The Professor Morlock series reached its zenith with an exciting and complex sequel, “The Curse of Professor Morlock”. Morlock (played once again by Jesse Merlin) is in the throes of a curse placed on him by his evil henchman Ruprecht (returning to the series in the guise of veteran character actor Steve Peterson). As he begins slowly turning into a zombie, those who have fought him over the years realize that Morlock is, in fact, the reason that the entire human race hasn’t turned into zombies over the last thousand years. When Morlock’s body begins breaking apart and his insane mind now craves human brains, those who haven’t yet transformed into zombies realize that the only hope for man is for Morlock to be rejuvenated.
Morlock’s nemesis, ace investigative reporter Janet Lawton (played in an extended cameo by superstar Mara Marini), is of little help. She is still consumed by the nymphomaniac hex cast on her by Morlock in the last movie, and she is only capable of having graphic sex scenes with her love interest Jack Mannix (played by the exhausted Jonny M.).
Mankind’s only hope is Morlock’s longtime prey Amanda Globe (Amy Ball), who returned to the series in the last film having developed super powers after living on another planet. She returned to earth with the goal of killing Morlock, but now finds herself in the ironic dilemma of being the only person who is able to save him and by extension, the human race.
The film was not only a box office bonanza but an artistic triumph. Site & Sound Magazine said that “‘The Curse of Professor Morlock’ must easily rank as the greatest sequel in the history of motion pictures,” and the film received 13 Academy Award nominations including Best Picture and for Merlin as Best Actor and Amy Ball as Best Actress. Ball's powerhouse performance was ranked as the front runner to win in that category until she appeared in a disastrous gross-out comedy with Eddie Murphy just before the ballots went out that was thought to knock her out of contention.
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