Guillermo Del Toro is finally back. The man was once a household name, known for his films featuring bizarre and artistic creature designs, such as Blade II, Pacific Rim, and Pan’s Labyrinth. However, he went through a rough patch in the mid-to-late 2010s, during which it seemed as if all his developing projects were being scrapped. Aside from The Shape of Water in 2017, which was his only movie during this time period, all his other projects, including Justice League Dark, his sequel to Pacific Rim, and the horror game Silent Hills, were all cancelled after being in development for some time. However, it now seems he is back on track with Netflix, making artistic passion projects. He won Best Animated Feature awards for his take on Pinocchio, and he will surely win awards for his most recent work, Frankenstein.

The story of Frankenstein has been adapted numerous times over the last century, but none like this. Del Toro’s vision oozes with passion, which makes sense considering he’s such a fan of Frankenstein that he has a giant head of Frankenstein’s Monster in his house. The performances of the two leads were astonishing. Oscar Issac was perfectly cast as the slimiest and most selfish version of Doctor Victor Frankenstein imaginable, whom you will love to hate. The tragic performance by Jacob Elordi as The Creature is so impressive that it will be infuriating if he does not receive Academy Award nominations for it. Elordi was perfect for the role, which is ironic because he replaced Andrew Garfield, who dropped out due to scheduling conflicts. The outstanding set design, gorgeous costumes, and period setting all contribute to the feature's mythical, fantastical feel. I do not wish to go into further detail, as I wholeheartedly recommend you watch it as soon as possible.

This film would not have been perfect without Netflix's help. With Netflix's substantial financial resources, Guillermo Del Toro was able to create the movie he wanted to develop within the required budget. However, it feels like a disservice not to be able to see something so well-crafted in theaters. This raises a complex dilemma: whether straight-to-streaming films should be preferred over theatrical releases, or if this deprives someone of the theatrical experience. Obviously, a true film lover would prefer watching things in theaters. However, favoring streaming is understandable, given that theater chains overprice everything, and studios overproduce their expensive attempts at blockbusters and remakes, to the point where there’s sometimes nothing fresh and artistic to see. On the other hand, a large portion of streaming movies, especially Netflix, can be far more bland and soulless than those from big studios. Also, Netflix does release some of its films in theaters extremely limitedly, so there’s a decent counterbalance. The only thing that matters is that the creatives get recognition and proper pay for their work.

Ultimately, a film like this is why artistic vision is important. An artist who has struggled to bring his passion projects to life has finally gotten a chance to finalize one and prove why it was so important to him. Even though the theatrical experience is significant and an unfortunate loss to this film, especially, watching Frankenstein at all is both important to support Guillermo Del Toro and to witness an absolutely wonderful film.