A lush, emotionally charged take on the Frankenstein myth that leans into gothic spectacle, tragic longing, and the horror of creation gone wrong. The response suggests strong performances and a more intimate, psychologically fraught angle than a standard monster movie.
Frankenstein
Where to watch: Buy
Movie · Drama · Fantasy
Fri · 2h 30m
Director: Guillermo del Toro
Starring: Oscar Isaac, Jacob Elordi, Christoph Waltz
Overview
Dr. Victor Frankenstein, a brilliant but egotistical scientist, brings a creature to life in a monstrous experiment that ultimately leads to the undoing of both the creator and his tragic creation.
Director
Guillermo del Toro
Cast
Oscar Isaac, Jacob Elordi, Christoph Waltz
Curator Review
Verdict
A lush, emotionally charged take on the Frankenstein myth that leans into gothic spectacle, tragic longing, and the horror of creation gone wrong. The response suggests strong performances and a more intimate, psychologically fraught angle than a standard monster movie.
Best for
gothic horror fans
viewers who like tragic monster stories
fans of prestige horror and fantasy
people drawn to emotionally intense character studies
audiences interested in body-horror-adjacent themes without extreme splatter
Skip if
you want a tight, plot-driven horror thriller
you prefer subtle subtext over overt melodrama
you are tired of father-son trauma as the central lens
you want a purely faithful philosophical adaptation of Mary Shelley
you dislike operatic, heightened gothic style
Overview
Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein sounds designed to be felt as much as watched: a grand, mournful gothic tragedy about loneliness, creation, and the violence built into the act of making life. The film appears to favor emotional immediacy and visual richness over restraint, turning Shelley’s nightmare into a lavish study of grief, desire, and responsibility.
Worth noting
The strongest signals here are the creature’s pathos and the commitment of the performances, especially in the central creator-created dynamic. This is the kind of adaptation that treats the monster as the emotional center and the scientist as the true source of horror, which fits del Toro’s long-running fascination with outsiders, damaged families, and beautiful monstrosity.
Bottom line
It may frustrate viewers hoping for a more rigorous philosophical adaptation, since the reviews point to a blunt, sometimes literal approach and a heavy emphasis on paternal trauma. But if you want gothic atmosphere, tragic romance, and a big-screen monster movie with a bruised heart, this looks like a compelling watch.
Top Letterboxd reviews
Blair MacMillan (4★) · 92811 likes
Men want to give birth sooooo bad it’s crazy
Movie Good or Movie Bad? (5★) · 55546 likes
Sigmund Freud would have so much to say about Victor Frankenstein’s relationship to milk and the love of his life looking just like his mom.
rai (4★) · 53186 likes
how to make Jacob Elordi in my basement tutorial
jalie (3★) · 38836 likes
men will literally reanimate a corpse before they go to therapy
James (Schaffrillas) (4.5★) · 33992 likes
Victor actually tries to be a father in this version and he's somehow even worse at it than usual
Themes
creation and responsibility, outsider identity, father-son trauma, loneliness and longing, gothic tragedy, body horror, mad science, monstrosity and humanity
Topics
gothic horror, tragic fantasy, body horror, prestige horror, monster movie, melancholy, Victorian-inspired, existential dread, dark romance, psychological drama