By Irshad Khan 
Guillermo del Toro’s lifelong passion project Frankenstein premiered at the Venice Film Festival on August 30, 2025, receiving a thunderous 14-minute standing ovation that left both the Oscar-winning director and star Jacob Elordi visibly moved to tears. The Netflix-backed adaptation of Mary Shelley’s 1818 gothic masterpiece has earned widespread critical acclaim, with Rotten Tomatoes currently reporting an 86% “Certified Fresh” rating and Metacritic scoring it at 78/100. Critics are praising del Toro’s “epic-scale storytelling of uncommon beauty” and Elordi’s career-defining performance as the Creature, positioning the film as a major awards contender ahead of its limited theatrical release on October 17 and global Netflix debut on November 7.
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Venice Premiere: A 14-Minute Ovation and Emotional Triumph
The premiere of Frankenstein at Venice’s Sala Grande on August 30, 2025, became one of the festival’s most emotional moments when the audience erupted into sustained applause lasting nearly 14 minutes—one of the longest ovations in Venice Film Festival history. Both Guillermo del Toro and Jacob Elordi were visibly overwhelmed, with Elordi breaking down in tears as the crowd continued their standing ovation. The director, who previously won Venice’s prestigious Golden Lion in 2017 for The Shape of Water, described the moment as the culmination of a 30-year journey to bring his childhood dream to the screen.
During the festival press conference, del Toro shared: “It was a religion for me. Growing up in a deeply Catholic environment, I struggled to grasp the concept of saints. However, seeing Boris Karloff on screen revealed to me what a saint or messiah truly represented. I’ve been captivated by the creature since childhood and have always awaited the moment to create this film under the right circumstances.” The emotional reception validated del Toro’s decision to finally pursue his passion project with Netflix’s backing, marking what he called “the movie that I’ve been in training for 30 years to do.”
Critical Acclaim: “Epic-Scale Storytelling of Uncommon Beauty”
Frankenstein has received overwhelmingly positive critical reception, with Rotten Tomatoes reporting an 86% “Certified Fresh” rating based on 200 reviews. The site’s consensus reads: “Finding the humanity in one of cinema’s most iconic monsters, Guillermo Del Toro’s Frankenstein is a lavish epic that gets its most invigorating volts from Jacob Elordi’s standout performance.” Metacritic assigned the film a score of 78 out of 100, indicating “generally favorable reviews” from 44 critics.
The Hollywood Reporter’s David Rooney called it “one of del Toro’s finest, this is epic-scale storytelling of uncommon beauty, feeling and artistry,” praising the film as “not so much straight-up horror as tragedy, romance and a philosophical reflection on what it means to be human.” RogerEbert.com’s Glenn Kenny declared it “a breathtaking coup, an exhilarating riposte to the conventional wisdom about dream projects,” noting that del Toro “makes something almost new, and definitely rich and strange, out of a story we all thought we knew well.”
Jacob Elordi’s Career-Defining Performance
Critics have unanimously singled out Jacob Elordi’s portrayal of the Creature as the film’s standout element. Elordi underwent nearly 10 hours daily in the makeup chair to achieve the intricately designed patchwork appearance created by creature designer Mike Hill. The physical transformation rendered him virtually unrecognizable, allowing him to deliver what many are calling a career-defining performance that transcends his previous work in Euphoria and Saltburn.
Elordi described his approach during the Venice press conference: “It was a vessel that I could put every part of myself into. From the moment that I was born to being here with you today, all of it is in that character. And in so many ways, the creature that’s on screen in this movie is the sort of purest form of myself. He’s more me than I am.” Deadline’s Pete Hammond praised Elordi for shining “in a role quite different from his usual,” while critics noted the actor’s ability to convey profound humanity through extensive prosthetics and makeup. Early awards buzz suggests Elordi is a strong contender for Best Supporting Actor nominations.
Del Toro’s Vision: Gothic Romanticism and Visual Mastery
Frankenstein runs 149 minutes and represents del Toro’s most expensive production to date, with a reported budget of $120 million. The film is set in 1857 Victorian-era London and Edinburgh, diverging slightly from Shelley’s original 1818 setting to ground the narrative in more familiar period aesthetics. Del Toro and his longtime collaborators—production designer Tamara Deverell, cinematographer Dan Laustsen, costume designer Kate Hawley, and composer Alexandre Desplat—crafted what critics describe as “jaw-dropping visuals throughout” with “breathtaking images of the Creature against the horizon.”
