Photo via IMDb
By Keith Walther | Rose Law Group Reporter
What if “Bonnie and Clyde” was remade as undead monsters? That is the concept of “The Bride!,” which is a new adaptation of the 1935 classic, “Bride of Frankenstein,” which was inspired from Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel. While it may be creatively ambitious with a loaded cast, this production ultimately falters with too many ideas that simply do not connect.
Consumed by a century of loneliness, the disfigured Frankenstein (Christian Bale) pleads with Dr. Euphronius (Annette Bening) to help him find and create a perfect mate. Recently deceased Ida (Jessie Buckley) is reanimated as the Bride, sparking a monstrous romantic connection. Together, they unintentionally terrorize Chicago, New York, and everywhere in between, leaving a trail of death in their wake. It’s up to Detective Jake Wiles (Peter Sarsgaard) and Myrna Mallow (Penélope Cruz) to stop this rampaging duo.
This is Maggie Gyllenhaal’s sophomore effort after her 2021 directorial debut, “The Lost Daughter,” which was highly regarded in the industry but suffered a mixed bag of reactions from filmgoers. Once again, she writes the screenplay in addition to directing, and it is her writing that lets “The Bride!” down the most. It’s as if she tries to emulate 1930s filmmaking style without understanding that dialogue played an integral part in those ‘30s classics. Instead of the fast-paced, witty lines that made audiences hang on every word, her script is shallow, uninspired, and even pretentious at times.
Credit Maggie for taking some big swings creatively, but unfortunately, they rarely connect. She introduces more themes, tone shifts, and backstories than a quick-change artist changes outfits. In fact, the opening act is so muddled with complex plot points that it becomes distractingly confusing, introducing the Mary Shelley character also played by Jessie Buckley who seems to possess the Ida character, while simultaneously conveying some convoluted mafia storyline. This makes that opening scene a chaotically jumbled mess. Then Maggie shifts gears completely, going for a strange romantic tone as the two living corpses get to know each other, and she completely ignores important backstories that seemingly connect all the other characters. For instance, the detective and titular character have this mysterious past together that gets insufficiently explained in one line of dialogue, and the motivations of the mob boss character is never explored, leaving viewers with more questions than answers. Maggie halfheartedly throws in a feminist movement plot as a social commentary piece that just adds more fuel to this disarrayed fire. She even includes a weird musical number that seems to indicate the monsters have some unnatural ability to mind control a whole room of people.
This is an exceptionally talented cast from top to bottom, which makes the director’s shortcomings all the more discouraging. With Christian Bale considered by many to be the best actor in the business today, it would seem impossible for any co-star to outshine him, but that is exactly what Oscar nominee Jessie Buckley does. She plays an extremely complex part, seamlessly alternating between the two characters she portrays similar to a person suffering from multiple personality disorders. The Irish actress incredibly shifts from an American accent to a deranged British growl on a dime, giving her character this naturally unhinged quality that makes her completely unpredictable. She will likely be winning her first Oscar for “Hamnet” this week, and deservedly so, and she’s really the only reason to sit through this movie.
After a four-year hiatus, it’s wonderful to see Christian Bale back on the big screen, and the Oscar winner does not disappoint. His instant adoration and devotion to Buckley’s character lends this sweetly hopeless romantic side to his physically intimidating visage that is somewhat reminiscent of how Frankenstein was depicted in the animated series, “Creature Commandos,” only with less humor. Most of the other cast members, however, looked a bit out of place and ill-suited for their roles. Both Peter Sarsgaard (Maggie Gyllenhaal’s husband) and Oscar winner Penélope Cruz are not believable as law enforcement agents, further emphasized by the poor dialogue writing for their characters. Croatian-Danish actor Zlatko Buric is completely miscast as the Italian mob boss Lupino with his accent that comes nowhere close to Italian.
Just like a reanimated corpse, this film doesn’t quite act right. Despite a phenomenal performance from Jessie Buckley, “The Bride!” is no honeymoon and will likely have you seeking a divorce immediately following the credits. This is a movie that had incredible potential as an early Oscar contender, so its inequities make it profoundly more disappointing.
This movie earns:
