Tuesday, May 19, 2026

Venice: Guillermo del Toro’s “Frankenstein” Debuts with a Disappointing 78% Rating, Netflix’s Oscar Choice

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I’m very surprised that “Frankenstein” isn’t a monster.

In Venice, Guillermo del Toro’s long awaited film for Netflix has met with mixed reviews.

So far it’s at 78% with 18 reviews posted. Stars Oscar Isaac and Jacob Elordi are being praised, as well as the production. But something is wrong in the telling of the story.

Oscar winner del Toro is one of my favorite all time directors. He rarely makes a mistake. Plus, Netflix was counting on this one for its Oscar chances this season.

“Frankenstein” definitely seems polarizing among the critics. Some lavish praise but Variety did not. They said:” Gorgeous as it may be, the entire film feels as if we’re watching through a peephole. Strangely, [Dan] Laustsen’s wide-angle lenses make “Frankenstein” feel smaller, when the point was conceivably to squeeze more image into every frame.”

Whatever. I’m looking forward to this eagerly.

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Roger Friedman
Roger Friedmanhttps://www.showbiz411.com
Roger Friedman is the founder and editor-in-chief of Showbiz411. He wrote the FOX411 column on FoxNews.com from 1999 to 2009 and previously edited Fame magazine and wrote the "Intelligencer" column at New York magazine. His bylines have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, the New York Daily News, the New York Post, Vogue, Details, and the Miami Herald. He is a voting member of the Critics Choice Awards (Film and Television branches), and his movie reviews are tracked by Rotten Tomatoes. is articles have appeared in dozens of publications over the years including New York Magazine, where he wrote the Intelligencer column in the mid 90s and covered the OJ Simpson trial, and Fox News (when it wasn't so crazy) where he covered Michael Jackson. With D.A. Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus, he co-produced the 2002 documentary "Only the Strong Survive," which screened at Directors' Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival.

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