MOVIE MONDAYS: VICTOR FRANKENSTEIN
It had been a long time since I had been to Vue, especially the one in Westwood Cross in Kent, and completely forgot that you actually had to book a seat; it threw me for a loop. But luckily for us, and by us I mean Luigi and I, my preferred sitting location in any theatre was untouched by any other viewer. Smiling, quite mischievously an onlooker may say, I selected the golden seat, paid for my ticket and headed off to go see Victor Frankenstein... last December.
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Some people cannot seem to get over the fact that Daniel Radcliffe can be anything else but Harry Potter and I cannot help but feel sorry for them because they are missing out on such great characters. I must confess that the only other character I have seen him play, other than Igor in Victor Frankenstein and Harry Potter in... well, Harry Potter and his seven adventures, is Wallace in What If but there definitely was no trace of Harry in Wallace...or Igor. Speaking of Igor, he is a character I've only heard about second-hand due to him being in a world where horror resides quite comfortably and therefore one I cannot stomach. However, now that that world stars both Daniel Radcliffe and James McAvoy I couldn't not swing by...right?
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© Twentieth Century Fox UK
Victor Frankenstein is name familiar to many. He is a man obsessed with science, eager to stretch its limits and show the world its true unimaginable capabilities and was dreamed up by Mary Shelley (Mathilda; Transformation; The Last Man), a 19th Century English novelist, dramatist, biographer and travel writer, who published her book, Frankenstein way back in 1818 (!!). This particular version of Frankenstein was directed by Paul McGuigan (Sherlock;Push ; Lucky Number Slevin) and scripted by Max Landis (Mr. Right; American Ultra; Chronicle) and I rather enjoyed it. I did have a couple heart-in-mouth moments but I am sure that's because of my weak heart when it comes to horror and thriller films. No matter how many times I chant 'It's not real; it's only a movie' I still squeal and jump in my seat and cover my eyes... and then my ears. Anyway, back to Victor Frankenstein: I found the scenes where drawings and annotations shared time and space with the live action scenes interesting and slightly playful; I would really like to get my hands on a couple of Victor Frankenstein's waistcoats -it appears he had a thing for floral patterns...; the evolution of Igor's movements throughout the film was great to watch as was Victor's; and I really liked the quirkiness of the set designs. There were quite a few other aspects of the film that caught my attention but I will leave those for you to discover when you watch it.
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© Twentieth Century Fox UK
Frankenstein's world is not one that I knew well before watching this film so I tried to drink in as much as I could about the characters in this particular version of it. The flamboyant and driven medical student, Victor Frankenstein was played by James McAvoy (The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby; X-Men: Days of Future Past; Becoming Jane) whilst Daniel Radcliffe (A Young Doctor's Notebook; What If; Kill Your Darlings) starred as Igor, a humble and loyal man with a deep understanding of the complexity of the human anatomy. Jessica Brown Findlay (The Riot Club; A New York Winter's Tale; Downton Abbey) took on the role of the talented, bright and beautiful Loreli who some consider a distraction whilst others, a vision to behold and Andrew Scott (Sherlock; Spectre; Locke) played the determined Inspector Turpin. Rafferty, a man who grew to appreciate Frankenstein's work was played by Bronson Webb (Pan; Kill Your Friends; The Dark Knight) and a colleague of Rafferty's that we get to see briefly was played by Mark Gatiss (Sherlock; Doctor Who; Sense & Sensibility). And after having been introduced to these characters I am eager to dive into Mary Shelley's book to learn more about those characters which are original and those that I yet to meet.
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Victor Frankenstein is a new take on the famous Frankenstein tale written by Mary Shelley and is string of action, dramatic and quite humorous scenes that have a certain horror-esque tint to them that is sure to entertain you (to some degree) - I quite liked it. And if this sounds like it may float boat your boat then the next time you get the chance to see it, you may want to check it out.
Mo x
P.S. There was one of Igor's lines that may be deemed cheesy but it stuck with me: "... I did have something to look up to". Just, you know, thought I'd share...