I've been looking forward to Frankenstein, Benicio del Toro's take of the classic novel, from the moment it was first announced. For most of my life I've been fascinated with the Frankenstein story and I've read the book several times. And del Toro - who wrote the screenplay and directed this movie - is a filmmaker I've long enjoyed the work of. Del Toro's bringing us a new screen vision of the Mary Shelley novel was just bound to be good.
I was not disappointed. Although this movie goes into places that I can't recall any other adaptations delving to. Most of them, like 1994's Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (with Kenneth Branagh) have dealt with Victor's obsession of bringing about life from death.
This one, featuring Oscar Isaac as Victor, is really more about the relationships between fathers and sons. It was really quite surprising, and it's perhaps a dynamic that hasn't been explored on film nearly enough. I don't think I would have appreciated this movie some years ago had I watched it then: I had my own issues to deal with, but thankfully those have been put to rest.
I think this version deserves some Oscar nominations, including for Best Picture. Especially for Isaac and Jacob Elordi, who perhaps pertrays the Creature as more a beautiful persona than we've ever seen before.
Frankenstein 2025 was released a few weeks ago to select theaters. Some of those are probably still running it, but I think most people will opt to see it on Netflix (where it hit yesterday). However you choose to watch it, I will say that it's highly recommended!
