Spoiler Alert / Mature Content: This review may include plot details and adult themes. Reader discretion is advised.

Guillermo del Toro has proven over and over again that he has a love of monsters. From weird fish-men who fall in love with a real girl (The Shape of Water), to a demon literally sent from hell (Hellboy), to ghosts and goblins of all shapes and sizes, he continues to show us that even the most grotesque creature can be beautiful, often pointing out that the “monsters” are far more human and relatable than the actual people shown on screen.

It’s the man’s passion—humanizing the weird and strange, the things that go bump in the night—and bringing us that much closer to mutual understanding.

From the moment I heard that del Toro was making his very own Frankenstein film (something he has wanted to do and has talked about for years), I was excited. Who better to bring the world first established by Mary Shelley back in 1818 than the man who literally has made creature features his life? I would argue there is no one.

Of course, there have been many takes on the material already; some of them have come close, but none have really captured the feel of the novel, at least not to me. Sure, they were good films—some of them even great (Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein from 1994 starring Robert De Niro and directed by Kenneth Branagh, I’m looking at you here)—but none of them grabbed me to the point where I said, “Bingo, this is it!” Until now.

Written and directed by Guillermo del Toro, Frankenstein 2025 is, in my opinion, a masterpiece. From the very first frame (a beautiful shot placing us stuck in the middle of the ice while the ship’s crew attempts to dig it out) to the closing moments, the film took us on a ride that was sometimes touching, sometimes visceral, tense, sad, and heart-wrenching.

We feel for every character at one point or another because this cast came to play, to bring this to life in a way we haven’t quite seen before. Led by Oscar Isaac and Jacob Elordi (as Victor and The Creature, respectively), who both turned in amazing performances, the cast was truly one for the ages. Mia Goth (as Elizabeth), Christoph Waltz (as Henrich), Felix Kammerer (as William Frankenstein), and Lars Mikkelsen (as Captain Anderson)—there wasn’t a weak spot in the bunch.

The film is broken up into two parts (Victor’s Tale and The Creature’s Tale), and if you’ve seen the meme where everyone is calm for part one, then explodes with joy at the beginning of part two, then you get a pretty good idea of how I acted in that moment sitting in the theater. I literally clapped when I saw “Part Two: The Creature’s Tale” appear on screen, a smile spreading across my face.

It was very much in line with the novel, and seeing it come to life brought me happiness that I can’t really explain. It just felt good to see in that moment. But this is a film with many moments like that, where not long after bringing us to the edge of our seats, del Toro hits one of our emotional buttons.

So, praise for the film. We have to start with Guillermo del Toro himself. He clearly put his heart and soul into every moment of this project. Every frame was a painting, every line of dialogue was a bar. He was meticulous with his color choices (he did an entire interview discussing the color theory of this film) and gave every character their own tones. His camera movement and musical choices kept my attention glued to the screen, wondering what he was going to show us next.

The set design was otherworldly. He set out to make a classic, and he nailed it in every way. There isn’t much more to say than this: this was a master at the top of his game, firing on all cylinders.

I mentioned Oscar Isaac and Jacob Elordi’s performances earlier, and honestly, they are something I could gush about for far too long, so I’ll try to make this quick.

Oscar Isaac took the character of a broken man driven by hubris, who continues to make the same mistakes as his father, and turned it into something we sometimes hated—but somehow kept us feeling for him in his times of sadness and self-reflection. It’s hard to describe how he took someone with so little redeeming qualities and made us care—but he did.

Jacob Elordi was also incredible. Bringing to life a monster who was little more than an overpowered child, just seeking the embrace and acceptance of a father who, after creating him, had little time for the nurturing part. No movement was wasted, and everything he did (before the Creature could speak) let us know exactly what was on his mind.

Their mind? It’s hard to say—the monster, after all, was many people. My point is, he made us feel all the feelings, and we actively rooted for him to simply be okay.

None of this is to take away from the rest of the cast. Everyone was at the top of their game, and the way each one played off the other—the way the relationships ebbed and flowed like an ocean—was a pleasure to see.

Mia Goth and Christoph Waltz were particularly great in their smaller roles. Goth was very important to basically every character in the movie, whether it be William, Victor, Henrich, or The Creature; she touched all of them. I’ve seen some chatter online about her being a weak link, and it’s completely untrue. If anything, she was the glue that held all of these people together so that by the time what happens, happens, we know there will be consequences.

Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein is, simply put, pure cinema. The fact that it is a Netflix movie should not make anyone steer clear of this film. It’s unfortunate that lately “a Netflix movie” means poor quality, but if anything, this movie proves that all it takes is a great filmmaker to make a great film. The platform doesn’t really matter when the chops are there.

I was happy Frankenstein got a limited release because this film deserved to be seen on the biggest screen possible. Hopefully, Netflix comes around in the future to give things like this the wide-release treatment they deserve.

If you were on the fence or saw something that made you question the validity of this movie, you need not worry. Call your local theater and see if they have it—the big screen is where it should be seen. If you can’t do that, it’s now on Netflix, and it will cost you nothing (if you have a subscription) to sit down for a little over two hours and be entertained. To be mesmerized.

Frankenstein is one of the greatest films of the year, in a year that has already given us so many hits. It will be nominated for many things, and I’m almost sure it will win most of them. So run, don’t walk, and watch a modern classic. You’ll be happy that you did.

In the words of the Creature:

“Rest now, Father. Perhaps now, we can both be human.”

Beautiful.