This is Frankesnstein This is Frankenstein. This film is as likely as we will ever get to a version of Mary Shelley's novel. The acting is good and the scenery is fantastic. It captures the pathos of the novel perfectly. 10 stars.
Very good adaptation of the Mary Shelley story Generally faithful interpretation of the original Mary Shelley story, except with a focus on the dramatic/tragic aspect and less on the vengeance/horror aspect.
Luke Goss' facial expressions and voice do a job of acting a sensitive Creature, whose evil side was only born in response to humanity completely rejecting him.
I thought Nicole Lewis did a great job acting the Elizabeth role. This is a demure, saintly role, and some people might not like the degree of restraint necessary in this role as Ms. Lewis plays it, but I thought she hit it just right. In this film Elizabeth is not one-dimensional, but shows some spirit and rightly wonders what Victor is up to. The Creature's encounter with Elizabeth at the end is one of the great tragic moments of story telling.
It is difficult for a video to fully convey the many and deep themes in the story, as it must show more than tell, but, strangely enough, my favorite version of the story is the new Frankenstein: The Musical (Music by Mark Baron, Book & Lyrics by Gary P. Cohen & Jeff Jackson). The lyrics sing the themes to music that for the most part powerfully resonates the emotions. The concept album is now out of print. Hopefully a new cast version will be available soon.
It wasn't until I was over 50 years old that I learned that the Frankenstein story is more than the silly monster story that it had become in caricature. Now I believe it is a rich drama/horror/tragedy story.
Victor Frankenstein has everything, in terms of bringing happiness to one's life. Yet he loses everything, in obsessive pursuit of scientific discovery, to which he then fails to take responsibility for the consequences, and so the consequences come back to haunt him. Brilliant scientist, but poor on scientific ethics. What a great story!
Most Accurate Version By Far; but that doesn't make it a Masterpiece When it all comes down to it, the first of the two Frankenstein films released in 2004, is by far the most accurate version of the story ever told. But, that doesn't make it a winner. Lacking the emotion and spectacle of films like Kenneth Branagh's Frankenstein, (which is unfairly criticized), Frankie (2004), by Hallmark Entertainment, really has only one good thing going for it; its accuracy toward the book. The cast is good, the scenery is well photographed, and Director Kevin Connor's goal of trying to display the humanity of the Monster is accomplished, which could be considered another good thing. The definitive companion to Dracula (2006), Frankenstein (2004), with Luke Goss, Alec Newman, Julie Deply, William Hurt, and Donald Sutherland, awaits another companion, as far as the big three (Dracula, Frankenstein's Monster, and the Wolf Man)goes, until Joe Johnston's The Wolf Man is released in 2009, in order to complete the 21st Century edition of the classic monster Trinity.
Good Points And Bad Points - Nothing Monstrous I am not ordinarily a fan of horror-type films but my wife is so, when we saw that this version of Frankenstein was a Hallmark production, we decided to give it a try. For the most part, we were impressed - particularly with the depiction (and performance) of the Creature and with the apparent fidelity to Mary Shelley's book. Much more of a melodrama with occasional horror touches, interspersed with bits of philosophy. The production looked good with the Slovakian locations especially impressive. Some of the first part did seem to drag a bit but Kevin Connor's direction was his usual reliable stuff. The acting, as often happens on these big productions, was rather uneven. I'm not convinced Alec Newman is a strong enough actor to carry a three hour-plus film. But Luke Goss as the very gothic Creature certainly got the viewers' emotions involved.
Overall, quite a good production. I'm glad we sat and watched it (in a single sitting) but there are a few irritating aspects about the production that would make me hesitate to sit through it again. The non-stop background music is frequently unnecessary, intrusive, and not very good. And Nicole Lewis's whiny little girly voice grew progressively annoying - so much so that we actually welcomed her demise. Other bits simply made me wonder: such as what was the great French actor Jean Rocheforte doing in this and why did William Hurt have a German accent when no one else did?
Still, it's probably the best, or at least most faithful, film version of Frankenstein so far. Entertaining without being scary. But there were still a few moments during its running time when I found myself wishing for just a tiny bit of light relief from Marty Feldman.
Good Movie! I am an English Teacher, and my students and I enjoyed watching the film. It did not contain excessive violence. The actor playing the creature had a very weak voice. The creature referring to Victor as father was creepy. It was a good movie. I would recommend it to other teachers.
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