“I will make you bleed. I will make you humble. You may be my creator, but from this day forward, I will be your master.”
While there never has been—and likely never will be—an adaptation that comes close to the beauty of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Guillermo del Toro’s recent interpretation of her work comes remarkably close. It is, without question, a bold undertaking to give new life (see what I did there) to this precursor of modern sci-fi, and aside from a few low-budget CGI moments, del Toro delivered.
There are noticeable deviations from the original story, the most significant being the change in time and setting, taking place not in Germany but in England, some sixty years later, allowing the tone to lean darker and more Victorian. There are also adjustments to the characters themselves, such as a reduction in cast, omitting the servant framed and executed for William’s murder and Henry Clerval, Victor’s friend, who appears to be somewhat blended with William. This narrowing, however, allows for a greater focus on Victor, the creature, and Victor’s severe upbringing. Likewise, the transformation of Elizabeth’s role from fiancée to sister-in-law invites a broader connection with some viewers, particularly those who relate to or recognize the untraditional forms of love and belonging that Shelley’s work and other gothic works often explore.
“My place was never in this world. I sought and longed for something I could not quite name. But in you, I found it. To be lost and to be found, that is the lifespan of love. And in its brevity, its tragedy… this has been made eternal. Better this way… to fade… with your eyes gazing upon me.”
Despite these variations, the story’s core thematic vision remains. Del Toro, after all, has admitted to a lifelong obsession with the story and Boris Karloff’s portrayal in the classic 1931 film. His choice of cast further proves his intent to make his film more a tribute than a recreation. While gory and unmistakably gothic, it still possesses Shelly’s original idea of creation, ambition, and the nature of humanity, yet del Toro also poses the question: what does it mean to live, if we can never truly die?
Without revealing the final moments of this adaptation, it’s clear that del Toro’s themes are deeply rooted in the legacy of emotional damage, abandonment, and even empathy and forgiveness.
“You will go now, creator. Fade away. It will all be but a brief moment. My birth. My grief. Your loss. I will not be punished, nor absolved. What hope I had, what rage… It is all nothing. The tide that brought me here now comes to take you away. Leaving me stranded.”
Guillermo del Toro reimagines Mary Shelley’s classic tale of a brilliant but egotistical scientist whose daring experiment to create life unleashes a monstrous creature, ultimately leading to the undoing of both the creator and his tragic creation.
