{"product_id":"the-curse-of-frankenstein-フランケンシュタインの逆襲-original-japanese-first-release-movie-poster-1957-ultra-rare-variant-b2-size-51-73-cm","title":"“The Curse of Frankenstein” (フランケンシュタインの逆襲), Original Japanese First-Release Movie Poster 1957, Ultra-Rare Variant, B2 Size (51 × 73 cm) Q265","description":"\u003cp\u003eA remarkable \u003cstrong\u003eoriginal 1957 Japanese B2\u003c\/strong\u003e issued by Towa for the first Japanese theatrical release of Hammer Films’ landmark \u003cem\u003eThe Curse of Frankenstein\u003c\/em\u003e. Directed by Terence Fisher and starring Peter Cushing as Baron Victor Frankenstein, Christopher Lee as the Creature, Hazel Court, and Robert Urquhart, the film inaugurated Hammer’s celebrated cycle of colour Gothic horror. \u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is the exceptionally elusive \u003cstrong\u003egiant-hand photomontage variant\u003c\/strong\u003e, dominated by Christopher Lee’s disfigured Creature rendered in lurid blue-green, crimson, and acid yellow. The monumental reaching hand, dripping scarlet title lettering, laboratory imagery, and sensational Japanese copy make this one of the most powerful early Hammer posters produced anywhere in the world.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe poster remains \u003cstrong\u003eunbacked and unrestored\u003c\/strong\u003e, retaining exceptionally rich colour and formidable display impact. It has a number of condition issues, described fully below, and these have been taken into account in the pricing.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDate \u0026amp; Japanese Theatrical Release\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Curse of Frankenstein\u003c\/em\u003e received its first Japanese theatrical release on \u003cstrong\u003e13 July 1957\u003c\/strong\u003e, distributed by Towa under the title フランケンシュタインの逆襲—approximately \u003cstrong\u003e“Frankenstein Strikes Back.”\u003c\/strong\u003e This poster was printed for that original campaign and is not a later revival issue. \u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Japanese B2 format measures approximately \u003cstrong\u003e51.5 × 72.8 cm \/ 20.3 × 28.7 in\u003c\/strong\u003e, providing a dramatic scale for the Creature’s enormous face and foreshortened hand.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Film \u0026amp; Its Place in Horror History\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Curse of Frankenstein\u003c\/em\u003e was the film that established Hammer’s modern Gothic identity. It was \u003cstrong\u003eHammer’s first horror film photographed in colour\u003c\/strong\u003e, using Eastmancolor to bring blood, surgical detail, decaying flesh, and elaborate period settings to the screen with an intensity impossible in the earlier black-and-white cycle. Hammer itself describes the production as the film that changed the studio’s direction and initiated the internationally successful run now known as Hammer Horror. \u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWritten by Jimmy Sangster from Mary Shelley’s novel, the film reframes the story around Baron Victor Frankenstein’s obsessive ambition. Awaiting execution, Frankenstein recounts his experiments to a priest: his assembly of a body from human remains, the creation’s violent awakening, and the destruction caused by his refusal to abandon his work. \u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePeter Cushing’s cold, intellectually driven Baron and Christopher Lee’s scarred, physically imposing Creature established two of Hammer’s defining screen presences. Their partnership would become one of the most celebrated associations in British horror cinema.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRarity \u0026amp; the Japanese Campaign\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOriginal Japanese B2 posters for this title are scarce in any design. A Towa first-release B2 realised \u003cstrong\u003eUS$6,000 at Heritage Auctions in April 2022\u003c\/strong\u003e, demonstrating the importance attached to Japanese paper from this foundational Hammer production. \u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMore than one B2 composition was produced for the Japanese campaign. The present design—with its monumental clawing hand, enormous solarised Creature portrait, scarlet dripping title, and dense laboratory montage—is the \u003cstrong\u003econsiderably more elusive variant\u003c\/strong\u003e and is exceptionally difficult to locate in the public market.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIts rarity is particularly notable because the poster is both a major Hammer collectible and a striking independent work of Japanese horror advertising. \u003cspan style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"\u003eIt comes from a long-established private Japanese movie-memorabilia collection.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTowa and Hammer — Period Branding\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe original diamond-shaped \u003cstrong\u003eTOWA\u003c\/strong\u003e emblem appears at lower left. The accompanying yellow distributor line reads:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e「東和映画 提供・英ハンマー・プロ超特作」\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e“Presented by Towa Film—a super-special production from Britain’s Hammer Productions.”\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe central colour announcement reads:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e「総天然色（イーストマンカラー）」\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e“Full Colour—Eastmancolor.”\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBelow it, the director is promoted as:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e「鬼才 テレンス・フィッシャー監督」\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e“Directed by the brilliant Terence Fisher.”\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe lower credit block names \u003cstrong\u003eMary Shelley\u003c\/strong\u003e, screenwriter \u003cstrong\u003eJimmy Sangster\u003c\/strong\u003e, cinematographer \u003cstrong\u003eJack Asher\u003c\/strong\u003e, art director \u003cstrong\u003eTed Marshall\u003c\/strong\u003e, and composer \u003cstrong\u003eJames Bernard\u003c\/strong\u003e. The upper orange billing prominently lists \u003cstrong\u003eChristopher Lee, Peter Cushing, Hazel Court, and Robert Urquhart\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThese production and distribution markings anchor the sheet firmly to the film’s original 1957 Japanese release.