Entertainment
Netflix’s Latest Sci-Fi Exclusive Is A Graphic, R-Rated Hot Mess You Can’t Stop Watching
By Chris Snellgrove
| Published
To me, the scariest phrase in the world might just be “Netflix exclusive;” because of this streamer, I’ve been burned countless times by some of the worst romances and reality shows the world has ever seen. However, the newest exclusive comes courtesy of superstar director Guillermo del Toro, and it adapts the very first sci-fi book in history to create a bold new take on one of pop culture’s most popular monsters. The film is Frankenstein (2025), and it’s a sexy, hot mess that you won’t be able to tear your eyes away from until the credits roll.
Feed My Frankenstein
The general premise of Frankenstein matches the book it is based on: a mad scientist manages to reanimate a corpse, effectively conquering death itself. But this Monster ends up being more than his maker can handle, a brute who just can’t be stopped by anyone who dares to stand against him. Together, maker and monster are on a collision course with one another, and their battle (as philosophical as it is physical) reveals hard truths about humanity, violence, cruelty, and what it means to truly be alive.
The cast of Frankenstein has plenty of killer genre actors, including Mia Goth (the scream queen best known for Pearl) as a woman fancied by both Dr. Frankenstein and his monster. Meanwhile, Jacob Elordi (best known for Euphoria) plays a monster who hides a poet’s soul beneath his scary face and scarier actions. Christopher Waltz (best known for Inglourious Basterds) plays the man who finances all of this mad science, without which Victor Frankenstein would never be able to complete his grisly experiment.
Somehow, Oscar Isaac Returned
All of these performances do amazing work, but nobody in Frankenstein is acting harder than Oscar Isaac (best known for The Force Awakens) as the title character, someone whose genius threatens to either reshape the world or destroy it. The film is a perfect showcase for this talented actor, and he brings this famous literary character to life like no other actor before him. Isaac gives Victor Frankenstein a passion as infectious as it is dangerous, helping us to understand both his insatiable need to create and his boundless capacity to destroy.
Behind the camera, director Guillermo del Toro is clearly having the time of his life with Frankenstein, a movie that feels like the culmination of a lifetime of work. This stunning literary adaptation is as visually sumptuous as Pan’s Labrynth and as transgressively sexy as The Shape of Water, making these literary characters as complex as they are relatable. On top of that, the movie feels deeply personal, but what else would you expect from a director who long ago put a huge Frankenstein head into his home, forcing him to stare at cinema’s most fascinating creature every single day?
Bringing Critics and Audiences To Life
When Frankenstein premiered on Netflix, critics’ collective verdict echoed that of the Monster’s manic creator: “it’s alive!” On Rotten Tomatoes, the movie has an 86 percent rating, with critics declaring that this Guillermo del Toro monster mash is a lavish visual feast that isn’t afraid to humanize cinema’s most infamous monster. That humanity comes courtesy of Jacob Elord, whom critics praised for a standout performance that lends crackling electric energy to a movie that isn’t afraid to tell the Monster’s side of the story.
Notably, Frankenstein has a Popcorn Rating of 95 percent, meaning that general audiences loved this modern horror masterpiece even more than the critics did. These audiences praised the movie for its stylishly gothic aesthetic and killer effects, both of which combine to make this one of the most visually striking films of the last decade. These audiences also commended the movie for its heartbreaking pathos, the kind that wrings wrenchingly earnest emotion out of what could have been just another creature feature.
It Was a Monster Mash(up)
Frankenstein is not a perfect film: it takes too long, for example, to tell a story whose tone whiplashes from frantic horror to romance to adventure and back again. These different sections of the movie are all directed with clear talent and passion, but they also make it seem like Guillermo del Toro was just throwing every idea he had onto the screen. At times, this can make Frankenstein feel like its title character: a bunch of different parts animated by the vision of a mad genius.
More often than not, though, Frankenstein works stunningly well, weaving powerful narratives that play out via the most gorgeous visuals. The film is almost distractingly beautiful, all while offering some of the most mesmerizing horror writing the genre has ever known. While the film may very well be a hodgepodge of del Toro’s craziest ideas, this monster of a movie has beauty and brains alike, offering a little something for every kind of filmgoer.
Will you agree that Frankenstein is a hot mess of sexy actors and brooding plot, or will this movie leave you as cold as a cadaver? You won’t know until you stream this Netflix exclusive for yourself and see what the hype is all about. In my always humble opinion, it’s the most provocative horror film of the last five years, and one that proves that Guillermo del Toro is still the most reliably ambitious director of the entire genre.
