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Oscar-winning director Guillermo del Toro brings his distinctive vision in his adaptation of Mary Shelley’s genre-defining novel Frankenstein (1818) — the story of Victor Frankenstein (Oscar Isaac), a brilliant but egotistical scientist, who brings the Creature (Jacob Elordi) to life in a monstrous experiment. Del Toro has been fascinated by the Creature since his childhood in Mexico. His cinematic retelling of the classic of the same name is releasing on Netflix on November 7. The film delves into timeless questions of what it means to be human and what it means to be misunderstood as both a creator and a creature, or, a father and a son.
Frankenstein is regarded as a natural follow-up to del Toro’s Pinocchio (2022), recipient of the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. The writer-director, who made his debut with Spanish-language vampire tale Cronos (1993), is known for his visually stunning magical stories such as Hellboy (2004), Pan’s Labyrinth (2006) and The Shape of Water (2016) as well as for a nuanced portrayal of monsters, demons and similar entities. In an exclusive interview, del Toro talks about his fascination with monsters, why he favours human craftsmanship over digital effects and the casting of Frankenstein’s leads. Excerpts:
Watching a 35 mm print of Frankenstein at The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) was a fantastic visual experience. Now that the audience is going to experience this classic story the way you imagined it. What are your thoughts?
For a movie to land either the way, or better than, you wanted it, is rare. In my life, I’ve done 13 movies. I’ve been at it for 30 years. This is the one movie I believe that landed exceeding the expectations that I have had for a long time. For me, it marks the end of a certain stylistic era. I want to move to something different, but every movie I’ve made, including Pan’s Labyrinth, Crimson Peak (2015) and The Shape of Water, led to the style that is enacted on Frankenstein. It’s a culmination for me (stylistically). So, it feels a little bit like joyful postpartum depression.
You have chosen to tell the story from two different perspectives — Victor Frankenstein and the Creature. Is this something you always wanted to do?
Yes, the surprise element of hearing the same story from a different point of view was there for me from the beginning, decades ago. What is beautiful for me is that where and how it happens in the movie, is very effective. Right when the creator thinks it has killed the Creature, the Creature, which evidently is alive, says, ‘Now, let me tell you my story.’ And you have the chance, one hour into the movie, for the audience to say, ‘Oh, I have never heard that before.’ It’s a beautiful setup for a powerful, intimate punch at the end of the movie that makes you understand this is a family drama as much as it is an epic horror movie.
How did you choose Oscar Isaac and Jacob Elordi, the two lead actors, for the film?
Oscar and I met one afternoon and I said I’m going to write my Victor for you. He has that vulnerability and raging sort of charisma — a combination that makes it unique for Victor. The accident of the schedules that made Andrew Garfield (who was supposed to play the Creature earlier) leave the production and gave us the tide of time that brought Jacob Elordi to a role that is impossible for me now to imagine with anyone else. That, frankly, shows once and for all what a great actor Jacob is.
Accidents in movies do happen after you prepare a lot. Accidents are desirable. The movie is talking to you and you should listen. I was never afraid of the recasting. I felt if Andrew was leaving, it was sad, but I was sure we would find somebody absolutely fabulous for the role, and we did.
What is your fascination with creatures and also turning the concept, the way we understand creatures, demons or monsters, on its head?
In the movies, I always sided with the monsters because I find them more interesting than humans. Humans are pedestrians. I found the monsters more fascinating and pure. A monster is never going to fool you. You see the monster, you know what it is. You don’t think Godzilla is going to tiptoe around your garden gnomes, you know? But a person can look decent and well-groomed, but be a horrible human being. So, I like that monsters wear their imperfections openly. I find it refreshing to meet creatures that are who they represent to be. So, I have always had a great fondness for monsters. They became magical religious figures for me.
Is there a message that you want to send out through the story of Frankenstein?
My interpretation of the tale is that it is possible to exist and co-exist with imperfections and that a desirable virtue is forgiveness. I recall Luis Buñuel, the filmmaker, saying that as he aged, he realised that the only true virtue is kindness. We are very much into an unkind world right now. So, I think the movie is timely.
Frankenstein is a celebration of craftsmanship and practical effects. How important is it to opt for that at a time when we are facing the challenges of AI?
Anything virtual is useless for me. I find it profoundly moving when one sees a movie where the set is real, the costumes are handmade and everything has been fabricated, aged by human hands or when you see a miniature being blown up for real, instead of digital explosions. There is a sense of pride and beauty to human craftsmanship that I think elevates the effort into opera or art. People do notice the difference and they feel it. Humanity is what makes art moving. The brushstrokes of Van Gogh and the thickness of the paint tell you a human made it. It is the same with a film.
