132 min | PG-13 | October 17, 2025 | Netflix
Del Toro finally makes his Frankenstein and it’s gorgeous. Too bad most people will watch it on a phone.
Guillermo del Toro has wanted to make this film for decades. You can feel that obsession in every frame. The visuals are striking in a way that goes beyond “good cinematography.” Every set, every shadow, every carefully composed shot of the Creature moving through a world that hates him. This is a director pouring his entire aesthetic vocabulary into a single project. It shows.
Jacob Elordi delivers something I genuinely did not expect. The guy from Euphoria disappears completely into the Creature. He finds pathos without begging for sympathy. He finds rage without losing control. It’s physical and emotional work that demands respect. Christoph Waltz expands his range effortlessly into territory you didn’t know he had. Oscar Isaac brings something new and unseemly to Victor Frankenstein. Not the tortured genius. Something darker. Something more selfish and human. The three of them together create a triangle that makes this story feel urgent instead of dusty.
Netflix delivered a winner here. Full stop. But that’s also the tragedy. I saw this on a big screen and it deserves a big screen. Del Toro builds images meant to tower over you. The sound design needs a room, not earbuds. Next time a film this powerfully made comes along, most people will watch it on their phone flipped on its side during a lunch break. That’s the deal Netflix made with cinema. Great movies, shrunk to fit in your pocket. The film itself is a four-star achievement. The way most people will experience it is a loss.