Christopher Lee's 10 Best Performances

By Stuart Cummins /

8. The Creature

THE CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1957) The original horror pairing of Lee and fellow genre legend Peter Cushing usually finds the majority of praise being given to the latter€™s performance. However, as well as Cushing€™s excellent turn as Frankenstein, Lee€™s portrayal of the doctor€™s creation is as equally accomplished. Merging a dangerous but distinctly human nature within the character, Lee manages to provide some genuinely unnerving moments as well as some touching instances where it€™s apparent that he is a victim of Frankenstein€™s madness rather than his own. Whilst the horrific makeup that is used gives the creature a grotesque look that€™s there to shock audiences, Lee€™s powerful performance helps elevate the role out of the drudgery of a supporting character, filling the monster with misguided life and erroneous morality. Combined with his performance as Kharis the mummy and his repeated portrayal of Dracula, this role cements Lee€™s position of one of the great horror actors, in league with Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi and Lon Chaney Jnr.