Tag: Mia Goth

Frankenstein

2025   Netflix

Rated:  R

Length:  2 hr  29min

Epic ~ Gothic Drama ~ Fantasy ~ Gothic Horror ~ Sci-Fi

Directed by:  Guillermo del Toro

Starring:  Oscar Isaac, Jacob Elordi, Mia Goth, Felix Kammerer, David Bradley, Lars Mikkelsen, Christian Convery, Charles Dance, and Christoph Waltz.

Life sparked. Death unleashed.

Only Monsters Play God.

In 1857, the Arctic ice traps a Danish expedition vessel whose crew discovers Victor Frankenstein (Oscar Isaac) badly wounded on the frozen wasteland. Victor warns them of a powerful Creature (Jacob Elordi) hunting him relentlessly. Inside the warmth of the Captain’s cabin, Victor begins to tell his harrowing story, a tale of ambition and loss that led to this desperate moment.

Victor grew up under the stern hand of his father, Baron Frankenstein (Charles Dance), and the death of his beloved mother (Mia Goth) left deep scars. Encouraged by grief and driven by an obsessive desire to conquer death, Victor pursues radical medical experiments. With funding from an arms dealer, Henrich Harlander (Christoph Waltz), Victor creates a gruesome but brilliant new life form, hoping it will change humanity forever.

Victor’s creation, part man, part monster, is awakened amid a storm and darkness, but the being’s emergence unleashes consequences Victor had never imagined. The Creature struggles to understand its own existence while Victor wrestles with guilt and fear. Around them, loyalties and betrayals form, as Elizabeth (Mia Goth), Victor’s love interest, and William (Felix Kammerer), his brother, navigate the tangled web Victor’s ambition has spun.

As Victor’s world spirals into chaos, the bond between creator and creation becomes more complicated and threatening. The story explores themes of family pain, societal rejection, and the dangerous thirst for power, all set amid the haunting grandeur of Victorian-era landscapes. This is not just a monster story, it is a deeply emotional and dark journey of both man and what he dares to create. Del Toro’s Frankenstein stands as a towering epic in monster cinema, a visually stunning and emotionally resonant reimagining of Mary Shelley’s classic tale. Del Toro’s signature style shines through in every frame, blending dark gothic horror with profound humanity and complex character dynamics.

Oscar Isaac delivers a commanding and layered performance as Victor Frankenstein, capturing the scientist’s obsessive brilliance and profound torment. Jacob Elordi’s Creature is both terrifying and tragically sympathetic, bringing depth to the monstrous figure beyond mere horror iconography. Mia Goth impressively anchors dual roles with nuance and intensity, embodying pivotal influences on Frankenstein’s psyche. Christoph Waltz’s portrayal of the calculating Henrich Harlander adds a sinister sophistication to the narrative. Overall, the ensemble cast elevates Del Toro’s monstrous creation, making this Frankenstein an unforgettable cinematic journey that balances spectacle with deeply felt performances.

Turn off the lights and devices,

Make some popcorn,

Grab a beverage,

and Stream This Movie

on Netflix!

FRANKENSTEIN COMES TO LIFE ON NETFLIX!

Netflix is producing a re-make of The Mary Shelley classic Novel Frankenstein. Filming wrapped up September 2024 after shooting in Toronto, Canada and Edinburgh, Scotland. The movie is directed by Guillermo Del Toro and the cast includes Jacob Elordi, Mia Goth (Pearl), Oscar Isaac and Christoph Waltz. The new Frankenstein movie is slated for release November later this year. I love Mia Goth, she is the new Horror Queen in my opinion, and I can’t wait to see her in this.

FROM NETFLIX TUDUM:

By John Dilillo Jan. 30,2025

Guillermo del Toro is building a monster. Fresh off of his third Oscar win for Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio, the writer-director is fulfilling a lifelong dream: making his own adaptation of Mary Shelley’s beloved Gothic novel Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus.

Del Toro has been working on a Frankenstein film for more than a decade. “My favorite novel in the world is Frankenstein,” he told Collider in 2010. “I’m going to misquote it horribly, but the monster says, ‘I have such love in me, more than you can imagine. But, if I cannot provoke it, I will provoke fear.’ ” It’s an idea that inspired del Toro’s career-spanning love for the monsters inside and outside all of us. Now he’s finally returning to the source.

Del Toro’s Frankenstein is adapted from Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel, which she completed at the age of 19, and which he’s cited for years as an inspiration for his work. In his 2018 acceptance speech after winning the BAFTA Award for Best Director for The Shape of Water, del Toro even made time to thank the British Gothic novelist.

“The most important figure from English legacy is, incredibly, for me, a teenager by the name of Mary Shelley, and she has remained a figure as important in my life as if she were family,” del Toro said. “And so many times when I want to give up, when I think about giving up, when people tell me that dreaming of the movies and the stories I dream are impossible, I think of her.”

Frankenstein coming to Netflix

FRANKENSTEIN COMES TO NETFLIX NOVEMBER 2025

 

Strange Darling

2024   Magenta Light Studios

Rated:  R

Length:  1 hr  37min

Action ~ Horror ~ Suspense

Directed by:  JT Mollner

Starring:  Willa Fitzgerald, Kyle Gallner, Barbara Hershey, and Ed Begley Jr..

“Love hurts, love scars…Love wounds and marks, any heart not tough enough or strong enough, to take a lot of pain…….takes a lot of pain.”

