Hammer Film Productions

Hammer Film Productions Ltd. was a British film production company based in London, founded in 1934. It became famous for creating many Gothic horror and fantasy films from the mid-1950s to the 1970s. These films often featured classic characters like Baron Victor Frankenstein, Count Dracula, and the Mummy, and were special because they were filmed in colorful, vivid styles for the first time.

During its most successful years, Hammer was a leader in the horror film industry, working with big American companies such as United Artists, Warner Bros., Universal Pictures, and others. This helped them reach audiences all over the world and earn a lot of money.

By the late 1960s and 1970s, Hammer had to change its style because other companies were making similar films and they lost some financial support from America. The company stopped making films in the mid-1980s. In 2000, new owners bought Hammer, and in 2007, plans were made to create new horror films with a big budget. Since then, Hammer has produced several new movies, keeping the classic brand alive.

Hammer before horror

Early history (1935–1937)

In November 1934, William Hinds, a comedian and businessman, started his film company, Hammer Productions Ltd. It was located in a small office in Regent Street, London. The company’s name came from Hinds’ stage name, Will Hammer, inspired by the area where he lived, Hammersmith.

Hammer’s first film was a comedy called The Public Life of Henry the Ninth, made in 1935. The story followed Henry Henry, a street musician in London. During this time, Hinds partnered with Enrique Carreras to form a film distribution company called Exclusive Films. Hammer made four films that Exclusive distributed, but a drop in the British film industry led to Hammer going bankrupt in 1937. Exclusive Films continued operating.

Revival (1938–1955)

James Carreras, Enrique’s son, joined Exclusive Films in 1938, followed by William Hinds’ son, Anthony. During World War II, they left to serve, but James returned in 1946 and restarted Hammer as a film production company under Exclusive. They made low-cost films to fill gaps in movie schedules.

Hammer began making films at different locations, saving money by filming in large houses instead of studios. In 1949, Hammer officially became a company again, and moved into offices at 113-117 Wardour Street, renaming the building “Hammer House.”

In 1951, Hammer started using Down Place, a large house by the River Thames, turning it into their main studio, later called Bray Studios. That same year, Hammer signed a deal with American producer Robert Lippert, which led to many of their films featuring American actors. They also hired director Terence Fisher, who would become important for their future horror films.

Hammer Horror (1955–1959)

Hammer’s first big horror film was The Quatermass Xperiment in 1955, based on a television science fiction story. To meet their contract with Robert Lippert, they brought in American actor Brian Donlevy for the main role and changed the title to include “X” to appeal to horror fans. The film was very popular and led to a sequel in 1957, Quatermass 2. Hammer also made another horror film, X the Unknown, though writer Nigel Kneale did not allow them to use his characters for this one.

Hammer Horror contributors

Directors and writers

Hammer Film Productions had many talented directors and writers who helped create its famous horror movies. Some of the key directors included Terence Fisher, who directed 29 films for Hammer, such as The Curse of Frankenstein, Dracula, and The Mummy. Other notable directors were Freddie Francis, Roy Ward Baker, Peter Sasdy, and Seth Holt. Writers like Tudor Gates and Jimmy Sangster also played important roles in shaping the stories for these films.

Other personnel

Many talented people contributed to Hammer's films behind the scenes. James Bernard composed music for many Hammer horror movies, including The Curse of Frankenstein and Dracula. The visual style of early Hammer films was shaped by Bernard Robinson, the production designer, and Jack Asher, the cinematographer, who worked with limited budgets to create memorable settings.

Actors

Hammer's horror films featured many actors who appeared in multiple movies, creating a special group often called the "Hammer repertory company." Peter Cushing was one of Hammer's biggest stars, playing Baron Victor Frankenstein six times and Doctor Van Helsing five times. Christopher Lee became internationally famous for playing Count Dracula in Hammer's 1958 version and in several sequels. Other notable actors included Ralph Bates, Shane Briant, Veronica Carlson, Michael Gough, Andrew Keir, Miles Malleson, Francis Matthews, André Morell, Ingrid Pitt, David Prowse, Oliver Reed, Michael Ripper, Barbara Shelley, Madeline Smith, Thorley Walters, and George Woodbridge.

Key horror films

The Curse of Frankenstein

Main article: The Curse of Frankenstein

Hammer Film Productions began making famous horror movies in the 1950s. One of their first big hits was The Curse of Frankenstein. This film retold the story of Frankenstein, a scientist who creates a creature. The movie was made in colorful film, which made the special effects look very realistic. Stars Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee became famous for their roles in this film. It was very popular in Britain and America and inspired many other horror movies.

