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MOVIES FRANKENSTEIN Directed
by Kenneth Branagh,
Quick
Rating: *** This was Kenneth Branagh's vision to create a Frankenstein movie that was more consistent with the literary source. And for the most part, he succeeds. A captain searching for the north pole ends up stranded when his ship hits an iceberg. He encounters a man who seems to be mad, but he listens to the man's story of ambition and consequences. The man is Victor Frankenstein. He grew up in Geneva, and went on to medical school, where his desire to push the envelope of science was not appreciated. He questioned the difference between life and death, and greatly wanted to bring life to that which was dead. This was a deep-seeded desire, after the death of his mother during childbirth some years earlier. He finds a mentor, one who also pushed this same envelope, but stopped after his experiments yielded an abomination. After his death, Victor follows in his footsteps, finishing his experiments, and eventually creates a living creature from dead materials. Victor realizes he had made a mistake and returns home to his family and his adopted sister / fiancé, Elizabeth. Their sibling/spouse relationship is a little overplayed, as they seem to mention it each time they are together. Anyway, the results of Victor's experiments - the monster - still lives, trying to piece together a life, although he is attacked and ridiculed everywhere he is seen. He decides to find his father (Victor) and get revenge for creating him. Branagh is very good as Victor, and DeNiro is great as the monster. The other acting is very good too. Some gaps in story and some scenes passed over quickly while others seemed to drag, but overall it was an enjoyable and well-done movie. He stayed closer to the book, and the themes from it are very prevalent. Worth a watch for both fans of classic horror and of classic literature. Quality: 7.0 Visuals:
6.0 Intensity: 5.5 reviewed
2004
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