Carl Roberts 
“Guillermo del Toro has delivered his masterpiece. His version of Frankenstein is the definitive version of the classic novel.”
“It’s Alive! Alive!” Those words have never been more apt with the release of Guillermo del Toro’s version of the classic Mary Shelley novel, Frankenstein. The film opens in select cinemas this weekend. This is ahead of its Netflix debut on November 7th. The film has long been a passion project for del Toro. After his 2007 comments, he expressed his dream of making a “Miltonian tragedy” version of the tale. His vision stars Oscar Isaac, Jacob Elordi, Mia Goth, Felix Kammerer, Lars Mikkelsen, David Bradley, Lauren Collins, Charles Dance, and Christoph Waltz. But can the film be brought to brilliant life by the Mexican filmmaker and his cast? Or should the film have been left to rot in the ground, never to rise?
PREMISE
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.
THOUGHTS
The tale is still as tragic as it’s ever been. However, the biggest tragedy here is that the film isn’t getting a full cinematic release. Instead, it has a short window before heading to streaming. The film is, without a doubt, a masterpiece of the genre. It is a version that takes everything Shelley put into her novel and brings it to life with incredible effect. From the opening sequence featuring Lars Mikkelsen as Captain Anderson and his crew, trapped in the ice aboard their ship, to the final, haunting image, the film is incredible. The cast have all believed in del Toro and the project, and have given their all to bring his vision to life. Add in some incredible production design, lavish sets, great special effects, and a brilliantly structured approach, and the film deserves to be seen on the biggest screen possible.
OSCAR ISSAC
Oscar Issac plays the eponymous Victor Frankenstein in a portrayal of the role that is the best version we have ever seen. The actor throws himself completely into his portrayal of the character, breathing more life into Victor than we have been given before. We get his version of events before the film turns and shows us events from the creature’s perspective. The turn comes at a vital point in the proceedings. With Victor’s story, Issac embraces his traits, his eccentricities, his emerging madness, and the frustrations at his work being ridiculed. The denial of his conclusions, derided as a fantasy experiment, despite proving his work, sends Victor into a rage. To his amazement, Henrich Harlander (Chrisophe Waltz), Elizabeth’s maternal uncle and a wealthy arms manufacturer, funds Victor’s experiments. Of course, nothing comes for free, with Henrich asking for one thing in return.
INTERACTIONS
When he reveals what he wants, Victor cannot accommodate his desire. The interaction between Issac and Waltz is wonderful, playing off each other to tremendous effect. So too are the scenes between Victor and Elizabeth, and Victor and his monstrous creation. Issac excels here, in a role that strangely suits him down to the ground. He brings a sense of tragic style to the character in an almost perfect version of the ‘mad’ scientist. Oscar Issac deserves to be nominated for awards for his portrayal of Victor. His version destroys every other version ever filmed, making him the definitive version of the character. There’s no crazed scientist here; Instead, we get a character who is determined to succeed, to bring his creation to life. But, as everyone will agree, it is not his creation that is the monster, it is Victor himself.
MIA GOTH
Mia Goth is terrific as Elizabeth Lavenza, William’s fiancée, for whom Victor has feelings, and also as Claire Frankenstein, Victor’s late mother, who died in childbirth. Elizabeth isn’t as naive as anyone would think. Instead, we have a headstrong female who more than holds her own against the males. While some people have doubts about Victor, Elizabeth sees straight through him. She knows that he isn’t right, that he is a manipulator who is slowly turning into a monster more terrifying than his creation.
She also shows compassion for the creature, wanting to communicate with him, to reach him, to become his friend. In this version, the creature isn’t out to kill or hurt Elizabeth. To him, she is one of the only friendly people he has ever known. He wants to reach her and to learn from her, to become more human than he is. The creature may be the beast, but Elizabeth is the beauty.
