Mary Shelley wrote a story about a monster. But as her book revealed and, as Guillermo del Toro so expertly and beautifully tells in this film…Gods can also be monsters.
Frankenstein
How many different versions of Frankenstein have I watched during my long lifespan on this planet? I remember the very first time I watched a Frankenstein film at a double creature feature at the neighbourhood theatre. I may have been nine years old. I was responsible for my younger siblings, who were with me. The film starred Boris Karloff as the monster. At that young age, I hadn’t understood that Karloff’s character was not the antagonist, or that life itself could be viewed as a curse.
Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein, which stars Oscar Isaac, Mia Goth, Felix Kammerer, Christoph Waltz, Lars Mikkelsen and Jacob Elordi, borrows most of its inspiration from Milton’s Paradise Lost. We understand why Victor Frankenstein (Oscar Isaac) was obsessed with creating life from death, having lost his mother when she died giving birth to his brother, William (Felix Kammerer). And so, we cheer for Victor to succeed even if we perceive him as entitled, arrogant, and calculating. After all, Victor’s quest to create life and immortality is an ageless human desire.
After meeting Herr Harlander (Christoph Waltz), and William’s fiancé, Elizabeth (Mia Goth), the story moves quickly to the preparations and collection of body parts needed for Victor’s experiment. The story is told by an injured Victor to a ship’s captain (Lars Mikkelsen) as the ship’s crew fends off the creature whose intentions become known towards the end of the film.
Conclusion
I don’t think I would have understood the complexities of Mary Shelley’s story, Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus, at nine years old. I most likely would not have understood Milton’s message in Paradise Lost at that age, even with my struggles in a dysfunctional family. The earlier films from my childhood were meant to frighten…not enlighten. Boris Karloff’s creature was not aware of his autonomy or worth. Boris Karloff’s creature did not consider the purpose of his life. But in Guillermo’s film, we see the creature (Jacob Elordi) as the voice of humanity. He is with us as we raise our fists up to the heavens, asking, “Why?”
Guillermo del Toro is a master storyteller. We expected a monster without a soul. A creature meant to be feared, but instead Guillermo del Toro created a story of deliverance inside a body made of spare parts. We, like the creature, have been asking our creator, from the beginning of time, why did You create us…only to condemn us…to abandon us.
The film is on Netflix. This is not your usual horror tale. Frankenstein is a love story about an abandoned child seeking his humanity and worth from a soulless creator. It is a story as old as Adam and Eve.
