Victor Frankenstein Review by The Character Queen

I had been in great anticipation of this movie for about a year before finally seeing it this previous Sunday.
When I found out about it, I didn't know who was in it or what they planned to do with it.
With the way they're desecrating a lot of the things I like with utter trash, I'll be honest, I was biting my nails and holding my breath throughout the whole thing for a major downer to happen.
But let me tell ya; I was not disappointed.

SPOILERS AHEAD

This movie has the combination of so many things; it's not a gory monster movie with cheesy lines and acting.
It has different layers to it.
It had action, great characters, great character development, emotion, steampunk qualities, mad science, the barrier between life and death, a cute love story, and a reasonably lengthened climax.
Plus it had a few circus scenes.
I loved it more than you know.

Basically the center characters are played by Professor X, Harry Potter and Jim Moriarty.
So yes, when I found out Andrew Scott was gonna be in here, and the literal only thing I'd seen him in was Sherlock, the movie wasn't all I was excited about! XD

Having read the original book by Mary Shelley a few years ago, I've loved the storyline to bits ever since, and was super stoked to actually be able to get on board a film based on Frankenstein.
--
Seeing this movie was a bit of a chore, though. I wasn't able to see it at my local theater at the time of it's release, so my dad, sister and I just decided to put it off until later (and see it together) when we were all available the following two weeks.
What I wasn't expecting was for the theaters to start pulling the film so gosh darn soon.
Not even three weeks later, and I wasn't able to find absolute ANY showings for it anywhere locally.

I was a mad frustrated penguin. But then, at last, I spotted an available showing at a theater quite a bit of ways from us, more towards where my sister and her husband live.
I was totally willing to travel to great lengths to go see it, but my dad was hesitant.
The only theater we've been to (in years, at least) is our's, so on top of going so far away, he didn't really feel comfortable with going to a foreign theater. ;P

But nah, bro, that didn't keep us away for long.
We were off the next day and arrived at the theater. (not a bad looking theater, if I do say so myself. It had a really nice set up and a neat little gaming area, plus a restaurant of sorts with actual food you can eat.)


I wasn't a crazy fan of the previews. A couple of horror films, along with Pride *cough* Prejudice *cough* Zombies.......yeah. And then a movie with Leo Caprio and meh boy Tom Hardy.
Anndddd Deadpool. -_-
Yeah. I would've honestly preferred to see the trailer for Suicide Squad, cuz that would've been a hundred percent more entertaining to watch than what they laid out for me. I'm aware they were trying to go with a more dark selection of films to show given the plot of the movie we were watching, but seriously...

But yeah, so, skipping back to the movie.


1. The Wardrobe and Scenery

Oh my gosh, I'm not for these types of things and to get on about graphics or anything, but everything about the movie was visually and creatively beautiful! Even the monsters.
The clothing they chose for everyone was so pretty and Victorian, and the props they used were astounding.
Everything was so steampunk, I loved it. XDDD
I seriously want Frankenstein's laboratory, just saying.
But no, they did a really good job with that set up. I'm proud of their attention to the details surrounding the characters and their environment.

2. The Casting and Characters

What's probably even prettier than the scenery is the actors. You've got James McAvoy-- who's looks I was rather smitten with in Penelope-- that was incredibly hard not to look at with his handsome ruggedness and extra quirky charismatic self. Facial hair was a good call this time around, James. ;)



Not attracted to Daniel, but he did a really job in this. I haven't seen him in anything (not in the HP fandom) but this, so this was the first time I got to see him act and he's not bad!
He gave a lot of good depth to the character of Igor.



But I think everyone did a great job in this, so the casting couldn't be more perfect.
There was lots of humor and sassiness on Victor's part. :P
Let's not forget the conveniently placed Molly Hooper (the one horrified with Victor), Mycroft Holmes (the one standing beside Finnegan, with the super cool steampunk goggles) and not to mention meh baby Moriarty, I mean ahahahaha, let's not even start with that, yeah.


(the internet is mean and won't let me have pictures of Molly and Mycroft, so here is Moriarty)

BUT NO, the creators basically had a "let's put a few Sherlock cast members and see what happens" thing going for them and it worked out, beautifully.