Mia Goth breathes life into Elizabeth in a superb way. The same can be said for her portrayal of Claire Frankenstein. The parallels between the two characters are glaring. Both are fated to die young, and both are subjected to some almost abusive behaviour. Mia Goth, no stranger to bringing two characters to life in the same film, once again proves she is a superb actress. Her version of Elizabeth is stronger but more sympathetic to the creature than we have ever seen before. Her incarnation of the character will go down as one of the best ever filmed.
JACOB ELORDI
Despite some of the best acting seen on screen, no one can come close to Jacob Elordi here. His version of the creature is one of the finest, most sympathetic and sad incarnations we have seen. When he awakens after his reanimation, the creature is more akin to a newborn child, or at least an infant. He doesn’t understand who or what he is, why he is the way he is, and why Victor, who at first comes across as a loving father, suddenly begins to become abusive towards him.
The creature isn’t violent or nasty; he is simply trying, like all of us, to find out about himself and his place in the world. To begin with, he is gentle, attentive and almost loving. When he first encounters Elizabeth, the way she treats him sees him taking her to his heart, almost like he has found a playmate with whom he can be friends. Later, as his story becomes the focus of the film, we see his relationship with the blind man (played with incredible passion by David Bradley) progress.
JUSTIFIED VIOLENCE AND RETRIBUTION
These scenes have us firmly siding with the creature. Of course, it isn’t to last. The violence and retribution he is forced to deal out don’t come as a surprise. In fact, in the context of things, he is more than justified in acting this way. To the shock of the audience, the creature, always depicted as frightening and monstrous, is possibly the most human of all the characters. Jacob Elordi deserves to gain many awards for his portrayal here. His version of the creature is one of the most sympathetic, misunderstood and likeable ever seen. This is Elordi’s film, hands down. By the time we get to the ending, we watch with tears in our eyes. The final interaction between Victor and his creation is one of the most emotional scenes in the entire film. Jacob Elordi, take a bow.
VERDICT
Guillermo del Toro has delivered his masterpiece. His version of Frankenstein is the definitive version of the classic novel. With a superb, moody, and elegant score from the composer Alexandre Desplat to accompany the narrative, the film just feels perfect. Combined with del Toro’s screenplay adaptation of Mary Shelley’s novel and his directorial style and vision, the film is the perfect match. The style of the film feels like a throwback to del Toro’s early movies, with the look, feel and brilliance he is well known and regarded for. And surprise, surprise, this version will go down as the best version ever filmed. It feels as though the property was tailor-made for del Toro to adapt, almost as if Shelley knew her work would one day be transformed into a true film masterpiece.
THE MOST COMPLETE AND BRILLIANT VERSION
It isn’t all plain sailing, however. Some visual effects sequences, particularly those featuring wolves, lack complete believability. They take us out of the film at times. But these are extremely minor imperfections, and not enough to destroy the masterpiece we are given here. If any other filmmaker out there decides they want to make a version of Frankenstein, here’s my advice: Don’t. Please don’t waste your time even contemplating it. You will never beat this version of the novel. At 150 minutes in length, you could be forgiven for thinking the film is a slog. It most certainly isn’t. The runtime flies by, keeping you engrossed from start to finish. This is the most complete and brilliant version of a book ever committed to film. It’s alive, indeed. But it’s not Victor Frankenstein that’s brought it to life. It’s Guillermo del Toro.
Frankenstein is in select cinemas from Friday, and on Netflix from November 7th.
Introducing Carl! As the News Editor at Future of the Force, Carl has been an invaluable member of our team since early 2016. His expertise and dedication have made him an integral part of our editorial staff. Beyond his professional role, Carl is a fervent supporter of Liverpool F.C. and an avid follower of pop culture. He has a deep passion for Halloween, Friday the 13th, and the iconic movie franchises Star Wars and Star Trek.
He can be found either at his neighborhood cinema, enjoying the latest releases on the big screen, or at home streaming the newest blockbuster movies.
