Experience the madness in April

Hammer Films carved a niche for itself with stylish horror films, pushing the boundaries of what was permissible. Saul grew up on their Dracula films, replayed on the television afternoon movie. Here, Hammer gives us a monstrous take on the historical character of Grigori Rasputin, with a supernatural twist. Is this a biopic? Not even remotely. It is an insane romp with Christopher Lee as the mysterious so-called monk who devastated the Russian aristocracy. Here, Rasputin is portrayed as an almost demonic presence bent on doing evil. It has everything that makes a film Hammer, and Lee is delightfully dark and violent.