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Frankenstein's Army

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Frankenstein's Army
North American DVD cover
Directed byRichard Raaphorst
Screenplay by
  • Chris W. Mitchell
  • Miguel Tejada-Flores
Story by
  • Richard Raaphorst
  • Miguel Tejada-Flores
Produced by
  • Nick Jongerius
  • Daniel Koefoed
  • Todd Brown
  • Greg Newman
Starring
CinematographyBart Beekman
Edited by
  • Jasper Verhorevoort
  • Aaron Crozier
Music byReyn Ouwehand
Production
companies
Distributed byMPI Media Group
Release dates
  • January 26, 2013 (2013-01-26) (IFFR)
  • July 26, 2013 (2013-07-26) (United States)
Running time
84 minutes
Countries
  • United States
  • Czech Republic
  • Netherlands
LanguageEnglish

Frankenstein's Army is a 2013 found footage horror film directed by Richard Raaphorst, written by Chris W. Mitchell and Miguel Tejada-Flores, and starring Karel Roden, Joshua Sasse, Luke Newberry, Alexander Mercury, Robert Gwilym, Andrei Zayats, Mark Stevenson and Hon Ping Tang. An international co-production of the United States, the Czech Republic, and the Netherlands. The film is set on the Eastern Front of World War II, as seen from the point of view of a Red Army team. In the film, Soviet troops invading Germany encounter undead mechanical soldiers created by a mad scientist descended from Victor Frankenstein.

Before the production of Frankenstein's Army, Raaphorst worked on a project titled Worst Case Scenario, which began production in 2004. After several years in development, the project was cancelled in 2009 due to financial problems.[1] The film was intended as a prequel to Worst Case Scenario, titled Army of Frankenstein, and would have focused on Wehrmacht soldiers reinforced by zombie troops. The concept was later renamed and reworked into Frankenstein's Army.[2]

Frankenstein's Army received an extremely limited theatrical release before being released on home video by MPI Media Group and Dark Sky Films on September 10, 2013.[3][4] Following its home video release, the film generated an estimated $101,216 in domestic DVD sales in the United States.[5] The film received mixed reviews from critics, and achieved a cult following among horror fans for its atmosphere and creature design.[a] It received a Special Mention for the Grand Prize of European Fantastic Film (Silver) at the 2013 Sitges Film Festival.[12]

Plot

[edit]

During the closing days of World War II, a Soviet reconnaissance team consisting of Novikov, Sergei, Vassili, Alexei, Ivan, Sacha, and Dmitri are on a mission to destroy a German sniper nest. After completing the objective, the squad receives a Soviet distress call that repeats without any response to their queries; at the same time, they lose radio contact with high command. Although the soldiers are skeptical of the presence of Soviet forces in the area, team leader Novikov orders them to investigate. Meanwhile, videographer Dmitri interviews the soldiers and documents the mission under orders to create a Soviet propaganda film featuring the heroic exploits of the Red Army.

As they draw closer to the designated coordinates, Dmitri takes an interest in and films several odd occurrences, such as unexplained dead Nazis, a burnt convent full of massacred nuns, and strange machinery. When the soldiers arrive at their destination, they find an abandoned church where they accidentally activate a 'zombot' - a reanimated corpse with mechanical implants fused onto its body. The zombot kills Novikov before being killed by the rest of the men and Sergei takes charge as the new team leader.

The soldiers see an elderly caretaker enter the church and ambush him. He is interrogated by Dmitri, who asks for the location of the stranded Soviet soldiers they heard on the radio. The caretaker insists that the village is abandoned, with everyone killed or scared off by the creatures created by "The Doctor", but Vassili becomes impatient and cuts off his finger. Coerced by the torture, the caretaker agrees to lead them to the source of the Soviet distress call, but instead leads them into a zombot trap where Ivan is mortally wounded. The squad manages to escape, and back at the church they encounter a group of German survivors - elderly Fritz, young boy Hans, and nurse Eva - that had been hiding from the zombots. Vassili suggests killing them, but Eva convinces the Russians to spare her and her fellow survivors by offering to help the wounded Ivan. When she is unable to save him and he dies of his injuries, Vassili knocks her unconscious. Suddenly, Alexei is ambushed and killed by a zombot as multiple of them enter the church and close in on the group.

