The Bride! Is A Genre Combining Masterclass In Filmmaking

The movie cleverly mixes Gothic Horror, Film Noire, musicals, social commentary, and more to create a unique and highly entertaining movie.

While the 1985 movie “The Bride” looked to give an updated take on the source material. This version expands on it in a fresh and innovative way.

When the spirit of author Mary Shelly takes control of a 1930s party girl (Jessie Buckley), she runs afoul of some criminal elements by unleashing a flood of verbal secrets and insults while making a scene of herself.

The girl quickly encounters an accident and ends up in a Paupers Grave in Chicago; effectively ending her story before the ramifications of her possession can be fulfilled.

Looking to end a lifetime of solitude; Frankenstein’s Monster (Christian Bale), seeks the aid of Dr. Euphronius (Anette Bening), as he has become interested in her work to reanimate dead animals.

Although hesitant, the Dr. digs up the girl and returns her to life in order to become a companion for Frankenstein’s Monster. Her radical mood shifts and outburst in large part to the continued influence of Mary Shelly and her lack of memory lead the two into danger when an assault at a club becomes deadly.

The two find themselves on the run with authorities and other criminal elements in pursuit set amidst a growing love story between the two.

What could have been played off as a parody or satire is instead a bold combination of themes that at times requires some classic cinema suspension of disbelief to explain away some events and convenient timelines such as key people just happening to be at a given place and time frequently to enable the plot to unfold.

The movie has some great musical numbers and Bale and Buckley throw themselves into it as equally as they do the more intense and character-building moments as they both give truly amazing and memorable performances.

While it may lack the gore and jump scares that modern audiences may expect, the movie works well as a nostalgic drama which combines genres to make a very entertaining and visually appealing movie with numerous callbacks to the golden age of cinema.

The supporting cast is great, and the movie is one of the better films of the year and not to be missed.

4 stars out of 5