On November 7, Netflix released Guillermo Del Toro’s remake of “Frankenstein”, a modern revision of the original Mary Shelley novel. This thrilling new version dives into the themes of father-son relationships, forgiveness, empathy and emotion, while the book version focuses on themes of playing God, science, regret, and violence. The difference was a little bit disappointing for me, since I came into the movie thinking it would be pretty accurate.
Del Toro did state that his Frankenstein isn’t going to be accurate to the book before the movie came out, “The usual discourse of Frankenstein has to do with science gone awry,” Del Toro told Variety in a cover story in August. “But for me, it’s about the human spirit. It’s not a cautionary tale: It’s about forgiveness, understanding and the importance of listening to each other.”
Though I did find the change of the theme interesting, it was overall disappointing. The book was incredible, and I wish it was brought to life, rather than this version. It would have been spectacular to witness certain scenes, such as the monster coming to life, the love story between Victor and Elizabeth, and Victor’s retelling of his story to a crew member. These features are what contribute most to the book, and make it something so unique. Without these parts, it feels a bit dull.
This film would have been better for someone who hasn’t read the book. Without the background knowledge of the story, this version makes a lot more sense. The plot is good, the costumes are amazing, and every detail is so precise. I can definitely tell that Del Toro took 30 years to create this film, because everything looks incredible.
The movie also made various changes to the characters present in the story. Elizabeth, who’s Victor’s wife in the novel, is suddenly attacking Victor, and questioning everything every action he takes. Victor’s father, Alphonse Frankenstein, dies pretty quick in the film, as does mother, Caroline Beaufort Frankenstein. In addition, the characters Henry Clerval and Justine Moritz were completely missing, despite being major characters in the novel.
The directorial choice to kill Victor’s parents so quickly diverged from the novel, where his parents survived for much longer. It was fast, but it did show why he created the monster. It’s understandable why he went mad, and why he wanted to beat death, since his parents were taken away at such a young age.
Other than the plot being difficult to understand, it was overall a good film. It’s something that could be watched during Halloween and would be perfect with all the aspects of death, murder, and gore. This is especially clear when Frankenstein is creating the creature and when he’s searching through bodies to choose the perfect parts. Those said scenes were disturbing and difficult to watch.
I did like some of the new roles and elements of the film. Elizabeth being married to William instead of Victor makes the audience pity Victor more. The audience feels bad for Frankenstein. He had a difficult life, thus he took it out on the creature.
In addition, I liked how Elizabeth had more of a character in this film. She has hobbies, and enjoys researching bugs. It shows what character she could have been in the novel. She’s empathetic, caring, witty and honest. She defends the creature and shows Victor his cruelty.
Another feature that I enjoyed was the immense empathy the film shows for the creature. The book’s depiction of Victor leaving the creature wasn’t that bad, but this version was downright depressing. I also really appreciated the scene where the monster and Victor meet for the last time. Both express their deepest sorrows for what has happened, and it’s such a heartfelt moment. It was like father and son setting aside their hatred for each other to say goodbye.
One more amazing aspect of this film was the actors. Every minute was believable. It felt like Oscar Isaac was Victor Frankenstein, and he did create Jacob Elordi out of body parts. The outfits, sets, actors, everything was really perfected to create the story Del Toro wanted to create.
Mia Goth’s performance was perfect. I didn’t even notice she played two completely different characters. This just shows how good of an actor she is, and how she can play many different roles. When she’s playing Victor’s mother, she’s caring and sweet. Then, when she’s Elizabeth, she’s smart as well as critical.
Another phenomenal actor was Christopher Walz who played Henrich Harlander. He was so perfect for the role and played a very good rich businessman who wanted to conquer death.
I do wish the movie emulated the original story, but nonetheless it was still a very good film. The elements of gore, murder, sympathy, regret, and a father-son dynamic, all of these make such a unique story.
