Del Toro’s Frankenstein premieres at Venice, opens Oct 17, Netflix Nov 7

Guillermo del Toro’s long-anticipated adaptation of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein premiered at the Venice Film Festival and will open in select theaters on October 17 before streaming globally on Netflix on November 7. The film, which stars Oscar Isaac as Victor Frankenstein and Jacob Elordi as the Creature, will be honored with the Gotham Vanguard Tribute at the 35th annual Gotham Film Awards on December 1 in New York, where del Toro and his lead actors will be recognized for the production’s stylistic ambition.

Set in the mid 19th century and framed by an Arctic rescue, the film follows an egotistical scientist whose experiment to reanimate the dead brings forth a stitched-together being and a chain of tragedy for both creator and creation. Del Toro structures the narrative in three parts, moving from Victor’s account of his rise and fall to a sustained focus on the Creature’s perspective. Supporting roles include Mia Goth as Elizabeth Harlander, Christoph Waltz as Heinrich Harlander, Felix Kammerer as William Frankenstein, and a roster of veteran actors in smaller parts.

Critics have highlighted the film’s production design and physical effects. Del Toro favored practical sets,...