Here Is A Review of Netflix's Frankenstein

If you think Netflix cooked with The Elixir, then you should see Frankenstein. Over the years, we’ve known Frankenstein as the mindless creature lightning gave life to. But this time, we get something entirely different, something that will make you feel. Based on Mary Shelley’s classic, Netflix’s Frankenstein takes a haunting turn that doesn’t just appeal to your imagination but also touches your emotions.

Released on November 7, 2025, Frankenstein is Netflix’s latest masterpiece. It drips with fantasy, horror, and adventure. The film explores how man’s obsession with knowledge can become his curse. Directed and written by Guillermo Del Toro, the story stretches beyond science fiction and dives into something raw, a soul’s search for meaning.

Guillermo Del Toro doesn’t just direct this movie; he sculpts it. And he brings together a cast that feels too perfect for words, Mia Goth, Jacob Elordi, Oscar Isaac, Christoph Waltz, Felix Kammerer, and David Bradley. Together, they breathe new life into a tale we thought we already knew.

Premise

The story begins in 1857, when a Danish ship exploring the North Pole gets trapped in Arctic ice. The crew, led by Captain Anderson, finds a dying man, Baron Victor Frankenstein, and brings him aboard. Soon after, the ship is attacked by a creature with unimaginable strength and self-healing abilities. The creature demands Victor’s surrender, forcing Victor to recount how he brought it to life.

Victor’s story begins years earlier. His mother died giving birth to his younger brother, William, leaving Victor obsessed with conquering death. His father, a cruel and arrogant physician, pushed him deeper into that obsession, which he pursues to the extreme. Victor, after losing his position at the Royal College of Surgeons in Edinburgh for reanimating a corpse, He is approached by Henrich Harlander, a wealthy arms merchant plagued with his own health secrets.

Harlander offers Victor unlimited funding to continue his experiments. What follows is both fascinating and terrifying. Victor builds a body from pieces of the dead, soldiers, criminals, and strangers, determined to play God. He uses the energy from lightning to bring that creature to life.

At first, Victor sees it as a triumph. Then, as the creature grows and learns, it becomes something he can’t control. Out of fear, he burns his lab, leaving the creature to die in the flames. But the creature survives by escaping through the river.

Wandering through forests and snow, it finds refuge in the home of a family, where it lives within their walls and picks interest in a blind old man who teaches it how to read, speak, and feel human again. Those quiet moments, watching, learning, helping in secret, are among the most beautiful scenes I’ve ever seen in a horror film.

The family of the old man had left him as they decided to travel, this time the creature reveals itself to the old man, and there it learns forgiveness and sets out on a new path of life. By the time it reunites with Victor, it is no longer a mindless monster. It’s a being burdened by pain and self-awareness. It demands a companion. But Victor refuses. What follows is chaos, a wedding drenched in blood, a creator begging his creation for forgiveness, and a creature who just wants to understand what it means to live.

Casts and Performances

Mia Goth as Elizabeth

Mia Goth as Elizabeth is perfection. She plays William Frankenstein’s fiancée, a woman torn between compassion and duty. Her empathy for the creature is so sincere that you can feel it through her eyes. Mia has this rare ability to speak without words, every glance, every tremble in her voice says something profound. She carried the heart of the film on her shoulders, showing us that love and morality can coexist even in madness.

Christoph Waltz as Herr Henrich Harlander

Seeing Christoph Waltz appear thirty minutes into the movie was such a pleasant shock because he wasn’t in the trailers. He plays Herr Harlander, a dying millionaire who sees Victor’s experiment as his ticket to immortality. Christoph is always brilliant, but here he’s terrifyingly calm, the kind of man who smiles while plotting his survival. Even though his screen time is short, he leaves an unforgettable impression.

Jacob Elordi as The Creature (Frankenstein)

Jacob Elordi as the Creature is easily one of the best casting choices Netflix has ever made. I didn’t even realize it was him until the credits rolled. Under all that prosthetic makeup and altered voice, Jacob completely disappears into the role.

He doesn’t play the monster as a villain, he plays him as a wounded child in a man’s body. Every growl, every stare carries the ache of rejection. The moment he said his name for the first time broke something in me. I’ve watched Jacob in romantic and thriller roles, but this performance is something else. This is his career-defining role.

