Back on top with the debut of “Frankenstein,” now available on Netflix, Guillermo Del Toro seems reinvigorated by a new artistic youth. Author of masterpieces such as “Pan's Labyrinth” and “The Shape of Water,” the Mexican director has made a name for himself since his debut thanks to his strong penchant for dark fantasy and comic book imagery, as demonstrated by his contributions to the comic book movie genre with “Blade II” and the first two film adaptations of “Hellboy.”

After his touching reinterpretation of “Pinocchio,” Del Toro has finally managed to invest energy and resources in a project he has dreamed of since his youth: a personal reinterpretation of Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein,” heavily inspired by his own experiences and focused on the love-hate relationship between those who are different.

Regarding the difficulties of human relationships—and, in this specific case, those between the Creature and his creator—the director stated during press conferences that he worked extensively to give the two protagonists the right space and depth: "This was the most challenging and important part, in many ways, of our version. There's a huge buildup, which is done differently than before. The tone is so vehement. At the beginning, we have Victor saying, 'This is my story, and I'm right.' And then what's really inspiring is the arrival of another voice, which comes in and says, 'No, no, there's another side to this story.' It's very moving. And very necessary. It's never been done this way in any other adaptation of the novel. And I think it's urgent right now: it helps us understand that alongside your truth, there's another truth you're not hearing."

The theme of anger and rebellion, already explored in previous works, is once again central to this latest effort: "For me, disobedience is important. It's the same thing that characterizes my Pinocchio. Rebellion is an act of thought, it's a choice. It's what makes you human."

Maintaining a high focus on aesthetics—always one of his trademarks—del Toro opted for a handcrafted approach as closely as possible. Everything was handcrafted, from the sets to the costumes, emphasizing not only the practical but also the conceptual aspect, where the manual process allows the more human and imperfect side of the creative act to shine through: "In this film, everything is made on a full scale, by hand, by human beings for other human beings."

With this in mind, the production team carried out painstaking manufacturing and research, with 119 sets, 3,178 days of work to build the "Horisont" ship, six months of modeling, and over 1,200 days of work spent just building the exterior of the tower. Even the explosion of the laboratory was created with practical effects, without any use of computer graphics. A result that Del Toro himself described as "operatic."

A central role in this process is played by the Creature, played by Jacob Elordi. His radical physical transformation required 42 silicone prosthetics, 14 of which were on the head and neck alone, applied daily in over ten-hour prosthetic makeup sessions. Such a meticulous process was explained by Mike Hill, the film's prosthetic artist, who emphasized the hidden meaning behind the makeup effect: "Putting the inside of a human body on the outside, because the veins and tissues are the most visible and vulnerable part of the being."

And it is precisely in that same imperfection that the creature's body is revealed, a visible expression of the mistakes and failures from which it came to life: "It's not the classic reanimated corpse, but the result of a man trying to build perfection and inevitably failing." The work done on the characters embodies the concept of "tactile" cinema, expressed by Del Toro, who eschews a merely aestheticized vision of the mise-en-scène to bring it to a more concrete and sensorial level: "It's not aesthetics, it's substance: it's not sweetness for the eyes, it's proteins, it's nourishment."

Equally interesting is the circular motif that runs through the entire set, reinforcing its narrative meaning. The director explained: "The film is a circle, because it begins as a sacred tale and ends as a human delirium. You think you're listening to Jesus, but you realize you're listening to Charles Manson." Finally, regarding the specific function of music, which, like a persistent background, punctuates the various phases of the story, composer Alexandre Desplat stated: "We wanted the Creature's soul to have the delicacy of a violin. It's a gigantic body, but its voice is that of a pure, almost broken instrument."

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