The survivors manage to escape into the church's catacombs, where Sergei discovers that Dmitri has been deceiving the squad by using a radio jammer to both block contact with high command and transmit the fake distress call they received. Dmitri reveals that he has a secret mission from the Soviet government to capture or kill the Nazi scientist who created the zombots, and to document their mission in case they cannot capture him. Furious that they were deceived and led unprepared into this mission, Sergei and Vassili threaten to kill Dmitri, but he asserts his authority by revealing that he is a Captain in the Red Army, outranking both of them, and threatens their families with retribution if they disobey his orders. As Dmitri leads the group deeper into the catacombs, they encounter increasingly bizarre aberrations and eventually find a chute which goes deeper into the factory. Sergei and Vassili force Hans to go down the chute to investigate and the boy is immediately killed by a zombot which then climbs up the chute and attacks the group; though they manage to destroy it, Fritz is killed in the struggle. Sergei, Vassili, and Sacha then stage a mutiny against Dmitri and throw him and his film equipment down the chute.

Unable to climb back up, Dmitri goes deeper into the facility, eventually being discovered and chased by a multitude of zombots. While trying to escape, he encounters and is knocked out by Ivan, who has been converted into a zombot. When Dmitri regains consciousness, he finds himself taken prisoner by the church's caretaker, who reveals himself to be Dr. Viktor Frankenstein, a deranged descendant of the original Victor Frankenstein, and creator of the zombots. The doctor gives Dmitri a tour of his facility, explaining that he created the zombots based on his grandfather's work, and eventually went rogue from his Nazi superiors. Along the way, Dmitri sees Hans, converted into a zombot, and Sergei and Vassili, both captured, with the latter partially dismembered. Dmitri and Frankenstein then hear distant artillery fire, which Dmitri reveals is the approaching Red Army. Dmitri attempts to recruit Frankenstein on behalf of the Soviet government, but instead, Frankenstein proposes an experiment that he believes will end the war: fusing together one half each of a Soviet and a Nazi brain. To this end, he lobotomizes a kidnapped Nazi soldier, and then Sergei, who swears revenge on Dmitri before Frankenstein begins operating on him; during the surgery, Frankenstein is assisted by Eva, who has also been turned into a zombot. Frankenstein removes half of Sergei's brain and grafts the removed half of the Nazi soldier's brain into Sergei's head and then reanimates him with his generator. Frankenstein restrains Dmitri onto a table to begin experimenting on him, but the Red Army's artillery suddenly begins bombarding the factory. Frankenstein quickly gathers his documents and prepares to flee, but Sacha, who managed to evade capture, appears from behind and shoots him dead. Dmitri orders Sacha to free him, but Sacha ignores him, instead removing Frankenstein's head and taking it with him as proof that he succeeded in his mission, along with Dmitri's camera. Sacha flees the facility just as Sergei's body comes to life and kills Dmitri.

The "document" then ends with a photo of a newly promoted Sacha standing next to Stalin.

