Oscar Isaac, Jacob Elordi, Mia Goth, and Christoph Waltz star in a movie that looks amazing on a big screen.
(Oscar Isaac as Victor Frankenstein in Frankenstein, directed by Guillermo del Toro. Photo Credit: Ken Woroner / Netflix.)
Director Guillermo del Toro brings his lifelong love for classic monsters to the big screen in Frankenstein — and it shows to a spectacular degree what a difference it makes when a filmmaker is personally engaged with his characters.
Beginning in the frozen climes of the Arctic — where Mary Shelley’s novel, first published in 1820, concludes — a badly-injured body is discovered by the crew of a ship that seeks to find the North Pole, under the strong command of Captain Anderson (Lars Mikkelsen). The man is brought on board and revealed to be Victor Frankenstein (Oscar Isaac), who warns that a powerful creature that has been threatening the ship is, in fact, his responsibility, asserting that he “made” the creature.
Naturally, Victor must tell his story, and so we rewind to years before, when Victor was seeking his medical degree in a London college with a bizarre experiment that perplexes and outrages his professors. Undaunted, Victor is determined to continue his experiments, which impresses Harlander (Christoph Waltz), a wealthy businessman, who offers to fund him completely, even offering to build a lab for him in a property he owns.
Once he’s funded, Victor devotes himself entirely to his experiments. He is convinced that he can and will create a living creature, though, truth be told, he has no idea what will happen after that: he is completely obsessed with making it happen, and gives no thought to the consequences.
What follows is a brilliant manifestation of many of the lesser known elements in Mary Shelley’s original novel, along with many of Guillermo del Toro’s own obsessions that he has displayed in his films over the past 30 years. We see the creature come to life, impressively embodied by Jacob Elordi; we see a young woman, Elizabeth (Mia Goth), who takes kindly to the creature; we see Victor’s younger brother, William (Felix Kammemer); we see Victor’s often cruel father, Leopold (Charles Dance); we see a blind man (David Bradley), who plays a key role in the Creature’s turn toward humanity; and, mostly, we see Guillermo del Toro’s vivid imagination at work, playing on the biggest train set that Netflix money can buy.
It’s easy to think that the wealthy businessman who funds Victor Frankenstein’s experiments is a corollary to Netflix funding Guillermo del Toro’s experiments in richly detailed, extravagant style, incredible production designs, exquisite costuming, and expansive locations. In truth, Frankenstein is a fabulous manifestation of the imagination of many people working together to create something magical.
The shame of it is that only a relatively small number of people will be able to see the movie on a big screen before it moves to Netflix for its streaming engagement, beginning November 7. Before that happens, it’s playing in local theaters, starting tonight. Miss it at your peril.
The film is now playing in select area theaters. For more information about the film, visit the official site.
Dallas Film Now. 