Victor Frankenstein is a promising young doctor who, devastated by the death of his mother during childbirth, becomes obsessed with bringing the dead back to life. His experiments lead to the creation of a monster, which Frankenstein has put together with the remains of corpses. It's not long before Frankenstein regrets his actions.
Excellent version of an enduring classic
This is not a monster movie in any shallow slasher sense. It probes and contemplates some eternal questions humans have been pondering for thousands of years, set in a time when so many things we know today were yet unknown, adding to the mystery and horror of the situations that occurred. This movie has pathos, sumptuous sets, costumes and screenplay, some utterly disturbing scenes and ideas, and culminates in classic tragedy.
Gothic mania with Kenneth Branagh, Robert DeNiro and Helena Bonham Carter
Kenneth Branagh's 1994 version of the oft-filmed Frankenstein story was the most faithful to Mary Shelleys 1818 novel up to that point, which explains its name. It features fine actors and looks great (sets, costumes, locations, etc). There are several quality scenes, like the creature's time spent with the peasant family where his unseen help is taken for a "good spirit of the woods."
The first time I viewed the movie I was a little turned off by its manic style. People are introduced, scenes flash by, times shift and the soundtrack blares, which struck me as overdone. The characters seemed so melodramatic at times, emoting, yelling, running, confronting,...
Kenneth Branagh made quite an artistic hit with his first film HENRY V. Next, he had great critical and financial success with his popcorn flick,** DEAD AGAIN**! The success of both of those films meant he could take on any project he wanted. He chose MARY SHELLY'S FRANKENSTEIN. He would return to direct and star as Victor Frankenstein. He would bring along many of his friends including Patrick Doyle to add another aggressive and bombastic score. Because of his newfound clout, he was able to bring in Oscar winning screenwriter Frank Darabont (THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION, CRASH). Maybe his greatest display of the young directors status was bringing in Robert DeNiro to portray the creature! The resulting film with all of th...
This could have been a far better interpretation of the wonderful story of the man-monster but it lacks potency. Frequently a problem when one of the stars is also the director; the focus becomes a bit blurred and in this - despite the super performance of Robert de Niro in the title role - the result is a rather meandering story devoid of the usual swathe of emotions "Frankenstein" usually evokes. Aiden Quinn is "Walton" an explorer obsessed with reaching the North Pole. When his ship collides with an iceberg, they are stranded only to encounter "Victor" (Kenneth Branagh) who proceeds to regale them with his story of how he, as a brilliant student attempted to cheat death by creating a creature restored from death. The scientist succeeds, ...