Frankenstein review
By Joel Humphries · Watched 10.25.25
★★★★ 4 / 5
Spoiler-free review
Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein is as visually gorgeous as the combination of filmmaker and material promises, with images and design worthy of Mary Shelley’s enduring creation. It is also thirty minutes longer than the strongest version of itself. The story once reached the screen in seventy-one minutes; this adaptation needs two and a half hours while still leaving me wanting a deeper emotional bond between creator and creature. Better editing could uncover a great two-hour film inside the very good one we received. The beauty is never in doubt. The discipline is.
Full review — contains spoilers
This is an absolutely gorgeous film, which I guess is what you would expect from Guillermo Del Toro given the material. Just a little overly long. The original story was 71 minutes. I'm not sure why they needed two hours and 30 minutes here to present the same story. There's a great two hour movie in here with better editing. But as it is, it's just really good. I think the story would've benefited from demonstrating more of an emotional connection between Frankenstein and his monster, but that's an artistic decision.