I felt Ethan Hawke in Black Phone 2 was a work of art, but Jacob as Frankenstein is the best horror creature I have reviewed.

Jacob Elordi as The Creature (Frankenstein)

Oscar Isaac as Victor Frankenstein

Oscar Isaac brings depth and chaos to Victor Frankenstein. He plays the scientist as both a genius and a fool, a man so consumed by ambition that he forgets his own humanity, with a terrifying level of pride on his shoulders. What makes Oscar’s performance unforgettable is how he convinces you to almost root for Victor even when you know he’s wrong.

Felix Kammerer as William Frankenstein

Felix played the role of Williams Frankenstein, the more stable and favoured child from the Frankenstein family, and the fiancé to Elizabeth. His role was quite important, he need not do much as most importantly dialogues were given to other actors. But he did not let his character suffer, he showed up for the character Williams, a quite refined and almost normal character.

David Bradley as the old blind man deserves his own standing ovation. His kindness cuts through the film’s darkness. His scenes with the creature are tender and warm. He doesn’t just teach Frankenstein how to read, he teaches him what it means to be loved without judgment. That warmth he brings reminds you that compassion can still exist in a world filled with fear.

What I Liked

Where do I start? Everything about Frankenstein is hauntingly beautiful. It reminded me of the first time I saw Interview With the Vampire. It’s poetic, brutal, and deeply emotional. Guillermo Del Toro turned what could have been a simple monster story into a cinematic confession about man’s need for control.

The cinematography is breathtaking. The lighting feels like its own character, the soft golden tones of life and the piercing blues of death. Every frame looks like a painting. Alexandre Desplat’s score deserves an award of its own. The music doesn’t just accompany the movie; it breathes with it.

Katie Hawley’s costume design is another highlight. Every detail, from the doctor’s stained gloves to Elizabeth’s laced gowns, adds authenticity to the time period. The production feels expensive, but not for the sake of showing off.

And then there’s the writing. The dialogue flows like poetry, sometimes slow and deliberate, other times bursting with emotion. The film has moments of silence that feel heavier than any line spoken. I found myself pausing just to absorb it all.

I also loved how Del Toro balanced both narratives, Victor’s madness and the creature’s sorrow. It’s rare to see both sides explored with equal care. You understand them both, and that’s the magic of it. I will not fail to mention the unique casting and how the casts did not fail to deliver, they did not let their names alone lure fans to watching, they did deliver to the fullest.

The movie Frankenstein had two plots, it was such a genius idea to let us see the world through Frankenstein’s eyes, it was a concept that played out very well. I honestly look forward to seeing more movies like this.

What I Didn’t Like

For all its brilliance, Frankenstein isn’t perfect. The ending, although poetic, lacks closure. It’s as if the film ran out of breath. You can’t help but feel the director realized the runtime had stretched too far and just wrapped it up. Unless there’s a Frankenstein II on the way, that final scene feels unfinished. Still, none of these flaws ruin the experience, it just leaves you wishing there was more.

Verdict

Frankenstein is the kind of film you wish you saw in theaters, loud, immersive, and visually stunning. Watching it on a big screen with surround sound would have been pure bliss. Netflix outdid themselves here, sparing no detail or budget to make every scene impeccable.

But calling it “horror” feels misleading. Yes, there’s blood, and yes, there’s death, but it’s not the kind of horror that makes you scream. It’s the kind that makes you think. The real horror here is loneliness, the feeling of being unwanted in a world that made you.

If you’re under 18, please skip it. The violence, nudity, and psychological weight make it strictly adult. But if you’re old enough and love stories that stir both your heart and your mind, this one’s worth every second.

My Rating

For everything that makes Frankenstein what it is, the stunning visuals, poetic writing, and unforgettable performances, it earns a solid 5 out of 5. It’s undoubtedly one of the best movies I’ve reviewed this year, and it’ll take something extraordinary to top it.

Our Rating of This Movie

Frankenstein is one movie that carries emotional depth. Once you’ve seen it let’s discuss who you think the real villain is. Is it the creature or man?

Author

Amarachi Ndukwe

Amarachi Ndukwe is a talented movie reviewer who knows how to make films easy to understand and fun to discuss. She shares her thoughts in a clear and engaging way, helping her readers see what makes each movie special. With a great eye for detail, she explains stories, themes, and characters in a way that anyone can enjoy.