48: The Hammer Horror Trans Allegory Special, feat. Luana Saitta of Defend Your Trash Movie

A DEAD WOMAN WITH THE SOUL OF A MAN! A MURDEROUS MAN WHO CAN TRANSFORM INTO A WOMAN! PROBABLY JUST A COINCIDENCE!

Have you ever noticed that Hammer Studios made two horror films that work as trans allegories? Well, technically three, but I forgot about one of them. Anyway, I’ve been curious for a while as to what an actual trans person might think of Terence Fisher’s Frankenstein Created Woman (1967) and Roy Ward Baker’s Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde (1971), so I invited back my friend and the co-host of the Defend Your Trash Movie podcast, Luana Saitta, in order to pick her brain (Frankenstein-related wordplay intended).

This was originally going to be a look at multiple horror movies with a trans/genderqueer slant, but we ultimately had more than enough to talk about with just these two films. Are they really trans allegories? Have they aged well? Are they good outside of the allegory? I hope you agree, enjoy this angle on a couple of Hammer classics, and have a happy Halloween season!

00:00 – Intro

13:55 – Frankenstein Created Woman (and other Hammer Frankenstein movies) 

50:32 – Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde (and other Hyde and Jack the Ripper movies)

1:42:26 – Outro and sections from Luana’s ‘trans canon’

If you are in a position to make the world a better place, please consider the following fundraisers:

Trans Lifeline: https://translifeline.org/

Hope Mill Inc's Hurricane Relief: 

https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-hope-mill-incs-hurricane-relief

Florida Disaster Fund (PayPal): 

https://www.paypal.com/fundraiser/119147482333313104/charity/1521272

Palestine Children’s Relief Fund: 

https://pcrf1.app.neoncrm.com/forms/gaza-relief