RASPUTIN THE MAD MONK (1965)

In a village tavern during the reign of Tsar Nicholas II, the innkeeper's wife has taken ill and the doctor has left saying he can do nothing more for her, but the drunken monk Rasputin (Christopher Lee) goes to her bed and makes a show of curing her with his mystical healing powers. During a celebratory party he downs three bottles of wine and makes out with the innkeeper's daughter in the barn, and when her jealous boyfriend attacks, Rasputin chops the boy's hand off. When the bishop hears of this behavior, the monk is called upon to defend himself; he says he sins big in order to have a lot to offer up to God. He is excommunicated and leaves town for St. Petersburg and while at a tavern meets Sonia (Barbara Shelley), a handmaid at the royal court. He degrades her, sleeps with her, and hypnotizes her into causing the young prince to have an accident so he can swoop in and heal him, thereby insinuating himself into the royal family. Rasputin's influence grows, but after Rasputin drives the Tsarina to kill herself, a group of men in the palace, including Sonia's brother Peter, plot to get rid of him. If you know nothing else about Rasputin, you know he was a hard man to kill, despite having consumed poisoned chocolates and wine, so the death scene climax goes on for a while.

It's a given that this Hammer movie will not be historically accurate, so there should be no griping about that. This is a case of historical context used for a horror film. The problem is this is not a successful genre mash-up. Christopher Lee tries hard, but he seems stymied in his attempt to give a full-blooded performance—he emphasizes the grungy, decadent side of Rasputin, but not his hypnotically charismatic side, so his rise among the royals seem artificial. The sets, costumes, and color schemes are right out of the traditional Hammer horror films, especially the Dracula series, so for me, this built up expectations of pulpy enjoyment that don't come to fruition—the mayhem near the end is nicely done, but getting there is a bit of a chore. I'd recommend this mostly to Hammer and/or Lee compleists. [TCM]