Based on the Barre Lyndon play “The Man in Half Moon Street” which had been made into a movie in 1945, Hammer added to their increasing roster of monster tales with 1959’s THE MAN WHO COULD CHEAT DEATH. The winning team of director Terence Fisher, screenwriter Jimmy Sangster and cinematographer Jack Asher are once again united for another Technicolor Hammer horror that would bring the decade to a close, and although it’s a minor effort compared to some of its predecessors, it still has its merits. Released theatrically by Paramount (the only early Hammer horror distributed by the company), it makes its very long-awaited home video debut with this welcomed DVD release from Legend Films.

In Paris 1890, Dr. Georges Bonnet (Anton Diffring) is out murdering women when he isn’t wrapped up in his hobby of sculpting. Bonnet is actually 104 years old but keeps the youthful image and healthy body of a man in his 30s by cutting out the parathyroid glands of said women and utilizing them for his secret elixir. When Bonnet’s 89-year-old colleague Prof. Ludwig Weiss (Arnold Marlé) shows up and sees his much older friend appear much younger, he refuses to perform a vital operation on him, and that spells trouble. Another sensible and ethical doctor, Pierre Gerard (Christopher Lee) is blackmailed into performing the surgery after Bonnet endangers the life of the beautiful Janine Dubois (Hazel Court), a young woman who they are both vying for the attentions of, with Bonnet naturally in the lead, being the evil and deceitful one.

THE MAN WHO COULD CHEAT DEATH is another colorful and handsome Hammer production made at their tiny Bray Studios, but it's a dialog-driven affair with most of the proceedings taking place on several sound stages. Bernard Robinson’s sets are lavish, but too recognizably redressed from previous Hammer efforts (CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN, HORROR OF DRACULA, REVENGE OF FRANKENSTEIN, etc.). The Dorian Gray-like horror antics are kept to a minimum but are highlighted by Jack Asher’s effective lighting on Bonnet when he’s on the brink of turning monstrous, or when the camera probes from the inside of his secret elixir cabinet, which glows outwardly in a florescent green. Providing the film’s score in a position often reserved for James Bernard is Richard Rodney Bennett, whose successful career would lead to three Oscar nominations and eventual Knighthood. Roy Ashton’s excellent decaying make-up is generously displayed during the film’s fiery climax.

As Bonnet, Anton Diffring is perfectly cast in the villainous role, and gothic horror suits him well. He would top himself the following year in the memorable CIRCUS OF HORRORS, but his subsequent genre roles were usually of the supporting kind, and he didn’t return to Hammer until 1973 (he had a small role in SHATTER). Many forget that Diffring essayed the role of Baron Frankenstein for Hammer in their black & white 1958 TV pilot, “Tales of Frankenstein,” but Diffring will probably remain known for appearing as various German soldiers rather than as a horror icon. Christopher Lee is very good here as Pierre Gerard, proving early on in the horror cycle that he offered more than lumbering monsters or speech-deprived vampires (by jason). A bonafide “scream queen” of the highest degree, the late Hazel Court is given less to do here than in some of her other genre efforts, and she reportedly was filmed topless (during a nude modeling sequence) for a “continental” version which is yet to resurface. A number of other familiar Hammer character actors are present here, including Francis De Wolff and Charles Lloyd Pack.

Legend Films presents Hammer’s THE MAN WHO COULD CHEAT DEATH on DVD in a properly framed 1.66:1 transfer with anamorphic enhancement. After a rather dark credit sequence (which has Bonner roaming the foggy Paris streets in search of glands), the transfer boasts excellent detail and even though at times the colors look somewhat muted, they are still distinct and shine through nicely in many scenes. Aside from occasional film dirt, the image is very clean and smooth, granting us a very handsome edition of this early Hammer classic. The mono English audio track is also in good shape, and aside from several crackles and pops, sounds nice and clear throughout. There are no subtitle options, but the disc is close captioned.

For Hammer fans, 2008 has already become a banner DVD year, with this fine release, Fox’s THE NANNY, and Sony’s tribute to Hammer adventure epics, “Icons of Adventure” (which will hopefully be followed up with a horror-themed Hammer set soon). Although many Hammer films have made it to Region 1 DVD, studios like MGM (THE QUATERMASS XPERIMENT, TWINS OF EVIL, HANDS OF THE RIPPER, VAMPIRE CIRCUS) and Warner (SHE, HYSTERIA, CRESCENDO, MOON ZERO TWO, WHEN DINOSAURS RULED THE EARTH) are still holding out on a number of them, so we can only keep the faith that they’ll see the late of day.