MamaGravity good back-story, and good acting

Voxitype Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

Bluebell Alcock Ok... Let's be honest. It cannot be the best movie but is quite enjoyable. The movie has the potential to develop a great plot for future movies

Kaydan Christian A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

msjaywolf This film has been my favourite movie since it came out. Frankenhooker will always be my favourite movie.

Nigel P With 'Frankenhooker', chances are you get what you expect. 'Trash' and 'screwball' describe the knockabout humour on display here as Jeffrey (James Lorinz) brings back to life his decapitated fiancée by 'building her a new body of Manhatten street prostitutes'.A lot of the first part of the film relies on Lorinz, who is required to carry scenes by himself. He is somewhat expressionless but enters into the spirit of the proceedings with little inhibition. The second part is indebted to Patty Mullen as Elizabeth, parading under patchwork prosthetics, being seduced by a selection of horrendous macho 1990's muscle men. Her jerky wide-eyed movements recall a certain sense of Elsa Lanchester from the original 'Bride of Frankenstein (1935)'.There's plenty of flesh, lots of rubber limbs and some fairly graphic titillation on offer. Only when Elizabeth regains her memories does the grotesque humour make way for actual emotion, but that's fine. "There wasn't enough left of you to fry an egg with," explains Jeffrey in one of his final pronouncements.An acquired taste, especially now its garish, coarse visuals have a very dated quality, this is what it is. Deliberately goofy, wobbly, sleazy, popcorn nonsense worth a giggle.

Leofwine_draca In the early '90s it was rare for a film to possess much in the way of originality, which is why Frank Henenlotter's campy spoof of the Frankenstein theme stands out from the crowd. Sure, the film is full of the awful rubbery special effects so popular in late '80s cinema, but for once it possesses some imagination, some ideas which make it a great deal more entertaining than half a dozen of your low budget no-hopers.The camp tone of the film is set out from the start when our hero's girlfriend is killed by a lawnmower, of all things (although this cut-away scene is no match for the infamous classic finale of BRAINDEAD). Yes, the film does depend almost solely on goofy jokes for entertainment purposes, but there's no harm in this. Okay, so perhaps a little more wit would have improved things all round, but you can't have everything.The acting consists of either mugging at the camera (especially in the case of the title character, who performs some ridiculous gurning), or being just plain bad. James Lorinz himself isn't too bad, and there is something endearing about his teenage scientist who sticks a drill in his brain to stimulate himself. In fact, Lorinz is part of the reason to watch this film. He's not a particularly gifted actor, but there's just something about him which makes him fit this role like a glove. For the most part, we are bombarded by bad computer effects, some cheap and tacky gore, lots of gratuitous nudity, pseudo-science and, in the film's most remembered scene, prostitutes literally exploding all over the place. Although this scene is patently unrealistic, at least you won't find it anywhere else.As for the horror content, there is little. An effective ending has the principle villain being eaten by a hideous 'something' in a slimy freezer, but that's about it as the rest of the film is played strictly for laughs. Henenlotter certainly makes the most of his low budget, and many of the special effects are ambitious, if not totally realistic. They all fit into the spirit of the thing, in any case. For fans of cheesy horror flicks, FRANKENHOOKER is definitely one of a kind.

Michael_Elliott Frankenhooker (1990) ** 1/2 (out of 4)More madness from director Frank Henenlotter who takes an outrageous concept and turns it into camp. Jeffrey Franken (James Lorinz) loses his girlfriend after she's ran over by his electronic lawnmower. Instead of sitting around crying he decides to use his medical knowledge and bring her back to life but since she was cut up he has to use various body parts from hookers. FRANKENHOOKER has a great concept but I will admit that the actual story is paper thin but thankfully that doesn't take away from the charm. There are hundreds of different low-budget horror movies out there but you can always tell when you're watching something from Henenlotter because he can take the most outrageous things and make them seem rather normal in the bizarre universe that he creates. I think there are a lot of good things going for this film including the various New York locations, which really add a lot to the atmosphere. There are some seedy locations and these really make you feel as if you're right down there in the middle of all these hookers, pimps and drugs. Another good thing the film has going for it is the fact that it's not afraid to be over the top in both the nudity and camp level. There's all sorts of nude women on full display, which will please most viewers but we also get some hilarious scenes involving some super crack that the hookers take and that makes them blow up. The sequence of them blowing up is without question a highlight. At just 84-minutes the film has a very good pace and it thankfully never outlasts its welcome. Lorinz is decent in the lead role but it's Patty Mullen who clearly steals the pic as the creature. The walk she brings the part is just perfect and I really loved how much fun she seemed to be having. With a film called FRANKENHOOKER you really shouldn't be expecting high art but the film delivers on a camp level and it's good fun.