TIFF 2025 Review: Frankenstein

Guillermo del Toro the king of crafting monsters with soul finally brings his lifelong dream project to life with Frankenstein. The man behind The Shape of Water, Pan’s Labyrinth, and Pinocchio has always had a thing for the misunderstood and the magical, and this one feels like the most personal of them all.

Jacob Elordi takes on the role of the Creature, and honestly, it’s unlike anything we’ve seen from him before. He’s haunting but also heartbreaking, he’s a creation that’s terrifying on the outside yet painfully human underneath. Opposite him, Oscar Isaac as Victor Frankenstein is intense, layered, and full of the kind of obsession that makes your skin crawl. Together, they carry this twisted, emotional dance of creator and creation that feels almost… spiritual.

And because it’s del Toro, of course, it’s visually insane. The gothic set pieces, the candlelit labs, the eerie sense of loneliness hanging in every shot – it’s all pure cinematic art. Every detail feels deliberate, from the creature’s fragile movements to the weight of guilt in Victor’s eyes.

But what makes Frankenstein so powerful isn’t the horror component, but the emotional layer underneath the characters. Del Toro doesn’t just reimagine Mary Shelley’s story, he brings his version to life. Beneath all the monsters and madness, this film is about grief, love, and the desperate need to be seen for who we really are.

This is del Toro at his best, This is del Toro at his best, breathtaking and bringing you to his world where we see him bringing the immersive worlds together by showing monsters and they’re mirrors of our own humanity. Frankenstein is proof of his gift for turning darkness into something deeply moving.

Watch the trailer for Frankenstein below

Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein arrives in select theaters on October 17, 2025  before the Netflix premiere on November 7, 2025