Cast

[edit]
  • Karel Roden as Dr. Viktor Frankenstein
  • Alexander Mercury as Dmitri
  • Joshua Sasse as Sergei
  • Andrei Zayats as Vassili
  • Hon Ping Tang as Ivan, "Ivan Zombot"
  • Mark Stevenson as Alexei
  • Luke Newberry as Sacha
  • Robert Gwilym as Novikov
  • Cristina Catalina as Eva, "Nurse Zombot"
  • Zdenek Barinka as Hans, "Pod Zombot"
  • Jan de Lukowicz as Fritz
  • Klaus Lucas as Dieter, The Dying Nazi Officer

Production

[edit]

Origins and development

[edit]

Stories of Frankenstein's monster disturbed director Richard Raaphorst as a child. When he was thinking of ideas for a monster film, he instantly went back to the Frankenstein mythology, which he extended to World War II. Raaphorst said he was drawn the idea of an army of Frankensteins in World War II specifically because the idea was "insane".[13]

Richard Raaphorst redeveloped the film from scratch and avoided reusing ideas from his cancelled project Worst Case Scenario.

Raaphorst had worked on a similar film titled Worst Case Scenario but Frankenstein's Army is unrelated to it.[14] The film originated after the cancellation of Raaphorst's earlier project Worst Case Scenario, a horror-comedy that began production in 2004 but was abandoned in 2009 because of financial problems,[1] after its producers were unable to sell the project. Because the producers retained the rights, Raaphorst was unable to continue developing it.[15] An early version of the project was developed as a prequel to Worst Case Scenario under the title Army of Frankenstein before being reworked into a separate film.[2] Following the collapse of the earlier production, Raaphorst redeveloped the project from scratch and worked with artist Oleg Bondarenko to create a new set of monster designs for a story set during the closing stages of World War II.[16]

Development of the film gained momentum in 2009 after producer Todd Brown helped introduce the project to potential financiers through XYZ Films.[17] Raaphorst and co-writer Miguel Tejada-Flores prepared a screenplay and production materials, and the title was later changed from Army of Frankenstein to Frankenstein's Army during development.[17] In February 2011, MPI Media Group, XYZ Films and Pellicola entered into a co-production agreement for the film. MPI financed the production, while MPI and XYZ jointly handled international sales rights.[18] Producers included Nick Jongerius and Daniel Koefoed of Pellicola and Todd Brown of XYZ Films.[19]

In an interview with ComingSoon.net via Mandatory, Raaphorst said he chose the found footage format to make the audience feel like participants in the story rather than observers. He compared the approach to a video game, explaining that he wanted viewers to experience events from the characters' perspective.[16][20] Raaphorst also said he wanted to avoid taking sides in a debate between good and evil, describing all of the film's characters as villains and leaving it up to the audience to decide who was right or wrong. According to him, the found-footage format helped him avoid what he called a "political trap". He also said that the rough, assembled look of found footage matched the Zombots, which are themselves made from a mixture of human remains and machinery.[16]

Design

[edit]

Raaphorst designed many of the film's creatures himself and created the term "zombots" to distinguish them from traditional zombies.[21] He said that the designs were inspired by industrial machinery and diesel-era technology rather than steampunk influences.[22] According to Raaphorst, the image of Boris Karloff's square-headed Frankenstein monster was a major influence on the film's industrial creature designs.[22]

Special FX model maker Xander Forterie helped create several prosthetic effects for the film, including Novikov's exposed intestines and Dieter's skull cap. He also worked on the construction and management of the Zombot props.[23] Rogier Samuels served as the special FX supervisor and led the creation of the film's practical creature suits and gore effects. Several cast members performed multiple Zombot roles. Klemens Patijn portrayed any different Zombots, such as the Mosquito Man[24] and the Wall Zombie with two hooks that appears during the underground trap sequence involving Vassili and his group.[23]

Filming

[edit]
External videos
video icon Frankenstein's Army (Richard Raaphorst 2013): The Making Of on YouTube, July 19, 2019 (video length: 30:11)

Principal photography began on March 5, 2012 at Karlovy Vary in Czechia.[25] Earlier production plans called for filming in Prague and Amsterdam.[18] The cast included Karel Roden as Viktor Frankenstein, Robert Gwilym as Novikov, Joshua Sasse as Sergei, Luke Newberry as Sasha, Alexander Mercury as Dmitri, Andrei Zayats as Vassili, Hon Ping Tang as Ivan, and Mark Stevenson as Alexei.[26] Also appearing in supporting roles were Cristina Catalina as Eva, Jan de Lukovicz as Fritz, Zdenek Barinka as Hans, and Klaus Lucas as Dieter.[27][28]

