Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein review

GUILLERMO DEL TORO’S FRANKENSTEIN: 

GUILLERMO DEL TORO HAS CRAFTED QUITE A MONSTER! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: **** out of 4

NETFLIX

Jacob Elordi in Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein

 

            The legendary, Frankenstein’s monster comes back to life in this new film version of Frankenstein, the latest feature from master filmmaker, Guillermo del Toro (Hellboy 1 and 2, Pan’s Labyrinth, The Shape of Water) based on the Mary Shelley novel of the same name. If you’ve read my review for Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio from 2022 or any of my other reviews of his work then you know I really admire him as a director and think he’s one of the most exciting filmmakers working today who always delivers a unique vision on whatever he’s bringing to the screen. 

            So, him announcing that his next project was going to be an adaptation of Frankenstein got me really hyped to the point where this might have been my most anticipated film of the year (Which is saying a lot coming from the same year that gave me Sinners, Weapons, and F1). Just like his Pinocchio movie, the film was released by Netflix and given a limited theatrical release so, I ventured out to my regular theater for big screen Netflix films to watch it in theaters and…wow! 

            Hard to say where it ranks among Pinocchio, The Shape of Water, or Pan’s Labyrinth, but Guillermo del Toro once again delivered a unique vision on the Frankenstein story that is absolutely breathtaking. I know it’s a Netflix film, but see this movie in theaters if you can because it looks and sounds spectacular on the big screen, I sound like Chris Stuckmann, don’t I? Well, stay tuned for that review soon! 

            The film follows Victor Frankenstein (Oscar Isaac-Ex-Machina, Moon Knight, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse), a brilliant but egotistical mad scientist who brings a creature (Jacob Elordi-Priscilla, Saltburn, Wuthering Heights) to life through a monstrous experiment with emphasis on monster. However, this horrific experiment ultimately leads to the undoing of both the creator and his tragic creation as it begins to gain a conscience, learn, and seek revenge on its maker after a series of nightmarish events. 

            The film also stars Mia Goth (A Cure for Wellness, X trilogy, Infinity Pool) as Lady Elizabeth Harlander, Felix Kammerer (All Quiet on the Western Front (2022), Eden) as Victor’s brother William Frankenstein, Lars Mikkelsen (House of Cards, The Witcher, Devils) as Captain Anderson, Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds, Django Unchained, Big Eyes) as Henrich Harlander, Charles Dance (Underworld 4 and 5, The Imitation Game, Godzilla: King of the Monsters) as Victor’s father Baron Leopold Frankenstein, David Bradley (Harry Potter franchise, Hot Fuzz, The World’s End) as Blind Man, Lauren Collins (Degrassi: The Next Generation, Take the Lead, Charlie Bartlett) as Alma, and Ralph Ineson (The Witch, The Green Knight, Nosferatu) as Professor Krempe. 

            Overall, Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein brings Mary Shelley’s classic story to life in the most Guillermo del Toro way possible and I mean that as an absolute compliment. It’s fitting that he’s doing an adaptation of Frankenstein as he’s often known for doing projects about misunderstood monsters and tragic figures like with The Shape of Water, Pinocchio, and even his Hellboy movies to some extent and what’s really interesting about his Frankenstein is that he humanizes the monster like crazy. 

            In the beginning you see Frankenstein’s monster massacring a bunch of men on a ship and demanding them for his maker. But then, as the movie goes on, Frankenstein is portrayed like an antihero with Victor essentially being the film’s antagonist which I found quite fascinating, but not to the point where it’s a good against evil sort of situation. 

            Making Victor just as flawed as his creation honestly made him more captivating as a character and while I didn’t necessarily agree with his methods of controlling/stopping his monster, I didn’t want him to get killed by the end either. Oscar Isaac knocked it out of the park as Victor, one of the best Dr. Frankenstein portrayals I’ve seen. 

            However, Jacob Elordi is the real star of this film, he nailed Frankenstein’s monster perfectly and unlike the classic Boris Karloff performance or Robert De Niro’s portrayal, Elordi’s Frankenstein is like a gentle giant who only attacks when being threatened. Like I said, it’s a more humanized version of the Frankenstein monster compared to other adaptations, but Elordi and del Toro executed him well. 

            Mia Goth and Christoph Waltz also give great performances though they aren’t focused on as much as Isaac and Elordi, but they make do with the time given to them. Goth, I’m assuming is supposed to be a setup for an eventual Bride of Frankenstein maybe if del Toro wants to do a sequel, who knows? 

            The movie also looks fantastic in terms of the production design and cinematography, even as a Netflixstreaming movie, del Toro makes this film look as big and epic as possible with tons of large-scale shots of landscapes, mountains, and snow. Not to mention the beautifully gothic architecture like with Frankenstein’s castle and how dark and dirty it looked. 

            The horror and gore are well-executed and very fleshy though it isn’t horror in the same way as other adaptations of Frankenstein. This is closer in spirit to the original book where the monster is a tragic and sympathetic figure, but when Frankenstein’s monster has to slaughter some people, those sequences are solid.

            Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein is a stellar reimagining of the classic monster that greatly expands upon its lore and offers a new perspective on the story. It’s easily the most unique take on Frankenstein I’ve seen (at least in terms of movies) since Tim Burton’s Frankenweenie and is definitely worth seeking out in theaters if it’s playing near you.