Writer-director Guillermo del Toro (Pan’s Labyrinth, The Shape of Water, Nightmare Alley) adapts Mary Shelley’s 1818 gothic horror novel for the big screen. Oscar Isaac stars as brilliant but egotistical scientist Victor Frankenstein, who creates a monstrous creature (Jacob Elordi) constructed from cadaver parts, leading to tragedy for both. (149 min.)
Frankenstein
What’s it rated? R
What’s it worth, Anna? Full price
What’s it worth, Glen? Full price
Where’s it showing? Downtown Centre in SLO
Glen: This is a deeply melancholic tale, a tragedy, and a travesty of unbridled ego. Del Toro begins his story on the ice floes near the North Pole, where we find an expedition ship led by Captain Anderson (Lars Mikkelsen) trapped in the ice. A huge explosion in the distance leads the crew to discover severely injured Baron Victor Frankenstein, who’s brought aboard the vessel to be cared for and where, in flashback, we learn of his difficult childhood, the impetus for his need to overcome death, and his ultimate achievement to reanimate dead flesh. Later, when the creature comes to claim Frankenstein, we hear his soulful backstory. The plot construction is effective and gripping, but the film’s real achievement is the story’s thoughtful exploration of what makes us moral, and hence human. The message is clear: How we treat each other is the ultimate judgment of character.
Anna: Victor’s childhood trauma has certainly stayed with him, and though he despised his father (Charles Dance), his adult self is becoming more and more like the man he detests. He has a younger brother, William (Felix Kammemer), who went to live with relatives at a young age following the death of their parents. The two brothers seem worlds apart, but when William is set to marry Elizabeth (Mia Goth), they come calling on Victor along with Elizabeth’s uncle, Harlander (Christoph Waltz), whose motives and money are what ultimately feed Victor’s project. Issac is wonderfully dimensional in his role as Victor, but even more layered is the tale of the creature he created. I love that the film follows the nested narrative style of the novel and, though giving it a long run time, we hear from the creature himself. His is a truly heartbreaking tale, and that he’s left on the earth to wander alone feels like a gut punch. In terms of atmosphere, this movie is rich in it. The costuming alone makes my sewist heart sing. It’s beautiful.
Glen: Those early scenes on the Frankenstein estate with the flowing clothing worn by the servants and young Victor’s (Christian Vonvey) mother (also Mia Goth) reminded me of the visual feast that is Tarsem Singh’s body horror film The Cell (2000). Later in the film, Victor’s lab is atmospheric and fascinating, and depending on whether or not you can stomach something like Bodies: The Exhibition that showcases actual human bodies and their various systems through a process called plastination, you’ll find the special effects of dead bodies and body parts either beautiful, as Elizabeth does, or grotesque. When these lifeless partial carcasses reanimate, it’s shocking. I found the animal CGI a little distracting because its artifice doesn’t hold up to the rest of the film, but it’s a small distraction in an overall monumental achievement. It’s an incredible film.
Anna: Those partial carcasses were very visceral—bundles of raw nerves and muscle, and when they came to life they seemed to be “living” in misery. Victor’s ego and ambition propel him into further depths of his own mind, and he can’t stop himself from thinking about what can be done instead of thinking about what should be done. His infatuation with Elizabeth is undeniable, and while she at first enjoys their shared interest, she soon wholly rejects him when she sees the true darkness of his mind. It’s a tortured tale but in ways a beautiful one. Del Toro weaves the story seductively. If you have any interest, it’s certainly a film worth seeing on the big screen. It will captivate you.
New Times Arts Editor Glen Starkey and freelancer Anna Starkey write Sun Screen. Comment at gstarkey@newtimesslo.com.
This article appears in Oct 30 – Nov 6, 2025.