REVIEW: “The Bride!” ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Writer-director Maggie Gyllenhaal takes big swings with this wild pastiche of a Frankenstein film. Not all of them connect, but the ones that do make the film overall an unforgettable experience.
Happy Wednesday, friends!
It’s been 34 days since my last review.
Not by choice, I promise. We went weeks in the Tampa Bay market without invites to advance screenings, which are really my only opportunities to see new films in theaters.
I’m happy to report I didn’t lose a single subscriber during that span — thank you all for sticking around!
Without further delay, let’s jump into “The Bride!” As always, postscripts after the video.
Postscripts:
“The Bride!” is Maggie Gyllenhaal’s second directorial effort. Her debut film, 2021’s “The Lost Daughter,” earned her multiple award nominations and wins, including a Golden Globes nomination for “Best Director,” a win at the BAFTAs for “Best Adapted Screenplay,” and her second Oscar nomination, also for “Best Adapted Screenplay.”
In the video, I said a few things didn’t work for me. Length and pacing were issues here. At just over two hours, it feels longer than it is, due to a few lulls and lapses in tension. The film, at times, has trouble coming down off its wild highs and peaks of intensity. Also — and this, I admit, I’ve gone back and forth about — I’m not sure the film’s “possession” angle really works. Without giving away spoilers, while I would absolutely agree that the device allows Jessie Buckley to shine even more in what really is a dual role in the film, I’m not sure how well it’s used or how much it adds to the film as a whole.
Things I loved about the movie for you to watch for: The musical numbers (yes, there are song and dance numbers here, but it’s a movie set in the 1930’s — of course, it’s got a touch of old time Hollywood); “Frank’s” (Christian Bale) obsession with movies and one particular film star; everything about Annette Bening’s character, Cornelia Euphronious (what a name!); and the sly upending of the “detective and his gal Friday” trope in the relationship between Peter Sarsgaard and Penelope Cruz’s characters.
The film was originally reported to be a Netflix project, but ended up being produced by Warner Bros. I’m glad — Netflix can’t have all the love for playing in the “Frankenstein” sandbox. Speaking of which, while “The Bride!” and Guillermo Del Toro’s “Frankenstein” couldn’t be more different in terms of tone and delivery, both honor Mary Shelley’s work in powerful ways. Might make for a fun double-feature someday!
I liked it and really enjoyed the score. I agree with your points about flitting back and forth to Shelley's perspective. I think this could've been established much earlier on in the story so we didn't have to disrupt the flow of the film.