The oldest sci-fi novel meets the oldest profession in this 1990 horror/comedy about amateur scientist Jeffrey Franken (James Lorinz) rebuilding his dead girlfriend (Patty Mullen) after she is killed in a freak lawnmower accident.

Frankenhooker might sound sexist on the surface, but this blue-collar B-movie is oddly faithful to Frankenstein and feminist in its story of a man reaping what he sews. Frank Henenlotter injects so much heart into the film that you can’t help but fall heels over head for its eccentricities, bolting camp New York sleaze onto a twisted love story to construct a cult classic that’s greater than the sum of its parts.

The exploitation elements are not there to titillate (unless you have a thing for exploding guinea pigs) but to serve the stripped-down, satirically charged story, invigorated by fun practical effects and electric performances that shock the unique characters into life. Lorinz is hilariously understated as the trepanning electrician driven mad by grief, opposite Mullen’s impressive physical comedy as the eponymous icon fused together from the wreckage of female exploitation.

One of the all-time great horror flicks, Frankenhooker‘s unholy hybrid of splatter comedy, ironic revenge and truly reconstructed feminism will have you in stitches.