{"id":6384,"date":"2025-11-25T11:00:41","date_gmt":"2025-11-25T10:00:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog?p=6384"},"modified":"2025-11-25T12:17:35","modified_gmt":"2025-11-25T11:17:35","slug":"frankenstein-2025-a-visual-masterpiece-or-a-heartless-shell","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/frankenstein-2025-a-visual-masterpiece-or-a-heartless-shell\/?lang=en","title":{"rendered":"Frankenstein 2025. A Visual Masterpiece or a Heartless Shell?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/56_Frankenstein_03._2-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"Guillermo del Toro\" class=\"wp-image-6370\" srcset=\"https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/56_Frankenstein_03._2-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/56_Frankenstein_03._2-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/56_Frankenstein_03._2-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/56_Frankenstein_03._2.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Guillermo del Toro has claimed for years that <em>Frankenstein <\/em>would be his opus magnum. The November premiere brought a spectacular work, but does it fulfil the high hopes placed upon it? As printing and literature enthusiasts, we took a close look at this production.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" style=\"font-size:24px\"><strong>A Gothic Fairytale in Colour<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Del Toro offers a vision far removed from Gothic gloom. Instead of dirt and greyness, the director serves a visual feast full of saturated colours and strong contrasts. Particularly striking is the vivid red of the blood, which is almost hypnotic against the cooler scenery, and the character of Elisabeth\u2014heavily stylised, appearing almost as if lifted from Pre-Raphaelite paintings.  <br><br>It is worth appreciating that most of the set design was actually built, which seems a rarity in the age of ubiquitous CGI. However, the specific, \u2018soft\u2019 lighting sometimes makes these impressive film sets lose their authenticity. The \u2018fairytale realism\u2019 that worked so perfectly in <g id=\"gid_0\">Pan&#8217;s Labyrinth<\/g> is missing here. There, magic mixed with the mud of war; here, the sterility of the image occasionally builds a distance between the viewer and the story.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" style=\"font-size:24px\"><strong>Jacob Elordi as the Monster \u2013 Statuesque Melancholy<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The greatest challenge of any adaptation is visualising the Creature. Del Toro, aware of the pop-culture legacy of Boris Karloff weighing on the project, decided to break with the image of the lumbering monster. <br><br>Jacob Elordi in the role of the Monster is an intriguing creation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li style=\"margin-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--50);margin-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--50)\"><strong>His character arouses fascination rather than disgust<\/strong>\u2014the make-up exposes the joins and stitches, yet the Creature\u2019s body is almost statuesque.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li style=\"margin-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--50);margin-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--50)\"><strong>He recalls the performance of Rory Kinnear<\/strong>\u2014fans of the series <em>Penny Dreadful<\/em> will spot the similarity in approach to the character: this is an intelligent, melancholic being.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li style=\"margin-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--50);margin-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--50)\"><strong>He can also be pure fury<\/strong>\u2014when the Monster loses his composure, melancholy gives way to destructive power.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>It is in this character that the attempt to return to the roots and erase the stereotype of the \u2018stupid monster\u2019 cemented in the cinema of the 1930s is most visible. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" style=\"font-size:24px\"><strong>Action vs Philosophy. Where Did Mary Shelley\u2019s Spirit Go? <\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Although the 2025 <em>Frankenstein <\/em>tries to be faithful to the book regarding the Creature\u2019s intellect, Hollywood has claimed its rights. The film suffers from unnecessary insertions straight out of superhero cinema. Scenes where the Monster tears people apart with his bare hands and charges like the Hulk clash with the subtle fabric of a story about rejection.  <br><br>Nevertheless, moral dilemmas are present here. They resonate most strongly in the Creature\u2019s relationship with the Blind Man. The scene in which the old man speaks the words \u201cyou are my friend\u201d is one of the few moments where visual opulence gives way to pure emotion. Equally moving is the sequence in which the being asks Victor to create a companion\u2014here we hear most clearly the echo of the questions Mary Shelley posed: <em>who is truly the monster here?<\/em>   <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" style=\"font-size:24px\"><strong>A Detail that Delights: Books and Journals<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>As print specialists, we could not take our eyes off the props. The physical journals of Victor Frankenstein (played by Oscar Isaac) were crafted with extraordinary reverence. We see distressed bindings, yellowed paper, and complicated handwritten notes. The old anatomical plates look equally impressive. This is proof that the <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog?p=3764\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/?p=3764\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">physical book remains a powerful symbol of knowledge.<\/a><\/strong>    <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" style=\"font-size:24px\"><strong>Verdict: A Spectacle Without a Heart?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Has Guillermo del Toro delivered the <em>Frankenstein <\/em>of all time? Unfortunately, it seems the final result does not quite match the ambitions. The film is visually stunning, but in this riot of colour, the relationships between the characters have been lost somewhere. The triangle of Victor\u2013Elisabeth\u2013Monster often remains simply cold.   <br><br>For lovers of the classics, the 1994 version (with Robert De Niro) remains the unsurpassed benchmark. However, for younger generations, Rory Kinnear\u2019s interpretation and the <em>Frankenstein <\/em>plotline from <em>Penny Dreadful<\/em> will feel more \u2018alive\u2019. Del Toro gave us a beautiful picture but forgot that what is most important in <em>Frankenstein <\/em>is invisible to the eye.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Del Toro promised a masterpiece, but his Frankenstein is full of contradictions. Beneath the stunning colours and stylisation, is there Mary Shelley\u2019s spirit, or just a hollow shell?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":6385,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[80],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6384","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-videos"],"rttpg_featured_image_url":{"full":["https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/56_Frankenstein_03._2.jpg",1200,900,false],"landscape":["https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/56_Frankenstein_03._2.jpg",1200,900,false],"portraits":["https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/56_Frankenstein_03._2.jpg",1200,900,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/56_Frankenstein_03._2-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/56_Frankenstein_03._2-300x225.jpg",300,225,true],"large":["https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/56_Frankenstein_03._2-1024x768.jpg",1024,768,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/56_Frankenstein_03._2.jpg",1200,900,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/56_Frankenstein_03._2.jpg",1200,900,false]},"rttpg_author":{"display_name":"Gabriel Augustyn","author_link":"https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/author\/gaugustyn\/"},"rttpg_comment":0,"rttpg_category":"<a href=\"https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/category\/videos\/?lang=en\" rel=\"category tag\">Videos<\/a>","rttpg_excerpt":"Del Toro promised a masterpiece, but his Frankenstein is full of contradictions. Beneath the stunning colours and stylisation, is there Mary Shelley\u2019s spirit, or just a hollow shell?","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6384","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6384"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6384\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6389,"href":"https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6384\/revisions\/6389"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6385"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6384"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6384"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/booksfactory.pl\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6384"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}