For all the hype it got I was expecting a lot more!

Don't listen to the Hype. It's awful

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

A monk enters a pub, tall, bearded, and declares with a booming voice that he intends to party hard. He heals the pub owner's wife, who was already near death, only by a touch of his hands, takes a few bottles of wine and starts dancing. Then he seduces the daughter of the house, hardly what a monk should do, but as he later tells the abbot, if he had no sins to confess, life would be boring. Yes, they do kick him out of the monastery for that. He is Rasputin (Christopher Lee), and he goes to St Petersburg where he gets to know the former doctor Zargo (Richard Pasco) and Sonia (Barbara Shelley). Aided by them and his hypnotic powers, he even gets access to the royal family, but also makes deadly enemies...This is only vaguely based on the actual history of Rasputin, and who would expect more from a Hammer horror studio production, but it certainly is a lot of fun and a great role for Christopher Lee. I can't think of another movie that gave him opportunity to dance. From the moment he enters the pub at the beginning, he rules the screen. Richard Pasco as Doctor Zargo, a broken man with a drinking problem, makes a good performance, too, because a powerful maniac needs a weak, cowardly man to emphasize his strength, and this relationship works with these two actors.

It's an Odd One to be Sure and Falling Somewhere in the Mid-Range of Hammer Studio's Output of Always Interesting Films is this Christopher Lee Vehicle that Utilizes the Tall Actor with the Distinctive Voice Quite Effectively.Efficiency, for the Studio, was the Word as the Sixties Unfolded and Hammer Seemed to get a Bit Lazy and Detached from Their Art and the Movies Sunk Somewhat in Charm, Style, and Charisma.However, if it's a Hammer Film, it's Worth a Watch. This One is Average for the Studio, but Above Average Overall. Elevated by Lee's Bombastic, Yet Internalized Performance. Sure its Flamboyant and Fictionalized, but the Actor does Maintain a Suffering Soul, just Below the Surface. There is Pain in there Somewhere, but it is Overwhelmed and Corrupted by the Hedonism.The Movie can Look Cheap at Times, for a Hammer, that Usually could Mask Low Production Values and Present the Movies with a Rich Look that made the Lack of Money Moot. But, these Sixties Hammers, with Some Exceptions, were Claustrophobic with Minimal and Confined Sets and Virtually No Outdoor Shoots.Overall, it is an Entertaining Movie with Some Brutal Moments and a Killer Ending. Historically Inaccurate by All Accounts, but this is Pulpy Fiction and Although Not the Best in the Hammer Filmography, it has Enough of an Edge, Thanks to Lee and the Studio Delivering Just Enough Sex and Violence to Make it a Guilty Pleasure.

a kind of big error. but this was its purpose. clichés about Russia and Rasputin in a strange ball. and Christopher Lee as axis of this chaos.the film is fake and that is not a mistake in a period when the supposition about this subject was many. it is commercial product and this can be an excuse. but it is not enough. because it has not only connection with real facts. and the desire of Lee to do a credible Rasputin remains a great fiasco. sure, it is not a surprise. the desire is to impress and the accuracy is only insignificant detail. so, a cocktail Dracula - demonic monk - few dances and the victory of good guys is perfect recipes. a minor movie with strong smell of kitsch. and one of Christopher Lee roles who must be forgiven.

From the fabled Hammer Studios comes a distortion of Russian history, but its in that great vivid Hammer color. Most assuredly a lot of liberties have been taken with this tale about a "man of mystery", Rasputin, brought to life by who else but Christopher Lee. This movie shows how The Mad Monk used unexplainable evil powers to garner, or demand, influence and manipulate anyone of his choosing. Rasputin also saw himself having a physical prowess with women; and even eased entry to the court of the czar. My favorite scene is the sequence leading to his assassination; but how was this head strong character so easily duped. Remember this film forgoes accuracy in favor of entertainment. Also in the cast: Barbara Shelley, Francis Matthews, Dinsdale Landon, Robert Duncan and Richard Pasco.