Why it took Guillermo del Toro 30 years to bring his version of “Frankenstein” to the movies

Guillermo del Toro On October 17, he released one of the most anticipated films of his career: his version of “Frankenstein”a work for which he claims to have prepared for three decades.

His participation in festivals such as Venice y Torontoas well as the subsequent availability in Netflixplace the film at the center of the international conversation.

In interview with The Countrythe Mexican describes this project as the culmination of an artistic and personal search that It started when I was seven years old.lived in Guadalajara and first saw the 1931 film directed by James Whale, with Boris Karloff as the creature.

“This film concludes a search that began as a child. When I first saw that Whale film, I felt the jolt of recognition at that crucial moment: Gothic horror became my church and Boris Karloff my messiah,” he explained. Del Toro.

For the director, Mary Shelley’s novel and its film adaptation have represented not only a source of inspiration, but also the origin of his fascination with monsters, a constant in his filmography.

Guillermo Del Toro read the novel Mary Shelley at the age of 11 and since then he developed an emotional bond with the figure of the monster and Dr. Frankenstein.

In interview with The Countrystated that his relationship with the story changed over the years: “If I had made it when I was under 40, I would have made it about my father and I. I would have been the son and the entire film would have been made by a son, instead of making the film as it really deserves: that of a father who decided to stop being a son and become a father.”

As time went by and after becoming a father, the filmmaker’s perspective evolved: “It’s one of those books that changes with you.” As a child, he identified with the creature; Years later, he understood Dr. Frankenstein differently.

His version thus seeks to portray both the point of view of the creator and that of the creature. “The moment Karloff crosses the threshold in the film, with his back turned and then turns, was like Saint Paul on the road to Damascus. I said: that’s me. It was an immediate and absolute transfer of soul,” he declared. Del Toro.

The project progressed for more than 30 years due to personal and professional factors, as well as the filmmaker’s perfectionism.

During that period, Del Toro He made lots of sketches and spoke repeatedly about his desire to create a “Miltonian” adaptation of the novel, but he only started filming when he felt he had the necessary maturity and experience.

“It’s the movie I’ve been training for for 30 years.” Del Toro himself emphasized the internal changes that allowed him to approach history from a broader and more reflective perspective, very far from the initial vision marked by his own biography.

In these interviews, the director stressed that he does not believe in destiny or predestined: “I have been making films for 30 years and in all this time I have learned that things happen when they have to happen. There is wisdom in accepting the irremediable“The wait also made possible the appearance of technologies and film resources that facilitated the ambitious staging.

The premiere of “Frankenstein” in Netflix It is scheduled for November 7. Before, viewers will be able to see it in theaters from October 17 and in alternative venues such as the Chopo Cinematographer and the Julio Bracho Room of the University Cultural Center (CCU) from UNAM in Mexico City.

The film was applauded with 13 minutes of applause at the Venice Film Festival, sharing fourth place among the most applauded films of the event.

An exhibition about the universe of Frankensteinmounted in the lobby of the CCUwill accompany the screening of the film until December 2025.

According to Del Toro himself, the work acquires contemporary relevance by reflecting on the right to imperfection and difference in times of social polarization: “The answer for me is love and forgiveness. The central question of the novel is what makes us human.”