Who's the real monster in Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein?

As two Guillermo del Toro stans, we had to dive into his newest film, Frankenstein. In this episode, Bri and Naveen break down their readings of the movie through gender theory, monster-movie genre research and more. We're unpacking everything from thematic choices to the legacy of cinematic monsters, while also exploring how del Toro puts his own distinct twist on the latest iteration of this classic text.

Mentioned on the pod:

• “Here Comes the Bride: Wedding Gender and Race in Bride of Frankenstein by Elizabeth Young (from The Dread of Difference: Gender and the Horror Film)

• “Horror and The Monstrous-Feminine: An Imaginary Abjection by Barbara Creed (from The Dread of Difference: Gender and the Horror Film)

• “Making a Monster: An Introduction to Frankenstein” by Anne Mellor (from The Cambridge Companion to Mary Shelley)

• “Frankenstein’s warning: The too-familiar hubris of today’s technoscience” by Richard King

• Guillermo Del Toro Finally Makes His Own ‘Frankenstein’ (NPR’s Fresh Air)

• Motherhood Isn’t Sacrifice, It’s Selfishness (NYT)

• “The Lovely Load: An Archetype Of The Horror Film” by Douglas W. Cooper (from Studies in Popular Culture, Vol 13, No 1.