This article was originally published in the October 2025 print edition.
Guillermo del Toro’s newest undertaking “Frankenstein” is a mostly-faithful, frequently heavy-handed, but successfully heartwarming adaptation of Mary Shelley’s seminal novel, relying on gothic aesthetics that make it a fitting Halloween watch.
“Frankenstein; or, the Modern Prometheus” by Mary Shelley has a complicated history of film adaptation. The first “Frankenstein” is a 16-minute silent film released in 1910. It is most notable for the liberties it takes when instead of depicting the deaths that occur at a certain moment in the novel, Victor looks into his bedroom mirror to find the Creature staring back at him as his reflection.
The next film adaptation in 1931 created much of the visual language that we now associate with the story of Frankenstein, including the Creature’s indelible neck bolts, his silent-but-grunty demeanor and his physical build, taken from horror legend Boris Karloff. Frankenstein’s Monster became a spearhead of the Universal monsters, which forged his relevance in popular culture at the expense of the book, in which the Creature is an articulate and complicated being.
While some film adaptations have attempted to rectify this erasure — like Kenneth Branagh’s frequently hated but fairly accurate 1994 adaptation “Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein” — this film feels determined to completely change public opinion, cementing Victor Frankenstein as the complicated villain to the entirely sympathetic Creature, his victim.
Gulliermo del Toro, known for his big budget monstrous tales, uses grandiose set pieces, distinct costume choices and character design to achieve his gothic aesthetic. While del Toro’s style can sometimes feel too artificial to completely land, he creates a few visuals here that are genuinely striking. It is difficult to forget this is a Netflix production, and therefore falls into form with their homogeneous style, but some moments successfully surpass it. The montage of the Creature’s creation, filled with Victor severing limbs while standing in pools of blood, filled my gore-loving heart with a sense of pride.
The Creature’s character design is excellent, paying homage to the novel while adding new flair and a unique physicality, supplied by Jacob Elordi’s height and build. This design helps to overshadow the lesser monstrous figures of the film that are plagued by CGI.
Costuming shines most in the film’s two female characters, both played by Mia Goth, but finds compelling pieces for the main characters as well, such as Victor’s blood-red tie and the Creature’s leather jacket. Frankenstein’s tower is an incredible feat reminiscent of, though much grander than, the set of the 1931 “Frankenstein” film. The lab, fitted with glass vats of faux “Re-Animator” serum, is like the science of the film. It works, if you don’t think too much about it.
Oscar Isaac and Jacob Elordi approach their iconic characters, Victor Frankenstein and his Creature, with the care and specificity they deserve. Isaac disappears into Victor’s obsessive, maniacal spirit with ease, forging a new interpretation of the character as a dangerous man child with severe parental trauma. Jacob Elordi feels born to play the role with his gigantic figure and child-like facial expressions as he properly sells the Creature’s youthful curiosity, empathetic spirit and learned rage. Together, the two paint a successful portrait of parental abuse, a theme that is heightened in this film over any previous adaptation.
As is the case with most modern adaptations, “Frankenstein” attempts to write a new female character in the narrative with Mia Goth’s Elizabeth. Though she shares a name with the novel’s love interest, they are two completely different characters. Del Toro’s Elizabeth is Victor’s brother’s fiance with a passion for reading and science (as a woman!). Her role proves most compelling in the film’s spin on the gothic romance trope?, more comparable to 2024’s “Nosferatu” than any “Frankenstein” adaptation, and provides a meta interpretation of Elizabeth as a subjugated woman similar to the book’s author Mary Shelley.
The issues with “Frankenstein” lie in its insistence to tell instead of show. This is partially a result of the film’s narration by its two protagonists. Instead of allowing visuals to speak for themselves, the narration and even the in-scene dialogue feel insistent on over-explaining each key moment. This leads to a simplification of the main themes of the film, as the screenplay repeatedly emphasizes the Creature’s purity and Victor’s abuse.
While the character dynamics could have led to a different but powerful conclusion, the ending feels like a bow tied loosely around a half-finished script. I found myself yearning for the 1910 silent film’s ending; at least that left me with something to think about. Del Toro approaches this film with mainstream sensibilities about “Good vs. Evil” and resolves conflict in a way that does not do justice to the narrative. Even the film’s most powerful moments are undermined by its heavy-handed dialogue.
Guillermo del Toro’s film is a compelling adaptation of Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein”, creating newness within a classic narrative while still paying proper homage to the original. It is decidedly modern in both positive and negative ways, making it impossible to forget its grand budget and the sympathetic doe eyes of Jacob Elordi. There is even a gay headcanon available, if you are looking for it. At the least, “Frankenstein” makes great use of its two and a half hour long run-time and is a great film to get you into the Halloween spirit.
Frankenstein is currently being screened at Amherst Cinema and will be released on Netflix on Nov. 7.
