But after what felt like an incredibly long two hours, I had watched The Bride! and can confidently say the film underdelivered. Before I begin to try and make sense of what I had just watched, I will praise the stunning visuals of the film. It was beautiful to look at but it did not distract me from the weak script or the several plots that never married together.
Initially, the film follows Ida (who Frankenstein names Penelope), who is revived from the dead to accompany Frankenstein. After a sour turn of events, the duo is on the run from both a gang of mobsters and the law, which introduces the subplot; two detectives, whose relationship demonstrates frustrating 1930’s gender roles.
Meanwhile, Penelope’s violent retaliation to the patriarchy is publicised, sparking a national feminist movement of women who revolt against the treatment of their male counterparts. Soon, a dark truth is revealed about one of the detectives (which is never spoken about again) and the film comes to an end as Frank meets his fate, shortly followed by The Bride.
And if that wasn’t a lot to take in, then Penelope was also possessed by the ghost of Mary Shelley throughout all of this… and there was some dancing.
... little development of key characters and the story was lost on me in parts.
To summarise, there was a lot going on with little development of key characters and the story was lost on me in parts. As a result, I felt like I wasn’t rooting for anyone, which was disappointing as the trailer promised so much more. I recognise the feminist angle that Gyllenhaal has attempted but it did not feel ‘radical’ as described – it just felt slightly patronising.
Jessie Buckley delivered yet another fantastic performance as Penelope, portraying her as manic and erratic. She gave the character the unpredictable edge she deserved, which redeemed the plot slightly for me. However, with all of this considered, The Bride! was just another unfortunate adaptation of a classic that we’ve seen in cinemas this year.