Frankenstein

Dr. Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist, becomes obsessed with cheating death. He undertakes a radical experiment, using body parts from corpses to create a living being. However, the creature he brings to life is monstrous and abandoned, leading to a tragic pursuit across the Arctic that consumes both creator and creation.

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein was met with a mixed to negative reception from critics, though it found a slightly more favorable audience response. While Kenneth Branagh's ambitious direction and the strong performances from Robert De Niro and Helena Bonham Carter were often noted, many critics found the film to be overly melodramatic, bombastic, and lacking the psychological depth of previous adaptations or the original novel. Its faithfulness to the source material was praised by some, but the overall execution was frequently criticized.

• Praised for its visual ambition and the performances of its lead actors, particularly Robert De Niro as the creature.

• Criticized for its excessive melodrama, over-the-top direction, and failure to capture the nuanced horror of the source material.

• Seen by some as a noble but ultimately flawed attempt to retell the classic story with modern blockbuster sensibilities.

Google audience: Audiences generally found the film to be a visually impressive, albeit somewhat lengthy, adaptation. Many appreciated the effort to stay true to Mary Shelley's novel and lauded Robert De Niro's portrayal of the creature. However, some viewers felt the film was too dramatic and lacked the chilling suspense they expected from a Frankenstein story.

Kenneth Branagh cast himself as Victor Frankenstein and Robert De Niro as the creature, opting for a more direct interpretation of the characters' complex relationship and philosophical debates from Mary Shelley's novel.