Frankenstein: An Avid Reader’s Review of a Classic Film Adaptation (Without Reading the Book)

Recently, I have observed that the movie industry has been lacking in the quality of the shows it puts on the big screen. There is never a shortage of cliché and predictable films released not only in theaters but also on streaming platforms; however, I, along with many others, have been craving a well-directed, visually stunning movie for quite some time now. 

Frankenstein, the horror novel written by Mary Shelley, was published in 1818 and has since gone on to become one of the most well-known horror classics of all time, and it still captivates readers over two centuries after its publication date. Over the years, the book has seen its fair share of movie remakes, each adapting the film differently and portraying the story with different degrees of accuracy according to readers who have followed the Frankenstein movies throughout their creation and subsequent releases. 

For this review, I decided to do something a bit different. If anyone is familiar with my articles, I’m sure they have become used to me hating on a show or movie for being wildly inaccurate or unlike the text it is meant to portray. Despite being an avid reader who is passionate about the rule ‘you only watch the movie after you read the book,’ I made the decision that I would watch the newest Frankenstein movie without reading Shelley’s iconic novel and instead judge the film on its plotline and visual effects. 

The newest Frankenstein movie was released in October of 2025 and was directed by award-winning gothic and horror director Guillermo del Toro. Although the movie only took 9 months to film, del Toro had been planning the adaptation for over two decades. The film opens with a view of an old ship stranded in ice on a frozen tundra. The men on the ship are explorers from England looking to find the North Pole, who eventually meet unfortunate circumstances and become stuck, leaving them unable to move it back into the ocean. Just before nightfall, the sailors spot a light on the horizon. They send a team to explore the mysterious source of this light and find a gruesome scene. A man lies in the snow, covered in blood. His campsite and sled are torn to pieces, and only his sled dogs are unharmed. The captain hurriedly orders his sailors to take the man back to the ship, fueled by the grim warning that someone or something is after him. Upon arriving at the marooned vessel, the man is brought into the captain’s quarters, where he begins to narrate his life story. During this time, a tall, dark figure dressed in rags approaches the ship. The sailors load their guns and begin to shoot at the creature, who eventually falls beneath the ice. The men assume that whatever was after this lost traveler has perished, but they soon find they are mistaken.

The man whom I assume you all have concluded by now is Victor Frankenstein, and the “Thing” stalking him is Frankenstein’s monster. The story begins with Victor as a young boy learning from his father, who is a renowned surgeon. The film then jumps to Victor in his twenties, giving a speech to a board of scientists as well as students of a college. His goal is to prove to the board that it is scientifically possible to bring someone back from the dead. His display, though successful, is not taken well by the professors; however, one man approaches him after and offers him a deal. Victor and the man, Henrich Harlander, meet at his mansion and strike a deal that provides Victor with funding and materials to successfully create a living creature using body parts from the local recently deceased. Weeks pass, but Victor is unable to find a way to bring his monster to life. However, when he finally succeeds. Henrich reveals to Victor that he is dying and wants Victor to place his brain inside the creation. Victor refuses, and although Henrich attempts to fight Victor, he instead slips on the wet tile (a cinematic thunderstorm is occurring to set the mood). Henrich falls down the inconveniently placed hole in the middle of the laboratory and subsequently dies. He attempts to bring his monster to life with electricity from the thunderstorm overhead, but his efforts seem unsuccessful. However, when he wakes up the following morning, he finds his creature, whom he thought lifeless, standing at the foot of his bed. At first, Victor makes an effort to get the creature to learn about the world around it, and in the beginning, it works. The creature learns to use Victor’s name, which thoroughly stokes his ego. It seems like Victor and his creature are beginning to form a bond, but Victor soon brings the creature into the depths of his laboratory and shackles him out of fear. In the days following, Victor becomes increasingly frustrated with the creature’s lack of progress and begins to show violence and aggression towards his creation. Some time later, William (Victor’s brother)  and Elizabeth (Henrich’s niece)  pay Victor a visit in search of Henrich. Victor first makes it seem like the experiment was a failure; however, Elizabeth soon discovers the creature in the basement. She begins to befriend the creature through kindness instead of aggression, but is quickly pulled away by Victor, claiming the creature is dangerous. When night falls, Elizabeth ignores Victor and visits the creature once more. Elizabeth and William depart the laboratory the following morning, and Victor begins to grapple with the gravity of his actions. Victor decides to destroy the monster, and he douses the entire laboratory in gasoline he somehow acquired and promptly lights the structure on fire. Elizabeth conveniently has a bad feeling and orders the carriage back to the laboratory, which, upon arrival, finds Victor on the ground, missing his leg and sporting a head injury. This then dramatically ends the first part of the movie. 

Overall, the visuals were quite impressive, but there is a point I want to address before I continue. I found it incredibly interesting that neither William nor Elizabeth cared about the death of Henrich. They simply continued their lives with no question and instead focused on events that unfolded regarding the creature. This makes sense, seeing that the film focuses on the monster and Victor; however, this seems like a bit of an unnecessary plot hole. 

Conveniently, just as soon as Victor finishes his side of the story, there is a knock on the cabin door. Victor’s monster awaits just outside the cabin. Victor and the Captain seem to be the only people on the face of this Earth who are shocked at this occurrence because this was incredibly predictable. Instead of becoming violent (because it’s not like the monster has been trying to kill Victor), the creature begins to tell his side of the story. What unfolds is a scene that can only be described as resembling group therapy as the monster and Victor begin to discuss their issues in front of the Captain, who is clearly questioning his judgment and regretting his choices to host a family intervention in his private quarters. I recognize that not many of you would like to read the full synopsis of the rest of the movie, so I will begin my analysis here. However, if you do find yourself wanting to indulge, I encourage you to watch the film yourself to find out how this riveting tale ends.

This adaptation of Frankenstein was one of the better films I’ve seen in a while. I’m not going to pretend like I’ve watched any other adaptations of the novel or that I’ve even been watching many movies lately, but you can’t really blame me when everything on Netflix is incredibly subpar. The visuals are nothing short of stunning, and it is clear that true effort was put into the prosthetics and makeup of this film instead of relying on the heavy usage of CGI or AI, which has recently emerged in the movie industry. I appreciated the humanity that was given to Frankenstein’s monster in this film. People usually associate the words “monster” or “creature” with something evil; however, in this adaptation, Frankenstein’s monster was simply depicted as a creature whose only desire in the world was to have a friend to help escape the loneliness of eternal life. This film immerses the audience in situations of nuance and the cruel nature of mankind when faced with the unknown. I am unsure how accurate the portrayal was compared to the book, but if I were to judge on storyline and effects alone, I would give it a 9/10. Although the film does sport a couple of plot holes and cliché moments, I believe it is impossible to avoid these faults, no matter how good the movie may be.  Despite this, Frankenstein sports impressive visuals and makes for an intriguing story about the shortcomings of humanity and the raw loneliness of those cast from society.