Share this
Lisa Frankenstein is out, and if you love John Hughes and Tim Burton, this may be the film you have been waiting for. The latest from the mind of Diablo Cody and directed by Zelda Williams, stars Kathryn Newton as Lisa, a tormented high school senior who is forced into an unloving household after the brutal murder of her mother.
The film also stars Cole Sprouse as “The Creature,” Liza Soberano as Lisa’s step-sister Taffy, Jaret Chrest as her father, and Carla Gugino as her evil stepmother Janet. I truthfully chose to go into this film as blindly as possible, not having watched any trailers and only seeing the poster, so I was not sure what it was about other than retelling the classic tale of Frankenstein. What I got was an incredibly dark comedy made precisely for my soul.
Read Also: ‘Mean Girls’ – Occasionally Stumbles But Is Nostalgic and Fresh
The film is filled with awkward yet dark humor as Kathryn Newton completely crushes Lisa’s role. Starting as this awkward and lost teenager, she blossoms into a bloodthirsty and full of romance teen once The Creature is shocked back to life by a storm one night. What works for me is Cole Sprouse hardly ever speaks a line and the clever use of finding random body parts and shocking him with a tanning bed won by Taffy adds to the layers of humor this film has to offer.
I understand this film may not be for everyone, and I admit the third act has some slight issues as they need to find a fitting ending for this story. Despite this, however, the gothic style setting, the cheesy overacting at times, and the color palette all work incredibly well. The only negative thing I have to say is this should have been released during Halloween as I do not think the right audience will find it until then.
All in all I found myself laughing and enjoying myself a lot and at no point did the story drag for me. This has the makings of a cult classic as it is literally John Hughes and Tim Burton having a child and this is the product. Do yourselves a favor and find time to watch this.
8/10 Cigars.
Thank you for reading my review! If you enjoyed this, come find me and my work at http://linktr.ee/hopsgeeknews.