The film has been characterized as gothic romanticism in the vein of del Toro’s Crimson Peak, Neil Jordan’s Interview with the Vampire, and Francis Ford Coppola’s Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Critics praised the meticulous production design, from the battlefield where Victor scavenges body parts to the “muddy, blood-spattered Edinburgh streets where public hangings are still held.” The Independent’s Geoffrey Macnab noted: “Whether it’s the battlefield where Victor goes in search of body parts, or the muddy, blood-spattered Edinburgh streets where public hangings are still held, every location is lovingly detailed. Costume and production design are impeccable.”
Cast and Narrative Approach
Oscar Isaac portrays Dr. Victor Frankenstein with what critics describe as “immensely entertaining” intensity, physically embodying the character’s descent into obsession through a prosthetic leg, extensive aging makeup, and increasingly manic performance. The supporting cast includes Mia Goth as Elizabeth Lavenza, Christoph Waltz, Felix Kammerer, Lars Mikkelsen, David Bradley, Christian Convery, and Charles Dance.
Del Toro’s screenplay stays remarkably faithful to Shelley’s novel while offering cinematic expansion. The narrative begins near the novel’s Arctic conclusion, where creator and creation have reversed roles of hunter and hunted, then spins backward to explore their tragic relationship. Slant Magazine’s Marshall Shaffer observed: “As the perspective of Frankenstein shifts to that of the creature cast out by its maker, del Toro’s concerns evolve from the cerebral to the emotional.” This structural choice allows del Toro to emphasize themes of alienation, imperfection, and what it means to be human—subjects that have defined his entire filmography.
Mixed Notes: Runtime and Pacing Concerns
While critical reception is overwhelmingly positive, some reviewers noted the film’s 149-minute runtime and occasional pacing issues. Inverse’s Hoai-Tran Bui described the film as “indulgent,” suggesting it “feels like a production for which del Toro had every final say, and for which nothing was left on the cutting room floor.” Deadline’s Pete Hammond acknowledged that “at two and a half hours, it may have benefited from some trimming,” though he quickly added that “del Toro’s creative playground is so alluring, and the return to grand Hollywood filmmaking is so evident, that it’s difficult to curtail the experience.”
Some critics also questioned certain VFX elements and suggested the film occasionally prioritizes visual spectacle over narrative momentum. However, these criticisms were consistently tempered by praise for the overall achievement, with most reviewers concluding that del Toro’s singular vision and the film’s artistic ambition outweigh any structural flaws.
Awards Prospects and Early Recognition
Frankenstein competed for the Golden Lion at Venice (ultimately losing to Pedro Almodóvar’s The Room Next Door) but won the Fanheart3 Award for Best Film. The film has already accumulated several early honors: Oscar Isaac won the Actor – Film award at the Celebration of Cinema and Television, Kate Hawley received the Special Achievement in Costume Design Award at the Middleburg Film Festival, and the film won the Sloan Science in Cinema Prize at the San Francisco International Film Festival. The Toronto International Film Festival named it runner-up for the People’s Choice Award.
Looking toward the 2026 Academy Awards, industry analysts predict strong showings in technical categories (Production Design, Costume Design, Makeup and Hairstyling, Visual Effects, Score) along with potential acting nominations for Elordi and Isaac. Del Toro could receive his fourth Best Director nomination, while the film’s gothic romanticism and philosophical depth position it as a potential Best Picture contender in what appears to be a competitive year.
Release Strategy and Netflix’s Theatrical Commitment
Frankenstein receives a limited theatrical release beginning October 17, 2025, followed by its global Netflix debut on November 7. This represents Netflix’s continued commitment to theatrical exhibition for prestige projects, giving the film crucial visibility for awards consideration while maintaining the streamer’s core business model. The theatrical window, though brief, allows audiences to experience del Toro’s visual mastery on the big screen as intended.
For viewers seeking one of 2025’s most visually stunning and emotionally resonant films, Frankenstein delivers what del Toro promised: a faithful yet innovative adaptation that honors Mary Shelley’s themes while offering a distinctly personal vision. Whether experienced theatrically or on Netflix, the film stands as a testament to the power of passion projects and the enduring relevance of gothic storytelling in an age where, as del Toro noted, “I’m not afraid of artificial intelligence. I’m afraid of natural stupidity.”