Writer/director Guillermo del Toro is one of the few auteurs in filmmaking today who can carry an artistic vision to the screen and draw the masses in to watch it. He has managed to bridge the gap that’s often found between virtuosity and popularism. “The Shape of Water” for example, took home four Academy Awards in 2018 including best picture. It also made roughly ten times its budget back at the box office. So yeah, Del Toro seems to know what he’s doing considering his version of “Frankenstein” is up for nine award categories this year as well. Oh, and it’s also just been added to the Criterion Collection.
Del Toro’s Sixth Criterion Release
Just as he’s no stranger to critical success, Guillermo del Toro is also quite familiar with the Criterion Collection. At least five of his previous movies have been selected by the prestigious company, and “Frankenstein” will be his sixth. Criterion specializes in the preservation and distribution of films that have significant cultural or artistic impact. The visual style of del Toro is incredibly distinct, as seen in the “The Shape of Water” and “Pan’s Labyrinth”. He’s brought that same horrific flair to “Frankenstein” as a Netflix exclusive. Its limited theatrical release made it eligible for the Oscars and Criterion seemingly wanted to latch onto it as quickly as possible to add it to their collection.
Even though it’s another variation on the Mary Shelley classic, del Toro brings his vision to it. He draws out incredible performances from his cast, including Jacob Elordi who plays the creature. It’s up for nine nominations in total at the upcoming Academy Awards ceremony for 2026. Even if it doesn’t take home any gold, it will still go down as one of the most nominated horror films in history. No wonder Criterion wanted it. We don’t know what they have planned for any potential release of the movie in the future, but we’ll update you once we find out.
