Frankenstein and the imperative of love

Del Toro’s excellent retelling of the Gothic classic.

By: Eva Larrabee, Special to the Star

On Halloween night, film director Guillermo del Toro (left) hosted a screening and Q&A of his new film "Frankenstein" at the TCL Chinese Theater in Hollywood. (Arthur Vartanian for the Valley Star)

Haunting, gothic and visually stunning, Guillermo del Toro's 2025 adaptation of Frankenstein captures a heartbreaking story of grief, tragedy and love. 

Del Toro has shared that this has been a passion project of his for years now. It is shown clearly throughout the movie how the integrity of the original novel has been upheld while developing into del Toro's personal style.

There are some differences between the novel and the movie. Most notably, in Mary Shelley's novel, Victor had loving parents and a happy childhood, which juxtaposes the movie's depiction of Victor having a neglectful and abusive father. 

Victor's upbringing creates a diversion from the original regarding why he treats the creature as he does. Del Toro's version highlights the cycles of abuse, using Victor's cruel father as a parallel to his own cruel actions. By being exposed to a harsh, demanding way of learning, Victor is destined to follow in his father's footsteps, as both their creations were born out of pride, not love.

A common misconception I've seen about Frankenstein's end goal is that he is attempting to create life, and while that sentiment is not inherently wrong, it erases the pivotal moment in shaping Victor's obsession with life: his mother's death. Victor does not want to create life; he wants to cheat death.   

Due to Victor's repulsion and disregard for the monster, the creature takes his first steps into the world, curious and struggling to decipher who he is and why he was created. We see through his perspective the lack of autonomy he has over himself. The monster learns language and emotions by lurking in the shadows of a family's home. As the monster grows, his desire for companionship grows. The hatred towards his creator is fueled by the realization that he cannot die, but he cannot live either. 

The relationship between Victor and the creature alludes to the Book of Genesis as Victor takes on a God like power and the creature represents the creation of Adam. The monster initially identifies with Adam, as he is innocent and alone in the world. As the film progresses, the Adam character type slowly fades into resembling Satan, the fallen angel. Like God to Satan, Victor casts out his creation. 

 The film's cinematographer — Dan Lausten — and del Toro “ built the film around a stylized contrast of “amber and steel blue”. The amber created a fire effect, and the steel blue acted as contrast, coming in from the background, escaping a monochromatic look, and highlighting a constant contrast in lighting.

The symbolism of red is introduced with Victor's mother, who is shown wearing red gowns throughout Victor's childhood. After her death, red is linked to Victor and his growing obsession with life and death. 

Guillermo del Toro's “Frankenstein” is an excellent adaptation of the classic novel, as it not only brings to life the heart of Mary Shelley's story but also adds a modern style with a talented cast to create the emotional depth necessary to truly capture the essence of Frankenstein.