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDesign Notes\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Creature at monumental scale:\u003c\/strong\u003e Christopher Lee’s stitched and damaged face fills the upper-right section. Cyan, green, black, and crimson printing transforms the portrait into an almost expressionistic image of pain and terror.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe giant reaching hand:\u003c\/strong\u003e A huge claw-like hand projects across the centre of the composition, its fingers outlined in hot pink and black. The extreme foreshortening gives the poster an unusually aggressive, three-dimensional quality—as though the Creature were reaching beyond the paper.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaboratory spectacle:\u003c\/strong\u003e At lower right, Baron Frankenstein is shown beside bubbling glassware and scientific apparatus. Chains, machinery, electrical equipment, and glowing vessels compress the film’s laboratory world into a dense field of colour and texture.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePursuit and terror:\u003c\/strong\u003e Shadowed figures appear in the upper background, while a secondary face recoils at lower left. These smaller scenes introduce imprisonment, pursuit, experimentation, and panic without weakening the dominance of the central Creature.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBilingual title treatment:\u003c\/strong\u003e The English title \u003cstrong\u003eTHE CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN\u003c\/strong\u003e appears in dripping acid-yellow lettering, accompanied by \u003cstrong\u003eIN EASTMANCOLOR\u003c\/strong\u003e in pink. Across the lower third, the enormous Japanese title フランケンシュタインの逆襲 is rendered in jagged, blood-red characters with painted drips.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTop Japanese tagline:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e「死刑囚の生首に喰いこむメスの\u003cbr\u003eすり硝子をひっかくような音！この恐怖!!」\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e“A scalpel bites into the severed head of a condemned prisoner—with a sound like scratching frosted glass! What terror!!”\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe language is exceptionally graphic for a 1957 campaign and illustrates how directly Towa marketed the film’s surgical horror and unprecedented colour imagery.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eConservation \u0026amp; Condition Report\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eOverall condition: Unrestored vintage condition with notable age and display wear.\u003c\/strong\u003e Despite these faults, the poster retains extraordinarily strong colour and remains an exceptionally impressive image at full B2 scale.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eColour:\u003c\/strong\u003e The cyan, green, scarlet, pink, orange, and canary-yellow printing remains \u003cstrong\u003edeep, vivid, and highly saturated\u003c\/strong\u003e. There is no distracting general fading, and the principal Creature portrait and red title retain exceptional visual force.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFolds and paper structure:\u003c\/strong\u003e The poster has multiple horizontal and vertical folds, with visible fold wear, creasing, and weakness at certain folds and intersections.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eEdges and corners:\u003c\/strong\u003e There are small edge tears, nicks, corner creases, minor marginal losses, and general handling wear consistent with period theatrical use and long-term storage.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eUnbacked and unrestored:\u003c\/strong\u003e The poster has \u003cstrong\u003enot been linen-backed\u003c\/strong\u003e, and no modern restoration has been undertaken. The photographs show the sheet in its present state.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThese condition points have been \u003cstrong\u003efully reflected in the price\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eProfessional conservation potential:\u003c\/strong\u003e In our view, this is a strong candidate for professional linen backing and conservation. A specialist could assess the folds and tears, stabilise weakened areas, flatten the sheet, and undertake discreet restoration where appropriate. We can provide the purchaser with an introduction to \u003cstrong\u003eFourth Cone Restoration\u003c\/strong\u003e, a Los Angeles studio specialising in the conservation and restoration of vintage posters and prints. \u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEqually, when mounted and framed by an experienced conservation framer using archival materials and UV-filtering glazing, the poster should present as an exceptionally dramatic display piece in its current unrestored state.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePlease review all supplied photographs carefully—front, back, and details—as they show the \u003cstrong\u003eexact poster offered\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is an \u003cstrong\u003eoriginal Japanese B2 theatrical poster from the film’s 1957 first-release campaign\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003cbr\u003eIt is \u003cstrong\u003enot a reproduction or a reprint\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003cbr\u003eIt is \u003cstrong\u003enearly 70 years old\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCertificate of Authenticity included.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c!----\u003e","brand":"Japan Poster Shop","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56993957806458,"sku":null,"price":4150.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0424\/8859\/4591\/files\/wall-shelf-with-ornaments-2026-06-22T142052.137.jpg?v=1782105669","url":"https:\/\/japanposter.co.uk\/products\/the-curse-of-frankenstein-%e3%83%95%e3%83%a9%e3%83%b3%e3%82%b1%e3%83%b3%e3%82%b7%e3%83%a5%e3%82%bf%e3%82%a4%e3%83%b3%e3%81%ae%e9%80%86%e8%a5%b2-original-japanese-first-release-movie-poster-1957-ultra-rare-variant-b2-size-51-73-cm","provider":"Japan Poster Shop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}