Guillermo del Toro has always seen beauty where others see beasts. In Frankenstein (2025), the Oscar-winning director reanimates Mary Shelley’s timeless novel with breathtaking tenderness — and the result is nothing short of spellbinding. This isn’t just another adaptation of the world’s most famous monster story; it’s a deeply emotional exploration of creation, grief, and the human soul wrapped in gothic grandeur.
The film opens on an icy expanse in 1857, where Captain Anderson (Lars Mikkelsen) discovers the near-frozen Victor Frankenstein (Oscar Isaac), haunted and hunted by his own creation — a towering creature played by Jacob Elordi. What follows is a chilling unraveling of obsession and consequence as Victor’s relentless quest to conquer death leads him down a path of tragedy and transcendence.
By NarratorNews.com | Entertainment Desk
The Man Who Would Be God
Through flashbacks, del Toro reveals Victor’s tortured beginnings — a brilliant but unstable scientist consumed by his desire to defy nature after losing his mother (Lauren Collins). When wealthy industrialist Henrich Harlander (Christoph Waltz) funds his macabre experiments, Victor dives headfirst into madness, stitching together life from death in scenes that are equal parts grotesque and poetic.
Alexandre Desplat’s haunting score dances between whimsy and horror as Victor scavenges body parts from battlefields — a chilling reminder that even creation can be born from carnage.
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A Gothic Dream Brought to Life
Longtime del Toro collaborator Dan Laustsen crafts visuals that could hang in an art gallery. Every frame of Frankenstein is steeped in gothic romanticism — blood-stained wedding gowns, snow-covered coffins, flickering candlelight against stormy skies. Del Toro’s world feels tactile and lived-in, from the damp stone walls of Victor’s tower to the luminous glow of his laboratory.
The color palette — icy blues, rich greens, and fiery oranges — paints a story of contrast: life and death, light and shadow, love and loss. It’s visual poetry, and no one does it quite like del Toro.
Jacob Elordi Shines as the Creature
Jacob Elordi gives a mesmerizing, career-defining performance as Frankenstein’s Monster. Beneath the prosthetics and towering frame lies raw humanity — fear, longing, rage, and innocence. His scenes with the blind man (David Bradley) are among the film’s most touching, echoing del Toro’s fascination with misunderstood outcasts.
Oscar Isaac matches that energy with a performance equal parts brilliant and broken. His Victor is a man consumed by grief, blind to the horror he’s unleashed. Together, the two form a tragic mirror: creator and creation, both yearning to be understood.
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A Tale of Humanity Beneath the Horror
In true del Toro fashion, Frankenstein is less about monsters and more about what makes us human. The Creature’s journey from rage to self-awareness mirrors Victor’s descent into moral decay. Even amid gore and grandeur, del Toro keeps the emotional core beating strong.
When the Monster finds fleeting peace with the blind man, the film becomes unexpectedly tender — a meditation on acceptance and loneliness. But as that peace crumbles, so too does the fragile hope that either creator or creation can escape their fate.
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A Bittersweet Farewell
Del Toro’s Frankenstein closes not with terror, but with quiet grace. The final moments echo Shelley’s own themes — that knowledge, like fire, can both illuminate and destroy. The Monster’s final reflection — that “life, like the sun, will rise again” — lingers long after the credits roll.
It’s a haunting, heartfelt end to one of del Toro’s most ambitious films yet.
Verdict:
⭐⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Rating: 9/10 A gothic symphony of sorrow and beauty, Frankenstein (2025) proves once again that Guillermo del Toro is the master of monsters with a soul. With breathtaking cinematography, tender performances, and a script that finds love in the dark, this reimagining will leave your heart as heavy as your jaw dropped.
Film Details:
Release Date: October 17, 2025 (Select Theaters); Netflix on November 7, 2025
Director/Writer: Guillermo del Toro
Cast: Oscar Isaac, Jacob Elordi, Mia Goth, Christoph Waltz, David Bradley, Felix Kammerer, Lauren Collins, Lars Mikkelsen
Composer: Alexandre Desplat
Cinematography: Dan Laustsen
Runtime: 149 minutes
Rated: R
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