Although the film used CGI, most of the effects were practical; for example, stuntmen were set on fire.[29] Raaphorst said he intentionally relied on practical effects and avoided heavy use of CGI in order to create a more physical and traditional monster film.[22] The practical effects, inspired by John Carpenter's The Thing,[14] necessitated what Raaphorst described as long, complicated single takes. He said it was worth it in the end, though he experienced doubt during shooting when he became ill.[25]

Release

[edit]

Frankenstein's Army premiered at the International Film Festival Rotterdam on January 26, 2013.[3] The film was showcased with promotional artwork and concept designs during its festival run.[30] During production, two teaser clips were released to promote the film.[31] It was released in the United States on July 26, 2013.[8] The release included select theatrical screenings and video-on-demand availability in the United States.[32]

The film was also screened at Film4 FrightFest in London in August 2013.[22] MPI Media Group and Dark Sky Films released it on home video on September 10, 2013.[4] It had its market premiere at the European Film Market in Berlin.[33] The DVD and Blu-ray release included a 30-minute making-of documentary and other bonus features covering the production and creature effects.[34]

Reception

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Critical response

[edit]

Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, which has compiled old and contemporary reviews, Frankenstein's Army holds an approval rating of 56% of 25 critics, and an average rating of 5.47/10.[35] On Metacritic, a similar website that aggregates both past and present reviews, the film has a weighted average score of 49 out of 100 based on nine reviews, , indicating "mixed or average" reviews.[36]

The film received mixed reviews from critics, with praise for its creature effects and visual style but criticism aimed at its plot and found-footage presentation. Scott Foundas of Variety wrote that the film is "short on plot and long on ingeniously gruesome creature designs and practical special effects that hark back to the industrious 1980s schlockfests churned out by the likes of Frank Henenlotter and Stuart Gordon."[37] Foundas also compared the film's "junkyard chic" to the steampunk films of Shinya Tsukamoto.[37] John DeFore of The Hollywood Reporter wrote that the film's monsters and gory special effects will appeal to horror fans, but it should have focused more on black humor and satire to appeal to broader midnight movie audiences.[8] Andy Webster of The New York Times described the monsters as steampunk cyborgs and wrote, "Narrative depth may be in short supply, but the energy, invention and humor are bracing."[38]

Ignatiy Vishnevetsky of The A.V. Club rated it C− and called it "a ludicrous World War II horror flick bogged down by its found-footage gimmick" that only works near the end when the film plays up the "imaginatively grotesque monsters".[39] Jason Jenkins of Dread Central rated it 3 out of 5 stars and called it "a fun, furious, goofy and gory good time" for forgiving horror fans.[40] Lauren Taylor of Bloody Disgusting rated it 1.5 out of 5 stars and said that the visuals and effects did not make up for the lack of a plot and unnecessary "found footage" style.[41] Bill Gibron of PopMatters called it "an amazing steampunk splatter fest" whose visual imagery makes up for its narrative faults.[42]

The film received several award nominations, including Best Makeup at the 2013 Fright Meter Awards and Best Makeup/Creature FX at the 2014 Chainsaw Awards.[43] At the 2013 Sitges Film Festival, the film received a Special Mention for the Grand Prize of European Fantasy Film (Silver) in the Official Fantàstic Panorama section and was also nominated for the award.[12][43]

Resident Evil Village comparison

[edit]

Director Richard Raaphorst accused Capcom's Resident Evil Village of plagiarism in 2021 for the design of the monster Sturm, a walking corpse attached to a plane propeller which bears a similarity to a monster featured in Frankenstein's Army.[44] Raaphorst said he did not expect to receive any royalties from Capcom. Although he believed that Resident Evil Village appeared to take inspiration from Frankenstein's Army, he noted that he did not own the rights to the film. The rights were held by MPI Media Group, the American company that helped finance and distribute the project during its production.[45]