The girl who played Lorelei was so darn sweet and innocent in her portrayal. What I loved about her character is that she isn't the typical female love interest that would be so horrified (under the film's circumstances) that she would treat (Igor) horribly and act like a snob and toss all their history aside to ruin him or avoid him and treat him like an absolute jerk..no. There was none of that nonsense. No drama.
She didn't agree with what was going on, but she generally loved Igor and didn't want to see him get treated badly again, and she supported him in all the ways she could. She showed actual compassion and understanding to what was going on. It was a nice change of pace from what we normally see in these types of characters. There was no threatening or uncomfortable arguing-- she expressed her concern, but she was there when Igor needed her. And I loved that. :) Their relationship was so sweet. ♥



Also, Finnegan, YOU. >8/
(you're apparently not allowed to see Finnegan, my apologies)

The bro friendship between Victor and Igor was awesomely done.
While others naturally have been "shipping" the two, because apparently no two guys or girls can be friends anymore, I saw the aspect of their friendship in an entirely different way.
To me, Victor saw Igor as his brother. As a replacement, almost. He was clearly alone and needed someone to share things with, whether it be a sibling or a friend...and he recognized that he and Igor were kindred spirits and they worked so well together. So in a way, Igor fulfilled the void that Victor had had for so long, not having a brother. Yes, he was his assistant, and did treat him badly on occasion, but he eventually wound up seeing Igor as more than that and as a general friend. Whatever negative bits that occurred was simply a side effect of Victor's obsession. There was so much of Victor's life following his brother's death that was simply due to him trying to atone himself and "bring back the balance". So they gave the traditional story a rather emotional and heart-breaking twist. He wasn't just obsessed with the idea of bringing people back to life; he wanted to take it upon himself to rid the world the pain of losing someone, as he had lost his brother.
Clearly, it was too late to bring him back, after all those years.
But between Igor and his creation, that was as close as he could get to having him around again.

As for Moriarty (I refuse to call him anything else), his storyline was heart-breaking in it's own right.
As my father commented, it seemed that everyone in this story had some sort of brush with death or lost someone to it, which gave everyone an emotional attachment to the work Vincent was trying to do.
I loved his character's general intellect, though. And personal mission to stop Victor and Igor, at any cost.
I thought the religious aspect of his character, too, was an interesting element to add. Since religion and science are polar opposites, it was almost crucial they placed it within the story, and the way it was handled was rather clever. Andrew's character, a man of law who's natural duty was to stop Victor's illegal activities, was on the side of religion and morals. While Victor was a man of science and taking matters into his own hands, and was so consumed by his goal, he didn't care what laws he broke or who's life he ruined.
So their portrayal of Andrew's character wasn't offensive to me in the least. He wasn't a villain, either.
The two had differing opinions and walks in life, and the film leads you to believe that maybe both is right or both is wrong, or one of them is right and the other is wrong...you don't really know, do you?
And that's the whole point. He did his job as a policeman, he wanted to see his wife again and believed he would do so in heaven, once he died...and he eventually dies..so beyond that is a mystery that only he would know about. As for Victor, he failed in his experiments, clearly, but that did not stop him from trying again and again and again. It's almost like an addiction. To him, he would never be finished, even if it took him all his life and would never get even close to succeeding. He was the type that would just not be told no.

I also wanna point out that the incredible Charles Dance has a brief appearance, in which he portrays Victor's father. Who in himself was a great big jerk. hmph.
(....and no Charles Dance for you, either..)


3. Music and The Creature

The music surprisingly wasn't all that noticeable..not that that's a bad thing, at all.
It blended well with the scenes to where you really don't think about it being there.
But it was good for the timeline of the story, so thumbs up for that!

As for the Creature, I wasn't disappointed at all. I also liked how they didn't overplay his screen time. He was around for the right amount, and had a good bit of action and carnage drawn from him.
And how they made him look was perfect! Clearly wasn't sporting the look Mary had originally chosen for the character, but it was good, nonetheless. Whoever did the makeup and design for him rocks, because wow. O.O
He was spooky and powerful, much like how the Creature is supposed to be.
And let's not forget about poor Gordon. Poor, poor Gordon. :( I felt so sorry for that little guy.
But they did a terrific job on his look, too. Wow. Just wow.
I especially liked how they got some spooks and the whole idea of the monsters down, but they weren't all overly bloody and gory and ewwwww, and disturbing. It was set right and actually rather tame compared to what they could've done.
As I've mentioned to many, the movie's feel reminds me a lot of Guy Richie's Sherlock films.

