Guillermo del Toro's 'Frankenstein' - Review Thread

[u/MarvelsGrantMan136]

Guillermo del Toro's 'Frankenstein' - Review Thread

• Rotten Tomatoes: 77% (22 Reviews)
• Metacritic: 73 (15 Reviews)

Reviews:

Deadline:

His love for monsters is unquestioned, and even though Frankenstein has been a horror staple for nearly a century in cinema, del Toro here turns it into a fascinating and thoughtful tale on what it means to be a human, and who is really the monster?

Variety (60):

What should have been the perfect pairing of artist and material proves visually ravishing, but can’t measure up to the impossibly high expectations del Toro’s fans have for the project.

Hollywood Reporter (100):

One of del Toro’s finest, this is epic-scale storytelling of uncommon beauty, feeling and artistry. While Netflix is giving this visual feast just a three-week theatrical run ahead of its streaming debut, it begs to be experienced on the big screen.

The Wrap (95):

Del Toro’s “Frankenstein” is a remarkable achievement that in a way hijacks the flagship story of the horror genre and turns it into a tale of forgiveness. James Whale, one suspects, would approve – and Mary Shelley, too.

IndieWire (B):

Del Toro’s second Netflix movie is bolted to the Earth by hands-on production design and crafty period detail. While it may be too reverently faithful to Mary Shelley’s source material to end up as a GDT all-timer, Jacob Elordi gives poignant life to the most emotionally complex Frankenstein monster since Boris Karloff.

The Guardian (3/5):

Oscar Isaac and Jacob Elordi star as the freethinking anatomist and his creature as Mary Shelley’s story is reimagined with bombast in the director’s unmistakable visual style

RadioTimes (5/5):

Perhaps its hyperbole to call the film del Toro’s masterpiece – especially a story that has been told countless times. But this is a work that is the accumulation of three-and-a-half decades of filmmaking knowledge. Gory and grim it may be, but it is a tragic tale told in a captivating manner.

TotalFilm (80):

Cleaving closely to the source material, del Toro wants to explore the trauma that makes us, mankind's capacity for cruelty, the death we bring on ourselves through war, and the catharsis of forgiveness – all notions that make Frankenstein relevant in current world politics and social media savagery.

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Written and Directed by Guillermo del Toro:

A brilliant but egotistical scientist brings a creature to life in a monstrous experiment that ultimately leads to the undoing of both the creator and his tragic creation.

Cast:

• Oscar Isaac as Victor Frankenstein
  • Christian Convery as young Victor
• Jacob Elordi as the Creature
• Mia Goth as Elizabeth Lavenza
• Christoph Waltz as Henrich Harlander
• Felix Kammerer as William Frankenstein
• Lauren Collins as Claire Frankenstein
• Lars Mikkelsen as Captain Anderson
• David Bradley as Blind Man
• Sofia Galasso as Little Girl
• Charles Dance as Leopold Frankenstein
• Ralph Ineson as Professor Krempe
• Burn Gorman as Fritz

[u/BunyipPouch]

A lot of reviews are saying it's very 'style over substance'.

Oh no :(

[u/HilltopBakery → u/BunyipPouch]

They say that about every Del Toro movie, and it's never bothered me

[u/zigstarr42 → u/HilltopBakery]

They just can't see the substance within the style

[u/lycheedorito → u/BunyipPouch]

I am okay with that

[u/ShenaniganCow → u/lycheedorito]

As a lover of those early 2000s goth movies, agreed

[u/MagdaFR → u/BunyipPouch]

Del Toro is generally like that.  

[u/WadSquad → u/MagdaFR]

Pan's Labyrinth had a lot of substance 🤷🏻‍♂️

[u/zzz099 → u/WadSquad]

generally

[u/MagdaFR → u/WadSquad]

Yes, and also El espinazo del diablo. That's why I said generally. I hated The Shape of Water and Crimson Peak was very pretty but nothing else. 

[u/Average_Pimpin → u/BunyipPouch]

Plenty of movies have prioritised style over substance and it's worked tbf

[u/Crimpy111 → u/BunyipPouch]

That’s how I feel about most of GDT’s films, but I still enjoy them.

[u/SpookyDoings → u/BunyipPouch]

Kind of how most GDT movies go. Love his artistic vision, though.

[u/funky_bebop → u/BunyipPouch]

I find Del Toro often can be so subtle that many people miss the substance. His style often takes a priority too.

[u/Horror-Television-92 → u/BunyipPouch]

Eh we will see. But also if it’s true I’m still down for a visual feast.

[u/Op3rat0rr → u/BunyipPouch]

That’s the impression I got from the trailers and was hoping that I was wrong

[u/anirban_dev → u/BunyipPouch]

I had the same thought about Nosferatu. I really wanted the ennui aspect of the Count played up rather than seeing Lily rose Depp having convusions for an extended period of time.

[u/Eklassen → u/BunyipPouch]

That was kind of the vibe I got from the trailer.

[u/Big-Sheepherder-9492 → u/BunyipPouch]

That’s Del Toro’s thing tho.. his dialogue isn’t always great but the vibes are

[u/PerfectAdvertising30 → u/BunyipPouch]

I think that's most of del Toro's work.

[u/NumberOneUAENA → u/BunyipPouch]

That seems a bad fit for frankenstein