Potential sequel

[edit]

Following the film's release, Raaphorst expressed interest in developing a sequel to Frankenstein's Army and stated that an outline for a follow-up film had already been prepared.[46] He also revealed that he had planned possible second and third installments before production on the original film began.[15]

See also

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Notes

[edit]
  1. ↑ Attributed to multiple references:[6][1][7][8][9][10][11]

References

[edit]
  1. 1 2 3 H. C., Luiz (January 27, 2025). "The Insane Monsters and Historical Horrors of Frankenstein's Army". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved May 29, 2026.
  2. 1 2 Magilow, Daniel H.; Bridges, Elizabeth; Lugt, Kristin T. Vander (January 1, 2012). Nazisploitation!: The Nazi Image in Low-Brow Cinema and Culture. A&C Black. ISBN 978-1-4411-8359-0.
  3. 1 2 Miska, Brad (December 17, 2012). "'Frankenstein's Army' To Premiere at 42nd International Film Festival". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  4. 1 2 Miska, Brad (August 7, 2013). "'Frankenstein's Army' Dated For Home Video and Jam-Packed With Extras". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  5. ↑ "Frankenstein's Army (2013)". The Numbers. Archived from the original on January 6, 2026. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  6. ↑ Tilly, Bryn (October 22, 2013). "Frankenstein's Army". Cult Projections. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  7. ↑ Gibron, Bill (September 6, 2013). "Out Come the Freaks!: 'Frankenstein's Army' (Blu-ray)". PopMatters. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  8. 1 2 3 DeFore, John (July 26, 2013). "Frankenstein's Army: Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  9. ↑ "Movie Review: FRANKENSTEIN'S ARMY". Starburst Magazine. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  10. ↑ Zimmerman, E. Lee (September 20, 2013). "Frankenstein's Army: A Cult Motion Picture From Its Very Conception". Unreality Mag. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  11. ↑ "Stardate 01.26.2023.A: 2013's 'Frankenstein's Army' Put A Modern Spin On An Old Horror Classic". SciFiHistory.net. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  12. 1 2 "Kavel 22: Schilderij "Vrouw voor het raam"" (in Dutch). Archived from the original on November 27, 2024. Retrieved May 29, 2026.
  13. ↑ Foutch, Haleigh (September 19, 2013). "Richard Raaphorst Frankenstein's Army Interview". Collider. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
  14. 1 2 James, Jonathan (September 10, 2013). "Q&A with Frankenstein's Army Director Richard Raaphorst". Daily Dead. Retrieved November 6, 2013.
  15. 1 2 Hatfull, Jonathan (September 30, 2013). "Frankenstein's Army is "so bizarre it isn't funny"". SciFiNow. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  16. 1 2 3 Turek, Ryan (September 10, 2013). "Shock Interview: Richard Raaphorst on the Found Footage, Challenges and Creatures of Frankenstein's Army". ComingSoon.net. Retrieved May 30, 2026 – via Mandatory.
  17. 1 2 Vijn, Ard (April 25, 2013). "IFFR 2013: A Talk With Richard Raaphorst About Frankenstein's Army. Part 1 of 2: Getting Started". ScreenAnarchy. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  18. 1 2 Brown, Todd (February 9, 2011). "The Army Is Coming. Frankenstein's Army. Production Details Announced!". ScreenAnarchy. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  19. ↑ Kay, Jeremy. "Frankenstein's Army conscripts MPI, XYZ and Pellicola". Screen Daily. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  20. ↑ Gallagher, Brian (September 13, 2013). "Director Richard Raaphorst Talks Frankenstein's Army [Exclusive]". MovieWeb. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  21. ↑ Price, Jason (September 6, 2013). "IT'S ALIVE! — Richard Raaphorst On Bringing 'Frankenstein's Army' To Life!". Icon Vs. Icon. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  22. 1 2 3 4 "Behind Enemy Lines: An Interview with Frankenstein's Army Director Richard Raaphorst and Star Alexander Mercury". Film International. October 12, 2013. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  23. 1 2 altohippiegabber (July 18, 2019). Frankenstein's Army (Richard Raaphorst 2013) : The Making Of (DVD). Retrieved May 30, 2026 – via YouTube.