So, yeah. I could probably go on with more, but I'm just not. XD
Now for the parental advisory...

Language: 4/10

There's a few h's and d's said mostly by Victor, and if it counts, he also refers to the female anatomy and how babies are developed in a conversation with two women (one of them being Molly) over dinner, but a lot of it is played for comedic effect. It's important to note he wasn't really being flirty and sexual towards them, he was simply being blunt and direct about things, since he's not really used to being around people and having to use proper manners. And then towards the end, Igor utters the s word. It's clear that he's said it, but it's more of an under-the-breath, we're-in-deep-trouble type of tone, rather than screaming it aloud for all to hear.

Sexual Content: 3/10

As I said above, Victor is having a conversation with two women about the female anatomy and how babies develop, but again, it's not really him being weird in that area, just him going off and spouting out things he knows like an arrogant goof, so it's comedic. And the whole time, they're horrified about what they're hearing and are clearly uncomfortable. So it's a laughable few minutes.
Igor and Lorelei develop a relationship with eachother, and at one point, after dancing at a ball, they run upstairs and shut themselves inside a room. And then a few moments later are seen kissing and on the floor, but we don't see anything past that. So all in all, besides those two parts, the film was pretty tame in that factor. I might also note that when Lorelei is describing the man she's appearing as a mistress for, she implies that he's a closeted homo. But it's not all too direct, due to the times, as it was considered more of a hush-hush thing.
So it's only a few seconds and the part doesn't press it.

Frightening Scenes/Gore: 7/10

Although I said they were rather tame in this, I wouldn't advise letting your young kids watch it.
The creature scenes CAN get scary and intense. They weren't overly gory, but human parts are seen (I mean, c'mon..) and Victor puts the creatures together (off screen, as far as I can remember) with said parts, so it can get gross and a tiny bit bloody, but nothing too over the top. I still wouldn't advise anyone under maybe 10 or 12 watching it.
Gordon was a bit creepy, no matter how much I loved him. And the Creature was more on the spooky, menacing side, than super scary, mostly because he lacked any real facial emotion other than anger.

Also, it had a decent amount of action to it. One man gets accidentally shot by another, Moriarty's hand gets crushed by accident and he has to replace it with a seemingly wooden one, as well as his eye getting a bit messed up, and of course, the Creature does a lot of carnage and tosses random guys around, as well as smack aside Andrew, killing him. Finnegan falls to his death and is seen laying on the ground, motionless. Lorelei, a former acrobat, falls by accident and breaks (I believe) a collar bone, but that is quickly fixed by Vincent and Igor, without there being too much of a fuss.
Igor is also taken by Finnegan, tied up, and thrown into the ocean to drown, so it would be a little unsettling to watch him struggle underwater, but he does eventually get out safely.
They have to kill Gordon (again) after he proves to be too dangerous, and all we see is Victor hitting at it a few times, and that's it. And then for the Creature, they have to run through both it's hearts in order to stop him, so you'll see a couple of poles sticking through it.

Alcohol/Smoking: 4/10

There is drinking, social and otherwise. Victor and Igor practically finish the Creature's design drunk and act a little goofy. As for smoking, I can't clearly remember anyone doing so, but I'm sure there was. Just wasn't really in a 'in your face, I'm smoking' kind've way.


Overall movie scale: 8/10

Annnddd that's all I really got. :)
I seriously loved this movie and don't at all (more like never) agree with the critics' stupid opinions about this. Go see it for yourself, if it's still available to you! I'm so getting it when it comes out. ♥

Day 4: Fabulous Females

Three more to the set! ♥




Merida

Come on, you know I had to add her!
It's Merida, dude! She's a total adorable tomboy, a wild spirit and a lovely little human being.
No matter who you are, you gotta love Merida. She may be a princess, but she acts like every other commoner, with a childish and playful demeanor.

