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{{Infobox_nrhp | name =Smithfield Road Historic District
{{Infobox Film
| nrhp_type = hd
| name = Frankenstein: The True Story
| image =
| image = Frankenstein True Story DVD cover.jpg
| caption = DVD cover.
| caption =
| location= [[North Smithfield, Rhode Island]]
| director = [[Jack Smight]]
| locmapin = Rhode Island
| producer = [[Ian Lewis]]<br/>[[Hunt Stromberg, Jr.]]
| area =
| writer = [[Don Bachardy]]<br/>[[Christopher Isherwood]]<br/>[[Mary Shelley]] <small>(novel)</small>
| architect= Unknown
| narrator =
| architecture= Greek Revival, Queen Anne, Federal
| starring = [[Leonard Whiting]]<br/>[[Jane Seymour (actress)|Jane Seymour]]<br/>[[David McCallum]]<br/>[[James Mason]]<br/>[[Michael Sarrazin]]
| music = [[Gil Melle]]
| added = [[February 18]], [[1987]]
| governing_body = Private
| cinematography = [[Arthur Ibbetson]]
| refnum=87000036
| editing = [[Richard Marden]]
<ref name="nris">{{cite web|url=http://www.nr.nps.gov/|title=National Register Information System|date=2007-01-23|work=National Register of Historic Places|publisher=National Park Service}}</ref>
| distributor = [[NBC]]
| released = [[US]] &ndash; [[November 28]] & [[November 30|30]], [[1973]] <small> (two parts)</small>
| runtime = 182 min.
| country = [[Cinema of the United Kingdom|UK]]
| language = [[English language|English]]
| budget =
| preceded_by =
| followed_by =
| website =
}}
}}
'''Smithfield Road Historic District''' is an [[historic district]] in [[North Smithfield, Rhode Island]] along Smithfield Road or [[Route 146A]]. The area is near the [[Union Village Historic District]] and contains many [[Colonial American]], [[Federal architecture|Federal]] and [[Victorian architecture|Victorian]] homes. The road was part of old [[Great Road]], also a historic district. The road connected [[Providence, Rhode Island|Providence]], [[Worcester, Massachusetts|Worcester]] and [[Hartford, Connecticut|Hartford]].
'''''Frankenstein: The True Story''''' is a [[1973]] [[United Kingdom|British]] [[television movie|made-for-television]] [[horror film]] based on the book ''[[Frankenstein]]'' by [[Mary Shelley]]. It was directed by [[Jack Smight]], and the screenplay was co-written by novelist [[Christopher Isherwood]].


==References==
The film starred [[Leonard Whiting]] as Victor Frankenstein, [[Jane Seymour (actress)|Jane Seymour]] as Prima, [[David McCallum]] as Henry Clerval, [[James Mason]] as Dr Polidori and [[Michael Sarrazin]] as the Creature.
*[http://www.nationalregisterofhistoricplaces.com/ri/Providence/districts.html National Register of Historic Places site]
*Walter Nebiker, ''The History of North Smithfield'' (Somersworth, NH: New England History Press, 1976).


{{reflist}}
The character of Dr Polidori, who did not appear in the original [[novel]], was based on the real-life [[John Polidori]], an acquaintance of author Mary Shelley who was part of the competition that produced her novel. Polidori's own contribution was the first modern vampire story.
{{commonscat}}
{{RhodeIsland-geo-stub}}
== See also ==
* [[List of Registered Historic Places in Rhode Island]]
{{Registered Historic Places}}


{{coord missing|United States}}
A notable feature of the production is that the Creature is portrayed as physically handsome, but diseased, and therefore increasingly ugly as the film goes on. The make-up was by [[Hammer horror]] veteran artist [[Roy Ashton]].


[[Category:Registered Historic Places in Rhode Island]]
It was originally broadcast in two 90-minute parts, but is often seen edited into a single film. Its [[DVD]] debut date was September 26, 2006.
[[Category:Providence County, Rhode Island]]

[[Category:Houses in Rhode Island]]
==Plot==
[[Category:Buildings and structures in Rhode Island]]

{{RhodeIsland-NRHP-stub}}
[[Victor Frankenstein]] is an affluent young man training as a doctor, engaged to Elizabeth Fanshawe, daughter of a highly respected Lord and Lady. After Victor's younger brother, William, is drowned in a tragic boat accident, Victor renounces his belief in God and declares that he would join forces with the Devil if he could learn how to restore his brother to life. Shortly afterwards, Victor leaves for London to train in [[anatomy]], where he meets an ambitious young scientist named Henry Clerval, who has discovered how to preserve dead matter and restore it to life. As Victor becomes fascinated by Clerval's experiments, Clerval reveals that his ultimate plan is to create a new race of physically perfect, invincible humans by using a combination of electricity and solar energy to reanimate sewn-together body parts from preserved corpses. He has been working on his first creation, which he calls 'Adam', but is unable to complete the experiment on his own due to his weak heart condition. When Frankenstein eagerly volunteers himself as Clervel's associate, they stitch together a physically perfect human using body parts taken from peasants killed in a mining accident. But as the experiment nears completion, Clerval discovers that the preservation process is not perfect and will eventually reverse itself, when a preserved human arm he has reanimated becomes diseased and unsightly. Before he can report this to Victor, he suffers a fatal heart attack and dies.

