by Jeffery Rahming, Contributing Writer
Guillermo del Toro is much more than a director. He’s a fablemaker. His fascination with monsters and love has given us some of the most original visions of modern cinema. Adapting Frankenstein is nothing but on brand for him. But as good as he is, there have been hundreds of Frankenstein adaptations. It stands to wonder if even a creative talent of his caliber could possibly have anything new to say about the ambitious doctor and his monster.
This time, our Dr. Frankenstein is played by Oscar Isaac. The doctor isn’t just compelled by morbid curiosity this time around, instead creating his monster based on a terrifying vision from his traumatic childhood. With the financial help of his mysterious benefactor, Henrich Harlander (Christoph Waltz), Victor assembles his monster (Jacob Elordi) from the pieces of victims in the surrounding war. As usual, the creation of “The Creature” (as the movie calls him) comes with more complications than he anticipated. Overall, the plot beats are the same as what you’ve seen before. The doctorfinds ways to cheat death and regrets it. The monster wanders about trying to find his own humanity. And eventually they come into conflict. You’ve seen it all before, but there’s enough new here to make it stand out. Maybe a little too much.
For del Toro, every project is a passion project. You can tell he wanted to make this for decades, and, as usual, when a filmmaker finally gets to make the picture they’ve always wanted, the whole thing feels a bit indulgent. For better or worse, this movie seems to use every idea that came through his head. del Toro’s fairytale storytelling translates well to the macabre Frankenstein. He takes the book’s themes and motifs and dials them up to 11, to the point where one of the characters pretty much states the book’s theme aloud. It’s a little much, but it’s not like del Toro was ever known for subtlety. He’s going for an epic feel, and he achieves it. This is the first adaptation that feels like a piece of mythology rather than a sci-fi/horror. Of course, there are some moments of horror and action here and there, but it’s not the primary focus. When we do get to those scenes, they’re so good that you can’t help but wish there was just a little bit more.
The most significant change from the original is a love triangle between Dr. Frankenstein, his half-brother William (Felix Kammerer), and his brother’s fiancée, Elizabeth (Mia Goth), which goes a little way to add a new angle to the story’s themes, but in the end, it takes too much time away from the main story. Waltz’s character is also a rather odd addition. I didn’t have a problem with him at the start, but in the grand scheme of the movie, it’s bit of a waste of a two-time Oscar-winning actor.
Elordi brings a great amount of emotional depth and pain to The Creature, somehow shining through his heavy prosthetics. It’s a performance that is surprisingly more subdued than Isaac’s as his maker, who is similarly outstanding. In contrast to his monster, Frankenstein is a nervous, erratic wreck throughout this whole film, playing about 10 different types of crazy over the two-and-a-half-hour runtime. And while the love triangle wears thin quickly, Goth is undeniably good as Elizabeth, adding more to the movie through her performance than the character as written.
The visuals are a gothic delight. The lavish sets, beautiful cinematography, and impressive makeup all make this a beautiful spectacle, even in its slower moments. Even if it does run pretty long, it’s always fun to look at, at the very least. Some of these shots are so beautiful that the fact that this wasn’t widely released in theaters should probably be a criminal offense. This is definitely a film that feels too big for a TV, even if that’s how its distributor would prefer you see it.
Netflix’s ridiculous allergy to making more money notwithstanding, this is a unique take on an old tale. Admittedly, I found myself wondering what the point was several times throughout watching it. Aesthetics and extra details aside, the film follows the original plot pretty closely, and what it does add is pretty superfluous. It started to feel like Frankenstein again, but with more stuff this time. However, by the time it was all over, there was a clear reason why del Toro chose to tell this story, and how it fits into his overall filmography.
The ending of this movie will be hit or miss for audiences, but for me, it beautifully ties together its long, winding journey in a way no other adaptation has, and it becomes its own thing.
Frankenstein is an unwieldy mess at times, but the passion behind it is palpable. It’s a little long, and somewhat intellectual for those just wanting a straightforward monster movie, but anyone who’s seen a del Toro film knows it was going to be more than that. This is another beautiful fairytale from a master — I’m sure it will be considered a cult classic for years to come.
Rating: Liked It
Frankenstein is currently streaming on Netflix
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