What I love most about her was how realistic they made her. She's stubborn and rebellious like every other teenager, but she refused to conform to ancient tradition, being an arranged marriage, because that's not what she wanted for her life. She wanted to find someone to share her loves and be happy with, who understood her and her unlady like behavior. She proceeded to do the wrong thing to get her way and because of that, the consequences of her decision almost cost her mother.
In the nick of time, she and her mother both learned their own lessons and began to understand one another.



While she may have made wrong choices, the beauty of her personality is that she realized she was wrong. She was growing. She was learning. She was experiencing life, as we all do. She made bad decisions, but once she realized this, she quickly tried to put them to right and she fought like heck for it.
Once more, her relationship with her mother was beautifully done, even making me emotional. She had the bond that a lot of mothers and daughters share. It's a struggle. You may fight a lot and don't agree with everything eachother says, but in the end, you're still family and you still love one another.
And no matter what you both say or do, you don't wanna watch the other suffer or go.
So, she had great character development, in that case.



Another thing I love about her is her totally wild, tomboyish spirit.
She fought, she played with swords, bow and arrows, roughed around with her brothers, and did things girls kind've just did not do. But that's the awesome part about her. She refused to live like other princesses, like other girls-- she set her own path.
And people who say this means she likes girls?
Nuh uh. Those bozos don't know what they're talking about.
I get so tired of the same tune being sung about girls like this.
Just because you're different from other girls, doesn't mean it means what you think it means. She wants to be herself and that's tough. If she has more boyish qualities, that's fine. She's clearly wanting to be in a relationship, but just with someone she chooses. I'm sure those weren't the only three dudes in Scotland. She probably wants someone manly, and brave, and capable, like her.
Pay attention to one part where she peeks at one of the men...no, not the boys they put in the spotlight.. the one that one of the Scotland Lords was supposedly describing, as his son.



She took notice. XD So she clearly is attracted to someone big and strong.
Sooooo stop with the same card, guys. You're killing me.

But you know, it's hard not to love Merida at least a little. She's awesome. ♥




Tauriel

Don't even get me started on the ridiculous rants of the purists. I respect that people want things to be as they are in books (or just in originals) but to completely down the character and the actor and everything having to do with them was just down right wrong. There have been plenty of original characters for films or otherwise who have been spectacular. I mean, c'mon, it's not like she was a walking banana who liked rock and roll. She was an elf who fit the graceful nature of her species quite nicely. There were other elves in the forest, y'know, not just Thranduil. And naturally, Legolas was around too, SINCE HE WAS HIS SON.
But I am a firm supporter of her. Her character fit right into the cast, as if she really were one of the originals.
So just...stop. Stop complaining. It's rude.




And yes, I have her on here. Cuz I loved her. She was awesome. She was a fighter, she was loyal, she was all the makings of a good role model. They did an excellent job on her, and yes, to be honest, a little bit of a female presence was refreshing. It's not like they didn't exist or anything.



Unlike others, I was alright with the relationship between her and Kili. It was fine, it was fine.
What I had a problem with was how they made him die for her. Like, what?
No, no, no, that was just wayyy too cliche and just..no.
That's one of the things that made Fili and Kili's deaths all the more tragic was when they essentially sacrificed themselves, trying to defend Thorin.
But no, they had to go and make Kili die for Tauriel, uggghhh, no. Not ok.
That just kind've ruined the moment for me, so no, I did not cry.
That's one of the things with the deaths of LOTR is that they get an emotional response from me because they happen the way they're supposed to happen.
I would've preferred her to fight hard to try and find him in the chaos of the battle, and him and Fili died trying to defend their uncle..and then she find his body and cry. That probably would've been a heck of a lot sadder for me and I would've shed some tears. But noooo, die for the girl, nope nope nope, way too cliche.



Despite all that, I still loved her character. She was an awesome addition to the series and I love all her lines and determination. :) Hopefully her and Legolas eventually hooked up. XD
Love ya, girl!

BA DUM, DUM. Done for now!!