Dracula

Main article: Dracula (1958 film)

After the success of The Curse of Frankenstein, Hammer made Dracula in 1958. This film featured Count Dracula, a famous vampire character. Peter Cushing returned to act, and Christopher Lee played Dracula. The movie was also made in colorful film and became a big hit around the world. It introduced new ways to tell the Dracula story and made the character very popular in culture.

The Mummy

Main article: The Mummy (1959 film)

Hammer continued making horror films with The Mummy in 1959. This movie was based on an older story but added new ideas. Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee starred again, and the film was directed by Terence Fisher. The Mummy was even more successful than Dracula and broke box-office records in both Britain and America.

Sequels

Hammer made many more movies after their big successes, turning popular films into series. They did this with adventure movies and later with horror films and other types of stories.

Quatermass

The movie The Quatermass Xperiment from 1955 was very popular, so they made two more movies continuing the story:

• Quatermass 2 in 1957
• Quatermass and the Pit in 1967

They also made two more movies with similar ideas:

• X the Unknown in 1956
• The Abominable Snowman in 1957

Frankenstein

Hammer made six more movies after The Curse of Frankenstein between 1958 and 1974:

• The Revenge of Frankenstein in 1958
• The Evil of Frankenstein in 1964
• Frankenstein Created Woman in 1967
• Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed in 1969
• The Horror of Frankenstein in 1970
• Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell in 1974

Peter Cushing played Baron Frankenstein in most of these movies. David Prowse acted as the creature in two of the films.

Dracula

Eight more movies followed Dracula from 1960 to 1974:

• The Brides of Dracula in 1960
• Dracula: Prince of Darkness in 1966
• Dracula Has Risen from the Grave in 1968
• Taste the Blood of Dracula in 1970
• Scars of Dracula in 1970
• Dracula A.D. 1972 in 1972
• The Satanic Rites of Dracula in 1973
• The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires in 1974

Peter Cushing appeared in the first and last three of these movies. Christopher Lee played Dracula in most of them. John Forbes-Robertson played Dracula in the last movie.

The Mummy

Three more movies followed The Mummy from 1964 to 1971:

• The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb in 1964
• The Mummy's Shroud in 1967
• Blood from the Mummy's Tomb in 1971

These movies did not feature Peter Cushing or Christopher Lee and told new stories not connected to the 1959 film.

Other films

Horror films

Hammer made many spooky movies. Some famous ones include The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959), where Peter Cushing played Sherlock Holmes, and The Curse of the Werewolf (1961), which was Hammer’s only movie about a werewolf. Other titles are The Phantom of the Opera (1962) and The Witches (1966).

Vampire films

Besides their popular Dracula movies, Hammer also created other vampire stories. These include Kiss of the Vampire (1962) and Vampire Circus (1972). They also made a group of films called “The Karnstein Trilogy,” inspired by an old story named Carmilla. These films include The Vampire Lovers (1970) and Lust for a Vampire (1971).

Psychological thrillers

Hammer made several suspenseful movies that kept audiences guessing until the end. These “mini-Hitchcocks” include Taste of Fear (1961) and Nightmare (1964). Other thrillers like The Snorkel (1958) and Passport to China (1960) were also made.

Prehistoric films

Hammer created movies set in ancient times. Some of these are She (1965), One Million Years B.C. (1966), and When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth (1970).

War films

The company also made several war movies such as The Steel Bayonet (1957) and Yesterday's Enemy (1959).

Comedies

Although better known for scary films, Hammer made some comedies too. Examples include Up the Creek (1958) and The Ugly Duckling (1959).

Science fiction

Occasionally, Hammer made science fiction films like The Damned (1963) and Moon Zero Two (1969).

Swashbucklers

Hammer produced adventurous swashbuckling tales such as The Pirates of Blood River (1961) and Captain Clegg (1962).

Imperial adventure films

They also made films set in places ruled by Britain, including The Stranglers of Bombay (1959) and The Terror of the Tongs (1961).

Crime films

Some of their crime dramas include Hell is a City (1959) and Cash on Demand (1961).

On 29 May 1968, Hammer received a special award for helping Britain’s economy. The ceremony happened at Pinewood Studios while they were filming Dracula Has Risen from the Grave.

Last years of film production

In the late 1960s, Hammer Films faced challenges as new Hollywood movies showed more intense and dramatic scenes. Films like Bonnie and Clyde and The Wild Bunch were very popular and set new standards. Hammer tried new ideas, such as updating classic stories like vampires and Frankenstein, but these changes did not always work well.

During the 1970s, Hammer made fewer horror films and tried other types of movies, including adapting popular TV shows. One of their biggest successes was a film version of the ITV series On the Buses. They also made films based on other TV shows, but these did not always do well. Hammer Films continued making movies until they closed in 1979, with their last film being a new version of The Lady Vanishes.

