" is a backstairs, tabloid account of Rasputin the dissolute diablos.After all, you don't need crowd scenes to depict Rasputin raping a girl in a barn.Notwithstanding, art director Bernard Robinson, does what he can.
This shameless pilfer, would only appear to have been legal, inasmuch as "Anastasia"s producer, Twentieth Century Fox, was also the distributer of Hammer's "Rasputin," thus showing the extent to which the distributer contributed fiscally to the Hammer product, even during a film's production.Christoper Lee is excellent as the mad monk, particularly in a tavern scene where he hypnotizes Barbara Shelley.
It is Miss Shelley, however, who walks off with the film, yet again, showing that she was capable of so much more than she was ever offered.The rest of the cast is serviceable, though cute as a pearl button, Suzan Farmer is given very little to do except look fetching, an assignment at which she excelled naturally.For Hammer enthusiasts rather than students of Russian history..
(43%) A meatier role for Lee to get his fangs into and he does a fine job playing a real life notorious figure instead of a fictitious one, only this time the makers have actually given him something to say, and the film is all the better for it.
Christopher Lee is cast against type, hamming it up in this Hammer film as the scowling, swarthy peasant Rasputin, who antagonises all as he wins the Tsarina's confidence on his arrival in St Petersburg.
Christopher Lee is a very convincing mad monk,mesmerizing his victims and the audience in a chilly way.In consequence,the best things are to be found at the beginning of the movie:Rasputin's "real" career had not yet begun and he was a crude mujik with supernatural powers and lust for life that is to say for women.If you wanted to have a history lesson ,you'd better move on.You could get an F minus with the "knowledge" you got in Don Sharp's movie.Historical inaccuracies abound : the tsarevich did not need an "accident" ,he was an hemophiliac ;Rasputin's assassination in the movie is caused by mean jealousy,people who are afraid he may take their place in the sun.
No political or social background,which is particularly embarrassing when you know he died during WW1 and that Revolution was around the corner.Rasputin's death is pure fiction.Although there are true elements (he was lured to his assassin's place ;the murderer's wife being the bait),all that remains is false.Rasputin was murdered by Prince Felix Youssoupov ,the grand Duke Dimitri and a physician whose name escaped my mind.He was offered poisoned cakes (not chocolates) and as the poison did not do the job -some historians wrote that these assassins were mere amateurs- ,they shot him.But it was revealed that Rasputin did not die from his wounds :he got drowned when they got rid of his body in the frozen river."Rasputin the mad monk" is a passable horror film,nothing more.Like this?try these....."J'ai Tué Rasputin " (1967) by Robert Hossein .Just before the cast and credits,an old man appears on the screen ,interviewed by historian Alain Decaux :Prince Youssoupov!
With a great performance from Christopher Lee as Rasputin, and a rather red-hot (and elegant) Barbara Shelley, it's hard to imagine not liking this movie.
Don Sharp directed this filming of the true historical account of the "Mad Monk" Rasputin(played by Christopher Lee) who lived in early 20th century Czarist Russia, and rose from obscurity to prominence by saving the life of a woman, which comes to the attention of the royal family, who want to use Rasputin's healing powers for their own purposes, which Rasputin is happy to do, as he rises to power and influence since he is really a cunning and ruthless man, quick to take offense, and most adept at swordplay, though will later meet his end by becoming too ambitious and scheming...
Rasputin the Mad Monk was filmed back to back with Dracula Prince of Darkness, yet even though the BBFC afforded it the "X" certificate, it's somewhat tame and more a historical drama than horror film.In truth it's Christopher Lee as the title character who keeps this from plunging the depths of stinkerville, and this in spite of sporting a most distracting and ridiculous beard.
Plot simply - and fancifully - shows Rasputin as a hard drinking, womanising bully with a penchant for hypnotism, all of which he uses for his nefarious ends.It's all very colourful, with Lee holding court as male saps and beautiful dames (Barbara Shelley oh my eye!) come and go, which all builds to a furious finale in the Hammer Films tradition.
He is Rasputin (Christopher Lee), and he goes to St Petersburg where he gets to know the former doctor Zargo (Richard Pasco) and Sonia (Barbara Shelley).
Aided by them and his hypnotic powers, he even gets access to the royal family, but also makes deadly enemies...This is only vaguely based on the actual history of Rasputin, and who would expect more from a Hammer horror studio production, but it certainly is a lot of fun and a great role for Christopher Lee. I can't think of another movie that gave him opportunity to dance.
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 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.
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.
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.
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 .
"Rasputin The Mad Monk" is another of the Hammer Studios series of horror flicks that usually starred Christopher Lee or Peter Cushing, or both.
Hammer Films whittles the epic tale down to the format of a low-budget horror programmer, starring Christopher Lee in an entertaining and lusty performance as the "mad monk." He delivers what the quickie script requires and is the main reason to watch.
Grigory Rasputin is one of history's more controversial and mysterious characters (frankly, probably worth a more serious film tribute than he seems to have received from anyone) and while these qualities are present, the bare bones of Rasputin's life (and death) are, in fact, barely depicted; woven around a fanciful tale that's fun even if mostly fiction.
Rasputin is portrayed as a womanizer and a drunkard, more concerned with his own pleasures and advancement than anything else, who - by his miraculous healing powers - manages to develop a relationship with the Russian royal family (and, especially, the Czarina.) The relationship with the Romanov family isn't really the centre of the story (which is partly why there's no historical value here - it's that relationship and its political implications that makes Rasputin important to history.) Instead, as you would expect from Hammer Films and Christopher Lee, the movie focuses on Rasputin's evil and licentious deeds, questions the source of his power (the suggestion is that it's satanic) and seems far more interested in the mad monk's hypnotic power over women than anything else.
I'm sure the film is great fun as long as you do not take it as historical fact - it's just very loosely based on Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin's story.I guess I was looking for more historical accuracy within the film - it had very little accuracy - so I was not pleased with the movie.
Christopher Lee is sinisterly great in this Hammer flick as a hard-drinking, goofy-dancing, unapologetically evil monk out to win friends and influence people through hypnosis, but other than Lee there's not a whole lot going for this movie.
However, if you're looking an extremely fun and occasionally extremely scary pseudo-historical Gothic horror film with a wonderful performance from Christopher Lee, then this should be right up your alley..
Most assuredly a lot of liberties have been taken with this tale about a "man of mystery", Rasputin, brought to life by who else but Christopher Lee. This movie shows how The Mad Monk used unexplainable evil powers to garner, or demand, influence and manipulate anyone of his choosing.
Hammer were a studio best known for horror films, and "Rasputin the Mad Monk" from is essentially a horror film dressed up as a historical drama.
This routine Hammer story is definitely not one of the studio's finest - despite a barnstorming performance in the title role from Christopher Lee. The film fails to evoke much period atmosphere or, indeed, excitement, from the authentic historical story of the mad monk who insinuated himself into the Russian royal family.
The production values are standard Hammer with sets that look like they were used in other film, a supporting cast of mostly minor British actors and fairly dull direction by Don Sharp.
Only Hammer could make a movie about Rasputin and have the tsar and tsarista appear as such minor characters in his story!.