Fantastic Fest 2024: ‘The Life and Deaths of Christopher Lee’ Review
Featuring: Peter Serafinowicz, Peter Jackson, Joe Dante, John Landis, Caroline Munro, Paul Maslansky, Jonathan Rigby, Harriet Walter, Juan Rodriguez | Written and Directed by Jon Spira
The Life and Deaths of Christopher Lee, written and directed by Jon Spira (Hollywood Bulldogs: The Rise and Falls of the Great British Stuntman, Reel Britannia), is a look at one of the most iconic, versatile and conversely underrated actors in the genre.
Narrated by a marionette of the late actor, voiced quite convincingly by Peter Serafinowicz (Whitechapel, Shaun of the Dead) the film starts with a quick overview of Lee’s heritage and formative years that included he and his mother being abandoned by both his father and stepfather. Interviews with his niece, an award-winning actress in her own right, talk about how this influenced both his personality and the direction his life would take.
The part he played in World War II is covered as well. Although there are no new revelations of his still-classified work tracking down war criminals. Work that has led to the persistent speculation that his cousin Ian Fleming drew in part on him as an inspiration for James Bond. Sadly, Fleming died before he could see Lee play one of his characters, Francisco Scaramanga Bond’s nemesis in The Man With the Golden Gun.
For many fans, though, the most interesting part of The Life and Deaths of Christopher Lee will be what follows, his decision to pursue a career as an actor. The long and difficult road between his start, he was deemed too tall and foreign looking, to his break being cast as the creature in Hammer’s The Curse of Frankenstein is also interesting as a behind-the-scenes look at the British film industry during the postwar years.
From here, through both narration and a series of talking head interviews, The Life and Deaths of Christopher Lee tells the story of both his life and career, though it sometimes struggles to fit so much into a standard running time. With almost 300 credits to his name, much of his output had to be left unmentioned, though it was amusing to see a clip from Starship Invasions and the Chuck Norris vehicle An Eye for an Eye in the mix giving a taste of just how varied his career was.
Other areas of his life are given equally unbalanced attention, his long-lasting marriage is given only a brief mention. There are however several anecdotes about his friendship with frequent co-star Peter Cushing, a topic that’s been well covered before this. The interviewees are a mostly familiar, perhaps too much so, group that includes Peter Jackson, Joe Dante, and John Landis, who has an annoying habit of making the stories he relates about himself as much as they are about Lee. Fans of British films of the era will recognize Caroline Munro, who played opposite Lee in Dracula A.D. 1972, in a short interview as well.
Less familiar, and more interesting were Lee’s biographer Jonathan Rigby, who adds several interesting observations to the film, and veteran producer Paul Maslansky who cast Lee in his first film, The Castle of the Living Dead. Best known for his work on the Police Academy franchise, but with producer’s credits that includes Damnation Alley, Race With the Devil, and Deathline as well as directing Sugar Hill, Maslansky would make an interesting subject for his own film.
Rounding things out are a pair of his family members, as mentioned his niece Harriet Walter and son-in-law Juan Rodriguez who collaborated with Lee on his pair of surprisingly good heavy metal albums and has several humorous tales to relate which help show the human side of the man, something much of rest of the time, The Life and Deaths of Christopher Lee struggles to do.
Another area that may be a turn-off for viewers is the animation used in sequences where there isn’t any archival footage or still photos for. Using animation isn’t in itself an issue, but this is very obviously created using AI, which is. As much as I wish it was otherwise, I expect we’ll see more of this, especially in films with lower budgets.
The result is a film that is entertaining while also managing to be frustrating. Despite the opportunity, little is revealed about Lee’s family life. And while I learned some new facts about him, such as his learning to do his own stunts in Airport ‘77, and his role in the little seen Jinnah, there’s still way too much time devoted to well known stories about The Wicker Man, while other roles, such as his portrayal of Rochefort in Richard Lester’s Musketeers films, are ignored.
Overall, The Life and Deaths of Christopher Lee is a solid documentary, and fans should find it well worth watching. But those less familiar with his life and career will find it a lot more informative than those already familiar with the ground the film covers. It’s just too bad it passed up the chance to be highly informative to both groups.
**** 4/5
The Life and Deaths of Christopher Lee made its debut at this year’s Fantastic Fest.
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