When Victor finds Clerval's body, he transplants the brain into their creation, unaware of the imperfection in the process. He completes the experiment and the result is a strikingly handsome, youthful and articulate creation, capable of quick learning. In awe of the creation, Victor educates him and introduces him into high-class London society, passing him off as a relative from a far-off country who speaks little English. The creation immediately wins the respect of London's elite class, but when Victor discovers the diseased human arm in Clerval's cupboard, he realizes that the process is reversing itself and the creation's flesh will rapidly turn withered and ugly. As the creature is in awe of its own good looks, Victor destroys all mirrors in his laboratory while he searches for a way of correcting the problem, but he is unsuccessful and realizes the creature is doomed to continue deteriorating, a fact that begins to change his feelings towards his own creation. When Victor's landlady, Mrs. Blair, enters Victor's room and sees the hideously degenerated creature, she dies of shock, and Victor is forced to take the creature back to the laboratory building for safety. In suspicion at Victor's changed attitude towards him, the creature searches for a reflective surface, finally viewing its horribly changed reflection. In despair, the creature tries to stab himself to death with a shard of broken glass; when this attemnpt fails, he flees from the laboratory to the White Cliffs of Dover where he plans suicide by throwing himself from the cliff. Victor chases him as far as the cliff's edge to try and stop him, but draws back at the last moment, realizing that it would be better for them both if the creature died. The creature, realizing that Victor really wants him dead, throws himself off the cliff and falls into the sea far below.

At the beginning of the second part it is revealed that the creature's strong body has allowed him to survive the fall, and he takes refuge in the woods where he befriends an elderly blind peasant man. The blind man is eager to introduce his new friend to his grandchildren Felix and Agatha, the latter of whom the creature falls in love with. The creature hides from them every time they return home, afraid of letting anyone see his face, which the blind man attributes to pure shyness. Felix and Agatha choose to surprise their grandfather's friend by turning up unexpectedly, but upon seeing the creature, Agatha flees into the woods in terror while Felix attacks the creature the creature. In self-defence, the creature flings Felix away from him, and accidentally kills him with his incredible strength. He then pursues Agatha into the woods, but as she runs from him in fright she stumbles into the passage of a horse-drawn cab, which runs over her, killing her instantly. Griefstricken, the creature takes the body and carries it back to Frankenstein's laboratory, intent on asking his creator to restore her to life. But when the creature arrives he finds that Victor has long since left and the laboratory is now occupied by Dr. Polidori, an old mentor of Clerval who has been conducting his own experiments with the creation of life. Polidori, having become aware of Victor's failed experiment and discovering through [[hypnosis|mesmerism]] that Henry Clervel's brain resides in the creature's body (in the creature's hypnotic state, Clervel's personality is awakened), agrees to help the creature, but secretly he has other plans.

Victor, having abandoned his experiments after the creature's suicide attempt, has now returned to his country house to marry Elizabeth. But on the day of his wedding he is visited by Polidori, who blackmails him into helping create a mate for the creature, on the promise that he will allow him to be free once the experiment is complete. Victor reluctantly agrees, and much to Elizabeth's dismay leaves her alone on the night after their wedding to join Polidori in his laboratory. Polidori reveals that he has discovered a way of perfecting the preservation of dead flesh by using chemical compounds rather than electricity, and he intends to create a perfect female creation using this method. While keeping Victor's own creature chained up like a wild animal, Polidori employs Victor's help in completing his creation, and together, using Agatha's corpse, they bring to life a beautiful female creature whom Polidori names Prima.

After Prima has been completed, despite his earlier vow to allow Victor his freedom, Polidori insinuates Prima into living at the Fanshawe mansion with himself, Victor and Elizabeth where Prima will educated and introduced into society. Frankenstein reluctantly complies with Polidori's wishes and allows Prima residence, but it becomes quickly obvious that Prima is soulless and evil, and Elizabeth becomes suspicious of her after she deliberately tries to strangle a kitten. Suspicious about the black neckband which Prima insists on wearing permanently around her neck, Elizabeth removes it as Prima sleeps, revealing the stitches by which her head has been sewn on. In horror, she begs Victor to dismiss her from the house.

Victor confronts Polidori, who smilingly tells him that he and Prima will be moving on shortly. However, there is one loose end to tie up - Victor's creation, which has been confined. Polidori hypnotizes the creature and puts him to sleep prior to pushing the creature's unconscious body into a vat of acid. At the last moment, Victor cries out for the creature to wake up; the immediately-awake and enraged creature hurls one of Polidori's servants into the acid but is locked in the room before he can get at Polidori. Polidori has his remaining servant set fire to the building with the creature trapped inside and chastizes Victor for his hypocrisy, telling him that he loved his creature "so long as it was pretty, but when it lost its looks that was a different matter!"

