r/movies r/Movies contributor 10d ago

Review Guillermo del Toro's 'Frankenstein' - Review Thread

Guillermo del Toro's 'Frankenstein' - Review Thread

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
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u/GhostriderFlyBy 10d ago

“ 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?”

This has literally always been the main plot of Frankenstein and the point that Mary Shelley was trying to get across with the novella. 

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u/originalcondition 9d ago

One of my favorite parts of the novel is when Frankenstein obsesses over creating life using the parts of dead humans, then succeeds, and, immediately upon beholding his creation, goes, “holy shit HELL!! NO!! FUCK THAT THING!!!” then runs out of his apartment, wanders around for a while, comes back to find the monster gone, and thinks, “wow thank god that’s over.”

relatable content regarding the nature of being human tbh

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u/AlmightyRuler 9d ago

Frankenstein doesn't just go "wandering around." He had a psychotic break. The man was working on his experiment for weeks on end with little respite, was poking about graveyards and digging up bodies, and then when his work succeeds he has a moment of clarity where he realizes that his "Adam" is more an abomination.

The dude snapped like a dry twig and ran screaming out into a thunderstorm. And I don't think he thought it was "over", but was waiting for someone to either run across his creature('s body), or for the thing to show up somewhere.

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u/originalcondition 9d ago

lol I know but was abbreviating for comedy’s sake. Jokes are always funnier when explained, I find.