Frankenstein: The True Story

In 1830’s England, young medical student Victor Frankenstein (Leonard Whiting), following the drowning death of his beloved brother, bitterly renounces God and vows to find the secret to creating life himself. He crosses paths with the eccentric Dr. Henry Clerval (David McCallum) who shares his quest and takes the younger Victor under his wing. When experiments in reanimating insects and a severed human arm succeed, the two prepare to bring to life a man whom they have assembled from body parts of victims of a mining accident. On the eve of their attempt, Henry discovers that the process will reverse itself and dies from heart failure before he can sufficiently warn Victor. Committed to carrying on his late friend’s work, Victor forges ahead and brings to life a creature of incredible beauty and innocence (Michael Sarrazin). The two develop a close, affectionate relationship and Victor looks forward to presenting his creation to society as “the new Adam.” Inevitably, the flaw in Clerval’s procedure results in the grotesque distortion of the Creature’s appearance, causing Victor to callously reject him.