  24. ↑ Gingold, Michael (April 19, 2019). "Review: FRANKENSTEIN'S ARMY". Fangoria. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  25. 1 2 Miska, Brad (March 5, 2012). "It's Official: 'Frankenstein's Army' Is Filming!". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
  26. ↑ Miska, Brad. "Exclusive 'Frankenstein's Army' Special Effects Featurette!! - Bloody Disgusting". Bloody Disgusting. Archived from the original on August 3, 2022. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  27. ↑ Brown, Todd (March 10, 2012). "Meet The Soldiers Of Frankenstein's Army". ScreenAnarchy. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  28. ↑ "Frankenstein's Army | Cast & Crew". TVGuide. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  29. ↑ Vijn, Ard (March 30, 2012). "Twitch Has Met FRANKENSTEIN'S ARMY and Survived!". Twitch Film. Archived from the original on July 6, 2015. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
  30. ↑ Lyus, Jon (September 23, 2013). "Steampunk Nazi Zombies! Very NSFW Trailer and Gruesome Concept Art for Frankenstein's Army". HeyUGuys. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  31. ↑ Fischer, Russ (May 2, 2011). "'Frankenstein's Army' Teaser Clip: Unearthed Newsreels Reveal Shocking Nazi Zombie Forces". SlashFilm. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  32. ↑ "Check Out These New Frankenstein's Army Creature Shots". ScreenAnarchy. July 15, 2013. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  33. ↑ McNary, Dave (February 6, 2013). "'Frankenstein's Army' to invade several territories". Variety. Retrieved June 6, 2026.
  34. ↑ Maine, David (September 10, 2013). "Soviet Soldiers vs. Nazi Monsters! What More Could We Ask For?". PopMatters. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  35. ↑ "Frankenstein's Army (2013)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved October 28, 2019.
  36. ↑ "Frankenstein's Army". Metacritic. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  37. 1 2 Foundas, Scott (July 17, 2013). "Review: 'Frankenstein's Army'". Variety. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  38. ↑ Webster, Andy (July 25, 2013). "Something Unpleasant Behind Enemy Lines". The New York Times. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  39. ↑ Vishnevetsky, Ignatiy (July 25, 2013). "Frankenstein's Army". The A.V. Club. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  40. ↑ Jenkins, Jason (September 18, 2013). "Frankenstein's Army (Blu-ray / DVD)". Dread Central. Archived from the original on May 5, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  41. ↑ Taylor, Lauren (September 3, 2013). "[Blu-ray Review] 'Frankenstein's Army' Is Mindless Madness". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  42. ↑ Gibron, Bill (September 6, 2013). "'Frankenstein's Army' (Blu-ray)". PopMatters. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
  43. 1 2 "Frankenstein's Army Awards". TVGuide. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  44. ↑ Wiseman, Liam (May 10, 2021). "Movie Director Says Resident Evil Village Copied His Monster Design". IGN. Retrieved May 29, 2026.
  45. ↑ Yin-Poole, Wesley (May 10, 2021). "Movie director says Capcom copied his monster for Resident Evil Village boss fight". Eurogamer. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
  46. ↑ "Interview: Richard Raaphorst (Frankenstein's Army) • Flixist". Flixist. February 20, 2020. Archived from the original on April 10, 2021. Retrieved May 30, 2026.
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