MICHAEL HARRIS' FILM DIRECTORS - TERENCE FISHER (1904-80)

British director who is best remembered for launching the British horror wave of the 1950's-60's via the Hammer studios. After working as an editor for a number of years, Fisher became a director in 1947 at the age of 43. Between then and 1956 when he directed The Curse Of Frankenstein, which smashed box office records and firmly established Hammer as Britain's number one purveyors of horror, Fisher's career was set firmly in the second feature market. Most of these with the exception of Stolen Face (1952), about a plastic surgeon (Paul Henreid) who recreates the face of the girl he loves on a deformed petty criminal and Four Side Triangle (1953) about two young scientists who create a machine that can duplicate people did not indicate the direction that Fisher's career would take once he had found his niche with the gothic horror film genre. Indeed a number of them with one or two possible exceptions were not all that good.

Following the unexpected success of Frankenstein, Fisher went on to direct what is generally considered his masterpiece, Dracula (1958 - see separate review), which succeeded in bringing out the underlying sexual element of the vampire myth in that Christopher Lee's Count, tall, dark and handsome was attractive to his female victims. In addition, it is interesting to note that the genre was considered by many critics to be crude sensationalism but time has revealed Fisher's contributions to the genre to be anything but. With their lavish Technicolor camerawork, a preference for a historical setting and excellent storytelling in which the age old battle between good and evil was a strong theme throughout, Fisher's films had the appearance of gothic Victorian novels in pictures and in a genre that veered heavily towards sex and gore, his approach was restrained and he brought more intelligence and craft to these films than one might have expected.

Following the initial breakthrough films of Frankenstein and Dracula, Fisher would remain with Hammer for much of the remainder of his career and obviously his career went through highs and lows. The best of his later works include The Gorgon (1964), Frankenstein Created Woman (1967), The Devil Rides Out (1968), a powerful adaptation of Dennis Wheatley's occult novel with Lee as the Duc De' Richeleau proving that he could play good guys with the same conviction as bad guys as he protected his friends from a coven of satanists lead by Charles Gray's Mocatta. The Hound Of The Baskervilles (1959) was an exciting adaptation of Conan Doyle's classic detective story and the film is considered by some to be the best ever Sherlock Holmes film. It is certainly a strong contender with Peter Cushing making a fine impression as the Baker Street sleuth, a role he was later to repeat in a successful BBC TV series. Other notable films include a sadly underrated version of The Phantom Of The Opera (1962), with an unfairly neglected performance from Herbert Lom which was deemed a failure due to the fact that the Phantom himself was treated too sympathetically.

Terence Fisher directed his last film in 1973, Frankenstein And The Monster From Hell, which although made on an obviously low budget during Hammer's waning years, marked a welcome return to the style of the company's earlier gothic horror films and was better than much of the company's early 1970's output. Fisher died in 1980 following a long battle with cancer.