Director: Guillermo del Toro
Starring: Oscar Isaac, Jacob Elordi, Mia Goth, Felix Kammerer, Lars Mikkelsen, Christoph Waltz
Certificate: 15
Run Time: 150 mins

Frankenstein is visionary director Guillermo del Toro’s long-awaited passion project that he’s been trying to get off the ground since 2007 when he first started crafting concept art. Adapting Mary Shelley’s highly influential 1818 novel certainly plays to the director’s strengths, who has made a career for himself with his grotesque-looking monsters and Gothic imagery. But Del Toro’s last two films have seen the director step away from his comfort zone – Nightmare Alley saw him explore the neo-noir psychological thriller genre and he then teamed up with the late Mark Gustafson for an animated Pinocchio for Netflix. While I liked both films, neither represented Del Toro at his best – Nightmare Alley was rather languorous and I found some of the musical elements of Pinocchio challenging.

Del Toro has once again joined forces with Netflix for Frankenstein and although Doug Jones and Andrew Garfield (and Benedict Cumberbatch was courted at one point) were previously attached to play the monstrous creation, it’s Saltburn‘s Jacob Elordi who undergoes the transformation. Oscar Isaac plays the titular surgeon, who we see being chased by his creation in the opening scenes where he then gets rescued by the Horisont Royal Danish Navy ship that’s trapped in the ice. After the prelude, the film is split between Victor’s and The Creature’s perspectives. Was Del Toro’s passion project worth the lengthy wait?

To a large extent, yes. Frankenstein is a sumptuous Gothic feast with a standout performance from an unrecognisable Jacob Elordi. From a technical perspective, it’s a beautiful-looking film, gracefully shot by Del Toro’s preferred cinematographer Dan Laustsen and I loved the use of symbolic colours, especially the red Frankenstein’s ill-fated mother is bathed in. There’s also a handful of excellent set-pieces, such as the opening chase to the ship, the monster’s creation and a melancholic extended section in a blind man’s home. Alexandre Desplat’s romping score often stands out too, but it’s a shame there isn’t an overarching main theme to latch onto. This is definitely a film to experience on the biggest screen you can find (as I was lucky to do so), and it’s a shame that most will be watching Del Toro’s passion project via the streaming giant.

Although the film’s always entertaining, it never quite soars. Like Nightmare Alley, it’s overlong and the film would have benefitted from having a good 20 to 30 minutes chopped. What became more apparent on the second viewing on the small screen was just how wordy Del Toro’s script is, and some of the dialogue stilts the film.

While Oscar Isaac has turned in some monumental performances in the past, he only does a reasonable job as Frankenstein. This might be because the character’s not particularly likeable, although Del Toro does a great job of portraying his troublesome childhood which kickstarts his scientist’s ambition. Lots of the other characters get short-changed – there’s not much meat to the bone with Mia Goth’s Lady Elizabeth Harlander for whom Victor has feelings, and Christoph Waltz’s wealthy arms manufacturer who gives Victor the tools to make his creation doesn’t receive much development either. As well as Elordi, the always brilliant David Bradley stands out as a blind old man who befriends the creature with a measuredly delicate performance.

While Frankenstein doesn’t rank among Guillermo Del Toro’s best work, there’s plenty to admire here, especially the director’s personal approach to the material. It’s a shame it doesn’t quite soar as many of Del Toro’s other films though, but the film particularly impresses from a technical viewpoint and Jacob Elordi’s brilliant central performance.