Later on, at a ball held in the mansion, Prima performs an amazing ballet dance routine which stuns all the guests, and as Polidori watches with pride, he explains his plans to use Prima as a key to insinuating himself into the world of social and political power. At that moment, Frankenstein's creature, who has survived the fire despite having been badly burned, bursts into the ballroom, scattering the guests, and makes his way towards Prima. Invincible to the bullets fired at him, the creature rips away Prima's neckband and proceeds to slowly rip off her head in anger at her evil. As Polidori breaks down in tears over Prima's death, the creature kneels beside Victor but because of its limited vocabulary cannot explain why he destroyed Prima beyond the single word "beautiful". After the creature has left, a police investigation follows and Victor tries to tell the truth, but Elizabeth convinces the inspector that Victor has been suffering from mental strain and that Polidori is responsible for everything. Elizabeth and Victor choose to leave England and voyage to America to begin life anew.

Victor and Elizabeth board the ship to America, but soon find that Polidori is also on board, insisting that Victor and him continue their experiments in America. He will not accept their refusal, so Victor and Elizabeth lock themselves in their cabin to hide from him. He persistently knocks on their door, so Elizabeth goes to Polidori's cabin to confront him, and catches sight of Victor's creature in a mirror, who has stowed away on board. She locks Polidori in the cabin with the creature and takes away his key. When she tells Victor what she has done, his sense of morality urges him to set Polidori free, so he does so and the creature breaks loose and pursues Polidori onto the deck, where he ties him to the mast and raises him to the storm above. In an attempt to stop the creature, Victor is struck by a falling plank of wood and knocked unconscious, as Polidori is struck by lightning and killed. The ship's crew, unable to restrain the creature, abandon ship and flee in a ship's boat, leaving only Victor, Elizabeth and the creature on board. Elizabeth cruelly taunts the creature, who strangles her to death in rage. He then proceeds to take control of the ship himself, and steers it towards an uncharted wilderness at the North Pole.

When Victor finally awakens from his injury, he finds the ship run aground in ice at the North Pole, and the frozen body of Elizabeth on the ship's deck. Victor sees the creature's footprints in the snow leading away from the ship, and making his way across the ice plain he catches sight of the creature waiting for him in an ice cavern. He confronts the creature one final time, then is overcome by remorse at the way he has wronged his own creation, whose "iron" body will keep him alive in the Arctic against his will. He begs the creature's forgiveness, and as he does so the sound of his shouts sets off an ice avalanche. As the ice falls down on them both, the creature (in Clervel's voice) forgives his creator, and they embrace as they are buried by the avalanche.

==Cast==
* [[James Mason]] as Dr. John Polidori
* [[Leonard Whiting]] as Dr. Victor Frankenstein
* [[David McCallum]] as Dr. Henry Clerval
* [[Jane Seymour (actress)|Jane Seymour]] as Agatha/Prima
* [[Nicola Pagett]] as Elizabeth Fanschawe
* [[Michael Sarrazin]] as The Creature
* [[Michael Wilding (actor)|Michael Wilding]] as Sir Richard Fanshawe
* [[Clarissa Kaye-Mason]] as Lady Fanschawe
* [[Agnes Moorehead]] as Mrs. Blair
* [[Margaret Leighton]] as Francoise DuVal
* [[Ralph Richardson]] as Mr. Lacey
* [[John Gielgud]] as Chief Constable (Police)
* [[Tom Baker]] as Sea Captain
* [[Dallas Adams]] as Felix
* [[Julian Barnes (actor)|Julian Barnes]] as Young man
* [[Arnold Diamond]] as Passenger in Coach

==External links==
*{{imdb title | id=0070074 | title=Frankenstein: The True Story}}
*{{amg movie|id=1:125687|title=Frankenstein: The True Story}}
{{-}}

[[Category:1973 television films]]
[[Category:British television films]]
[[Category:English-language films]]
[[Category:Films based on horror novels]]
[[Category:Frankenstein films]]
[[Category:Science fiction horror films]]

{{1970s-horror-film-stub}}

[[no:Frankenstein: The True Story]]

Revision as of 23:02, 10 October 2008

Smithfield Road Historic District
Smithfield Road Historic District is located in Rhode Island
Smithfield Road Historic District
LocationNorth Smithfield, Rhode Island
ArchitectUnknown
Architectural styleGreek Revival, Queen Anne, Federal
NRHP reference No.87000036 [1]
Added to NRHPFebruary 18, 1987

Smithfield Road Historic District is an historic district in North Smithfield, Rhode Island along Smithfield Road or Route 146A. The area is near the Union Village Historic District and contains many Colonial American, Federal and Victorian homes. The road was part of old Great Road, also a historic district. The road connected Providence, Worcester and Hartford.

References

  1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2007-01-23.
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