God Bless,

Day 3: Villainous Villains

Hello, my precious subjects. ♥


Imhotep

Evil Scale: 6.9

A worthy candidate in my line of villains, Imhotep's whole character is meant to give you chills.
Even though in life, he was but a mere Egyptian priest; as a mummy, he was powerful, terrifying and a great deal of wowzers son, just cold.
The man literally sucked the life out of his victims to become whole again and then just kills whoever else he sees fit. Then he turns hundreds of innocents into his slaves and like...he's a baddie.
But the only thing that stops him from being completely evil and devoid of any kind of compassion is his one motivation; his love for Anck-Su-Namun.

While he had done everything for her and the whole basis of the series was because he had a rather unhealthy obsession for her (no kidding, bro), as soon as she turn-coated him, he gave up and let himself fall back into death. In essence, she was his only drive and once she was no longer willing to be there for him, as he was always repeatedly coming back for her and had her as the center of his universe, well..that was it for him. A completely devoid-of-all-emotion villain would continue his work, even after rejection.
They'd just keep killing and killing and killing.
Yes, he was definitely evil. But to an extent.
You can say, she's the one who activated his desire. He killed for her even in life, therefore their relationship is basically founded on death and wrong-doing.
Perhaps you can take away from it a sign that a relationship stemming from evil can not last.
That a love such as their's that hasn't any kind of good involved in it isn't true love at all.
Yes, there's an obvious care for one another and no doubt a natural attraction, but in the end, loyalty is key, and she showed none for him. And in turn, he showed none for her.



So, a villain driven by his burning love for someone, even in death. Who kills horribly and has next to zero compassion and mercy for those around him, unless it suits him...relationship issues or not, Imhotep is pretty bad.


Bane

Evil Scale: 7.0

True, he isn't like his monstrous original self, but I think this one is my favorite version of Bane yet.
Like Heath's Joker, Tom's Bane is his own invention and despite not following comic protocol, they both still manage to come up with an outstanding performance that increases the awesomeness and seriousness of the movies they take part in. But the most interesting part of his character is that he isn't like other villains. Not a hulking, mindless brute, or an intelligent, spineless pushover.
He's an incredibly skilled and calculating criminal mind with immense power and strength.
He's a super smart brute, in other words.
The original Bane is awesome, but I like the depth of his character here, and that he actually gets a straight background. A background that makes sense.




He's another one of those villains who's actions are motivated for someone they love.
In this case, it's for a girl who completely friendzones him from the start.
He literally gave up everything for Talia and she still didn't even accept him as anything more than a friend or brother. It even made the man cry, so, it's kinda hard not to feel for the guy.




Like Imhotep, despite his love for the girl he loves, he's still a frickin' evil dude.
Every action he made was cold, cruel and merciless.
He saw people as pawns and unlike Imhotep, he was all for an agenda outside of his girl.
He fully believed what he preached with all his heart and took every step possible to make sure it was executed, accordingly. And the way he killed was just spine-tingling.
He was ferocious and deadly and almost unbeatable...unless you're Batman, of course.
But his behavior outside of his brutish exterior was the complete polar opposite. Almost that of a gentleman.
Giving him unexpected manners and a proper atmosphere was a great way to mix in a bit of a balance so he wasn't so one-dimensional in his character. It wasn't done in an overboard fashion, either.
Everything he said and did was well-timed and I fully disagree with people when they say he didn't have any catchy lines. I mean, c'mon, tell that to all the memes he spawned.



He was brilliantly written, in my opinion, and a worthy successor to the Joker's triumphant former reign.
He was the perfect villain for the last of the DK trilogy, because he was honestly the most dangerous.
He was cunning, powerful and a real threat to Bruce. Out of all the villains, he came the farthest to nearly destroying Bruce completely. He was absolutely horrible.



So, was Bane a good bad guy? He murdered hundreds of people, snapped necks of those he didn't really find all that useful anymore, turned Gotham into a madhouse, released thousands of criminals out into the open to help terrorize the Gotham citizens, beat to a pulp and broke Bruce's back, then tossed him into the pit and made him sit and watch as Bane destroyed his city...and millions of other things that just don't excuse tears.I think yes. Bane is a very good bad guy.

God Bless,