“It’s Alive! It’s Alive!” A new adaptation of the classic Mary Shelley novel will soon be streaming on Netflix. Let’s tap into this new vision of a familiar tale. Find out what is different and what you can expect when clicking play.
Plot details
The story of Frankenstein has been told so many times that you’d think there wouldn’t be a new way to tell it.
However, Netflix is going to give it a try with perhaps this new adaptation being more faithful to the novel than ones in the past.
“Oscar winner Guillermo del Toro reimagines Mary Shelley’s classic tale of a brilliant scientist and the creature his monstrous ambition brings to life.”
–Frankenstein’s Tagline on Netflix.
Victor Frankenstein is a scientist interested in unnaturally bringing life to that which is dead, in turn disturbing the natural balance.
The god complex Victor deals with acts as a major theme of the original story, and it will be present in this new adaptation.
Prolific genre screenwriter and director Frank Darabont wrote a screenplay for the 1994 adaptation of Frankenstein.
This script was later heavily reworked and diverted from Darabont’s original vision, but this original and better script helped inspire Del Toro’s new version.
Viewers can expect the plot of this new take to combine elements of the novel and the films Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein with new elements from Del Toro.
Audiences can expect Del Toro will highlight the father-son dynamics of the story, as well as the nature versus nurture themes.
The basic Frankenstein lore will still be there with the creature being resurrected and Victor having to deal with the consequences of playing God.
This will leave the plot familiar to those who know the story but also offer something new to dissect.
Cast
Oscar Isaac as Victor Frankenstein
Victor Frankenstein is the namesake of this story’s title and not the creature as pop culture has led most people to believe.
Isaac is bringing Victor’s hubris to life, and there will be plenty to breakdown with the psyche of this mad scientist.
Frankenstein is similar to a misunderstood artist due to his vision to create life, which others in the academic world reject.
Even though the creature has long out shined Victor in popular culture, it’s the creator that offers more interesting metaphors.
Victor is even more monstrous than the creature and is forever tied to his creation as a way to represent his personal failings.
Jacob Elordi as the Creature
Elordi is famously known for playing a toxic masculinity character on the HBO hit show Euphoria.
In Frankenstein, he will play the creature who, depending on the interpretation, isn’t always much of a speaking role.
Andrew Garfield was originally set to play this role before having to back out due to scheduling conflicts.
Even though the creature is a monster, they are also sympathetic, and we’ll have to wait and see how Elordi does play this type of role.
Mia Goth as Elizabeth
Goth is a modern-day scream queen who continues to bolster her resume with this new role.
Not only will Goth play the love interest of Dr. Frankenstein, but she will also play a second character just like she has in films in the past like X.
This second character will be the mother of Victor Frankenstein, so it’ll be interesting to see what commentary is made and if there’s any mention of similarity between the two.
Christoph Waltz as Henrich
Waltz, as he does in most films, will play a villain.
The actor’s villainous credits include Inglorious Bastards, The Green Hornet and recent James Bond films.
This character is an addition from Del Toro to the iconic mythos of the Frankenstein tale.
Whenever this actor is involved, you can expect the scenery to be chewed up and the villain to be downright evil.
Director’s Vision
Modern horror director Guillermo Del Toro is the creative force behind this new adaptation of Frankenstein.
Del Toro is known for Pan’s Labyrinth, The Shape of Water and Crimson Peak among many other films and television work.
The director had been clamoring to adapt this story since childhood with this specific production in development since 2008 but never came to fruition.
That is until Netflix revived it in 2023 and funded the ambitious adaption.
Del Toro spoke in the past about wanting to adapt the rich text of Frankenstein in multiple parts, but it seems he has whittled that down to a single two and half hour epic.
Frankenstein has long been a benchmark moment for this director’s career as a “made-it” moment in Hollywood.
It will be interesting to see where the prolific filmmaker goes from this and if his sprawling vision will receive commercial success or awards.
Looking ahead to the future, Del Toro is returning to stop motion after the success of his Pinocchio adaptation.
Another project down the line will involve Oscar Isaac again and be in the vein of his criminally underrated film Nightmare Alley.
Interesting Facts
- Director Guillermo del Toro casts based off the eyes of an actor because he believes that’s what makes the character.
- Del Toro saw an innocence in Elordi’s eyes and believed that is necessary for the creature to have.
- Jewelry pieces of Elizabeth’s costume are provided by Tiffany & Co. including archival pieces from their collection that reference themes of the film and match the time period.
- Del Toro has believed since childhood that the creature is holy and an example of a “patron saint” due to its sympathetic traits.
- Frankenstein debuted on August 30 at the Venice Film Festival, which is also the official Frankenstein Day because it coincides with Author Mary Shelley’s birthday.
- Elordi took inspiration from his golden retriever pet companion for the role of the creature because of her innocence in the way she loves and moves.
- Mary Shelley came up with Frankenstein during a writing competition among her husband and friends, which was about who could write the scariest story.
- Many of the intricately gothic sets were built in real-life for the film as Del Toro values practical effects and set design.
Release Date
Frankenstein streams on Netflix beginning November 7 after a short limited theatrical run.
In the meantime, audiences can stream the various adaptations of this long-running gothic tale to prepare for the streaming debut.
If you want to go back to the very beginning and read Mary Shelley’s culture shifting novel, there is a special edition available at Barnes & Noble.
