Frankenstein
Frankenstein
Starring Oscar Isaacs, Jacob Elordi, Mia Goth, Christoph Waltz
Directed by Guillermo del Toro
In the Victorian era of 1857, Victor Frankenstein (Oscar Isaacs) is tormented by the death of his mother and the quest to find a way to make life last forever. Using electricity he believes he's found it, and with the help of financial backer Henrich Harlander (Christoph Waltz), he manages to make the impossible possible - bring a corpse to life. The Creature (Jacob Elordi) only knows two words: "Victor Frankenstein," and Victor is angered by its inability to learn more words and worries about the treat it poses (especially considering he recovers from fatal wounds quickly) and sets out to destroy it, to the chagrin of his brother's fiancee Lady Elizabeth Harlander (Mia Goth) who's grown an appreciation for the Creature.
The Creature goes on the run and finds solace by hiding out at the hovel of a nearby farm, where he learns to speak thanks to lessons taught by the blind patriarch of the family who takes him in under his wing not knowing his true appearance. Growing angry that Victor abandoned him and left him for dead, he goes on a quest to find his father and get the revenge he feels he deserves, even if it destroys himself in the process.
The story of Frankenstein has been told and re-told throughout the centuries, so it feels like there's nothing new to be told, no water to be tread, no stone left unturned. Yet del Toro manages to make something new from the bits of the story collected, much like the Creature itself, and craft his own tale that stays mostly true to the source material but also makes it his own in unique ways that don't come as a surprise. The only surprise is why he would sell it to Netflix instead of letting it get a wide release it deserves, because there'll be a lot lost in translation watching it from a home television as opposed to the grandiose big screen.
Del Toro brings in the OG crew to craft a tale that's as visually and audibly awe-inspiring as the story itself, bringing in collaborators Tamara Deverell and Kate Hawley to make everything visually perfect. Deverell's production designs hearken back to the classics with Victorian England looking as impoverished and equally grandiose as it's expected, along with Frankenstein's castle looming like a dark foreboding sentry. Hawley's costume designs are equally impeccable, crafting the Creature's appearance looking like nothing you've seen in any Frankenstein iteration, as well as the lavish dresses that Mia Goth gets to show off. Throw in Alexander Desplat’s score and you've got an auditory ne plus ultra that'll leave you begging to hear more.
The acting talent, as well as those behind the scenes, are beyond reproach. Oscar Isaac's take on Victor Frankenstein is equally manic and subdued, keeping himself from becoming a caricature of the mad scientist and grounding himself in reality. Jacob Elordi's looming height (6'5'') makes him the perfect physical role for the Creature, but his intelligence and acting prowess makes him exponentially better as the Creature learns about speaking, life, love, and, to its own detriment, vengeance. Mia Goth is stunning as the offbeat Lady Harlander, who shares Victor's love for the macabre and a love for the Creature. They guide us through the 150 minute runtime as if it's nothing, leaving us ready for another go-around without delay.
"Frankenstein" has been Del Toro's passion project for years, telling film journalist Edward Douglas, "I dream I can make the greatest Frankenstein ever, but then if you make it, you've made it. Whether it's great or not, it's done. You cannot dream about it anymore." Proving that some passion projects are worth making, Del Toro far exceeds in making the best "Frankenstein" movie ever made, if only selling his creation to the soulless Netflix to be seen on the smallest screens possible.
The Score: A+
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