Attempted revival

In July 1993, it was reported that Richard and Lauren Shuler Donner had bought 200 films from Hammer's collection. They wanted to make new versions of these films for movie theaters and TV. Warner Bros. agreed to help them with these new projects.

They planned to start with a big, expensive remake of The Quatermass Xperiment, called Xperiment. Famous actors like Sean Connery or Anthony Hopkins were considered for the main role. They also wanted to remake other Hammer films like Quatermass 2, Quatermass and the Pit, The Devil Rides Out, Stolen Face, and Taste of Fear.

Besides remaking old Hammer films, they had ideas for new stories too. These included a film based on a book called The Hiss, titled Hideous Whispers, and other new movies with exciting plots. They even talked about making a series of scary stories called The Haunted House of Hammer, with episodes filmed in both the United Kingdom and the United States.

But even though many people were excited about these plans, nothing happened. The plans for bringing Hammer back were eventually stopped.

Brand-name resurrection (2007–present)

In the 2000s, Hammer Film Productions seemed quiet but kept announcing new plans. In May 2007, Dutch producer John De Mol bought the rights to Hammer Films. His team planned to make new horror and thriller movies. The first film, Beyond the Rave, was a modern vampire story shown online in 2008.

Hammer made several films after that, including Wake Wood, The Resident, and Let Me In. In 2012, they released The Woman in Black with Daniel Radcliffe as the main actor. They also made The Quiet Ones, a film about a professor and his students trying to create a ghost. Later films included The Lodge and Doctor Jekyll. In 2021, Hammer joined with Network Distributing to form Hammer Studios Ltd, and in 2023, the John Gore Organisation bought Hammer Film Productions.

Current films

• Beyond the Rave (2008)
• Let Me In (2010)
• The Resident (2011)
• Wake Wood (2011)
• The Woman in Black (2012)
• The Quiet Ones (2014)
• The Woman in Black: Angel of Death (2015)
• The Lodge (2019)
• Doctor Jekyll (2023)

Filmography

For a complete list of films by Hammer Film Productions, see Hammer filmography.

Critical response

In my early teens I went with groups of friends to see certain films. If we saw the logo of Hammer, we knew it was going to be a very special picture. A surprising experience. And shocking.

— Martin Scorsese on the heyday of the horror movie.

Hammer's horror films were often praised by critics for their visual style, although rarely taken seriously. Critics who specialise in cult films, like Kim Newman, have praised Hammer Horror more fully, enjoying their atmosphere, craftsmanship and occasional camp appeal. In A History of Horror, Mark Gatiss remarked that Hammer's earlier films were taken seriously at the time, in comparison to the trademark camp appeal of their later works.

In a 2013 retrospective for The Guardian, Michael Newton wrote:

Shot in Eastmancolor, the first batch of Hammer Horror movies – Terence Fisher's The Curse of Frankenstein (1957), Dracula (1958) and The Mummy (1959) – are among the loveliest-looking British films of the decade... The early Hammer films offer a last gasp of British romanticism, the solid sets drenched in a soft brilliance of shadows, of greys, reds and blues; when these films stray into the far woods, it's always autumn there, never spring. The leaves fall, and the light shines golden and clear; compared with the well-lit contemporary look of the "angry young men" films, Hammer's mournful sumptuousness must have been even more striking.

Television series

Journey to the Unknown

Main article: Journey to the Unknown

This was a series about strange and unusual events. It mixed fantasy, science fiction, and supernatural stories. Normal people found themselves in situations that were out of the ordinary. Hammer Film Productions and 20th Century Fox Television made 17 episodes, each about 50 minutes long. In America, eight of these episodes were shown as four special TV movies. Actors like Patrick McGoohan, Sebastian Cabot, and Joan Crawford introduced these episodes. The series first aired in America on ABC from September 1968 to January 1969 and later in the UK on ITV in 1969.

Hammer House of Horror

Main article: Hammer House of Horror

In 1980, Hammer Films made a TV series called Hammer House of Horror. It had 13 episodes, each about 54 minutes long, and was shown on ITV. Each episode told a different scary story, sometimes with surprises at the end. The stories included witches, werewolves, ghosts, and other spooky themes, as well as more realistic horror stories. All the tales took place in modern England.

Hammer House of Mystery and Suspense

Main article: Hammer House of Mystery and Suspense

In 1984, Hammer Films created another series called Hammer House of Mystery and Suspense. It also had 13 episodes, but these were longer, close to an hour, to be shown as “movies of the week” in the US. The stories were made with 20th Century Fox, who also broadcast them as Fox Mystery Theater. To fit American TV standards, the scenes with intense moments were made less strong. Each episode featured a well-known American actor. This was Hammer Film’s last production in the 20th century, after which the studio stopped making new shows for a long time.