I saw this advertised a while back and I just knew I was going to end up watching it. It is the life story of Christopher Lee, how could any cinephile not want to watch it? Lee is a legend of cinema.
This is sort of a documentary about Lee’s life, but it’s done in an interesting way. Told with cute animations and with a Christopher Lee marionette, it is as if he tells the story of his own life. This is done with the help of a very good impression by Peter Serafinowicz.
Serafinowicz’s voiceover is amazing. Honestly, there were moments when I thought it was Lee himself talking. It’s almost worth watching just for that. I met Serafinowicz once, he was a nice guy. He was the voice of Darth Maul in The Phantom Menace.
An Interesting Life
Lee is probably best known for Dracula, to those of a certain age. This is taking nothing away from Lord of the Rings, James Bond, or Star Wars, but he made his ‘teeth’ mark as Dracula in the Hammer movies in the 1960s.
The story about his life starts from when he was first sent off to boarding school and learned to ‘tread the boards’. So began his love of acting and he ended up working at Rank as an actor.
Because of his height, at first, Lee wasn’t getting ‘big’ parts until he was cast as the Creature in The Curse of Frankenstein in 1957. From there, his presence on the screen meant he was born to play bigger and better roles.
In 1958, Lee was cast as Count Dracula in Horror of Dracula and his place in cinema history was firmly cemented.
Not Just About Horror
Lee was incredibly proud of his days with Hammer, referring to them as a family with the occasional argument but also with a lot of love for each other. There are some wonderful scenes between Lee and Peter Cushing, who both had a great sense of humor.
The last few Hammer movies, as they came to the end of their era, turned into cheap horror with a bit of T&A in them. Lee loved to work though, and would go on to find success in the US, with movies like Airport ’77.
He went on to make Starship Invaders, which I’ve seen and is terrible. It made Plan 9 From Outer Space look like an Oscar winner. His work ranged from Spielberg’s 1941 to Return from Witch Mountain (1978), The Howling 2 to Gremlins 2.
Honestly, going through his list of movies is crazy. On the IMDb, he has 290 acting credits, including movies, video game,s and the occasional heavy metal album.
Later In Life
Being the legend he was, he found fame with a new generation. He worked with Tim Burton and Johnny Depp five times. Peter Jackson cast him in Lord of the Rings. George Lucas cast him in the Star Wars prequels. Lee became a living legend.
In 2009, Lee was knighted by Prince Charles for his services to drama and charity. He was always a little disappointed it wasn’t the Queen, but he took the title of Sir with great honor.
There’s an interview with him included in this documentary, just after he was knighted. The lady interviewer calls him the “King of Horror” and he explains that his work isn’t just about horror. In fact, in 2009, he hadn’t made a horror movie for 30-odd years. It was really embarrassing for her.
Lee’s Greatest Roles
There is obviously mention of Star Wars and Lord of the Rings, but in his own words, his greatest role was The Wicker Man. The part of Lord Summerisle was written for him and it was an honor for him to play the role.
Lee particularly loved that role because he got to sing in it. Operatic signing was a passion of his and he loved to sing whenever he could.
He said his most important work was in Jinnah, where he played Muhammad Ali Jinnah, who campaigned for the independence of Pakistan. Yeah, it’s news to me too, I need to see it now. Apparently, it was never shown in cinemas outside of Pakistan. I need to track down a copy and see this now.
Overall
You’re going to watch The Life and Deaths of Christopher Lee at some point and you will love it. There are interviews with Joe Dante, John Landis, archive footage from Peter Cushing, Vincent Price, and more.
It’s a really well-made documentary and Serafinowicz’s narration is uncanny. There are some wonderful stories, sad moments and so much more I haven’t even begun to mention.
You can watch The Life and Deaths of Christopher Lee on Now TV or Sky.com.