I watched this last night. I was looking for something to watch more than I was looking for a movie to review. Strange Darling caught my eye on Amazon Prime. Perfect I thought…I didn’t know anything about it and had never heard of it.

WHICH IS EXACTLY HOW YOU SHOULD WATCH IT. And that is why this review will feature very little of the plot, storyline or in-depth look at the movie or the characters. Here is all I can tell you:

It is a Slasher type Horror Action Suspense Film.

The Movie Stars The Lady and The Demon.

The movie is broken into six chapters and an epilogue, in this order:

Chapter 3: “Can You Help Me, Please?” 

Chapter 5: “Here, Kitty, Kitty…” 

Chapter 1: “Mister Snuffles” (Mister Snuffleupagus)

Chapter 4: “The Mountain People” 

Chapter 2: “The Electric Lady” 

Chapter 6: “Who’s Gary Gilmore?” 

Epilogue.

The Movie starts like this:

SHOT ENTIRELY ON 35MM FILM

(IN BLACK AND WHITE) A man and a woman in a truck on a rainy night in front of a motel………… she asks, “So I have to ask you a question, are you a serial killer?”

Between 2018 and 2020, the most prolific and unique American Serial Killer of the 21st Century went on a calculated, multi-state spree that began in Denver, Colorado, continued through Grand Lake, and expanded across Wyoming and Central Idaho before culminating in the dense forest of Hood River County, Oregon.  

Drawing from police interviews, detailed accounts of eyewitnesses, depositions, and observations of various law enforcement, this is a dramatization of the true story of the final known killings in that rampage….

Then there is a killer (Pun intended) car chase…and then a woman is running in the woods from a killer, blood dripping from her wounds……as an acoustic cover of Love Hurts by Nazareth plays in the background……..

Love hurts, love scarsLove wounds and marksAny heartNot tough or strong enoughTo take a lot of pain, take a lot of painLove is like a cloudHolds a lot of rainLove hurtsOoh, ooh, love hurts

Some fools think of happinessBlissfulness, togethernessSome fools fool themselves, I guessThey’re not foolin’ me
Ooh, ooh, love hurts
AND WE START THE MOVIE WITH:
Chapter 3: “Can You Help Me, Please?” 
I absolutely enjoyed every minute of this Horrifying piece of Cinematic Slasher Art.
Willa Fitzgerald reminds me of Mia Goth in Pearl.
Kyle Gallner is creepy scary as the nice guy?
JT Mollner I am unfamiliar with but will keep an eye out for.
Turn out the lights, crank up the soundtrack and enjoy the ride…
because that is what it is.
A Horrifying Action Filled Thrill Ride
 through a Serial Killer Amusement Park.
Highly Recommended!
Love Hurts Cover by Z-Berg featured in the movie:

Pearl

2022   A24

Rated: R

Length:  1 hr  43min

Horror ~ Drama ~ Thriller

Directed by: Ti West

Starring: Mia Goth, David Corenswet, Tandi Wright, and Matthew Sunderland.

“I know what I’ve done. Bad things. Terrible, awful, murderous things. I regret them now, but I liked how they felt. Felt good. Killing’s easier than you’d think.”

Mia Goth stars as Pearl who is living on a farm in Texas with her German parents. It is 1918 and her husband Howard is away in Europe as a soldier in WWI. Her father has been stricken with the Influenza pandemic and Pearl and her mother do their best to stay isolated on the farm and take care of him. The loneliness and isolation have started to take a toll on Pearl, who dreams of nothing more than running away to be a Chorus Line Dancer. Or perhaps a Hollywood Movie star, anything but the dreadful existence isolated on the farm taking care of her sick daddy.

Pearl was pregnant with Howard’s child and right before he left for Europe, she lost the child. The Miscarriage of the baby, and then Howard leaving her alone on the farm to deal with the emotional fallout of the loss, affects her mental state greatly. She starts killing small animals and feeds them to the alligator in the pond she named Theda. She starts abusing her elderly sick Dad and wishes he would die. Mama too….She wishes for nothing more than to be a star far, far away from that dreadful farm. And as the movie progresses you can see the mental illness grow, fester and come boiling to the surface with horrific consequence.

The movie from the very beginning looks like the Wizard Of Oz in technicolor. Upon doing some research I found that is exactly what the director had in mind. He achieved that goal by far. It is a juxtaposition to the horror unfolding within Pearl and on the farm. There is blood, and there is gore, but it is minimal compared to your average horror slasher movie. It is instead more psychological, your horror grows as you watch Pearl unravel right before your eyes in a downward spiral of emotion and violence.

Pearl is part of a trilogy written by the director Ti West. The first installment was X, followed by Pearl and the just released Maxxxine. There is some debate as to the order in which to watch the trilogy movies. The director says in the order they were released; X, Pearl and then Maxxine. But there are those who say you should watch Pearl before you watch X and then Maxxxine. That in doing so you will get a better understanding of X, as Pearl is a prequel to X.

I can’t wait to watch X and Maxxxine, and I think I made the right choice in watching Pearl before X. Mia Goth stars in all three movies. This is my first introduction to Mia Goth and her horrifying gothic talent and I am immediately a fan for life.  Mia Goth’s performance is extraordinary. Mia Goth is the movie. What she pulls out of her emotive being to express on screen with her facial expressions and emotions is incredible.

Pearl isn’t for everyone. But it is a first class psychological horror film well done.

Horrifyingly yes…Yes…YES!!!

Go Mia Goth!

Two Thumbs UP!