Mary Shelley's Frankenstein 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.0

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman April 5, 2022

Considering what an indelible impact it has had for literally over two centuries now, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein; or, the Modern Prometheus wasn't especially well received when it first appeared in 1818, and in fact as one of the supplements included on this disc gets into, it really wasn't until there was a stage adaptation called Presumption; or, the Fate of Frankenstein by one Richard Binsley Peake which debuted in 1823 that public notice and/or acclaim started to dramatically accelerate. It understandably took more than century for the legendary Boris Karloff version of Frankenstein to reach movie houses in 1931, but as another supplement on this disc proves, as early as 1910 silent filmmakers, including the venerable Thomas Alva Edison himself (or at least the studio which bore his name), were adapting Shelley's iconic tale for the screen. There have been so many film and television adaptations by this point that it might have almost been passé in a way for screenwriter Frank Darabont and director Kenneth Branagh to consider yet another one. But despite a kind of ungainly monster of a film that resulted (one which Darabont in particular seems to loathe), there's a certain "authenticity" to this particular adaptation, at least in terms of hewing more faithfully to Mary Shelley's rather labyrinthine plot (which isn't only about "the man who made a monster"). That tether to source material is commendable, but the result here is often florid and affected, making it kind of hilariously "in tune" with Colin Clive's excited and exaggerated cries of "It's alive!" in the first Universal version.

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein received a prior release on Blu-ray by home studio Sony way back in 2009. If anyone seriously needs a plot recap, my colleague Martin Liebman's Mary Shelley's Frankenstein Blu-ray review of that now long ago release should suffice more than well enough. I'll fall back on my repeated mantra of "different reviewers means different opinions" and add my own two cents' worth in terms of why I rated the overall film somewhat lower than Marty did. There's a seeming disconnect between some of the film's more overblown presentational elements and writing that seems to want to favor a more tamped down, naturalistic (as much as that might be possible considering the more outlandish aspects of the story) style. Frank Darabont has been on record stating how he objected to how "loud" and lacking subtlety director Kenneth Branagh's "interpretation" of Darabont's screenplay is, and while I might quibble with Darabont somewhat (as I'm about to, actually), there is definitely a somewhat dissociative quality to the film that Darabont's questioning may at least help to identify if arguably not to describe "accurately" to everyone's complete satisfaction.

In terms of Darabont's specific complaints, I'd counter that audiences going to any film with Frankenstein in the title are most likely going to want some kind of spectacle, and Branagh is actually relatively constrained in what he provides in that regard. Yes, there's the big, over the top, "animation" sequence and some goofy sidebars as Frankenstein attempts to "liven up" supposedly dead monkey limbs with a jolt of electricity, but even comparing this film's "laboratory" sequence(s) to the one(s) in the 1931 version may offer evidence that Branagh isn't as gonzo as he easily could have been. And there is a really evocative, moody ambience suffusing much of the film, aided and abetted by some gorgeous if often wintry cinematography. It's also commendable that this film didn't try in any way to ape the iconic Jack Pierce makeup for the monster that made the 1931 film and so many of the Universal follow ups so memorable.

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: Screenshots are sourced from the 1080 Blu-ray. This release does not include a 1080 disc.

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with a 2160p transfer in 1.85:1. Arrow's insert booklet contains the following verbiage on the transfer (and it should be noted that Arrow has provided the same booklet for both its 1080 and 2160 releases, which may account for the reference to HDR even in the 1080 booklet):

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein was restored in 4K by Sony Pictures Entertainment. 4K scanning by Prasad Corporation, Burbank from 35mm Original Picture Negative.

Digital Image Restoration by Prasad Corporation, India. HDR color grading by colorist Trent Johnson at Roundabout Entertainment in Santa Monica.

Audio conform at Sony Pictures Entertainment, sourced from the original 35mm stereo magnetic tracks, upmixed to 5.1 by Chace Audio, in 2009. Restoration supervised by Rita Belda for SPE, with color approval by director Kenneth Branagh.

Aside from the kind of curious prevalence of sentence fragments in the above, the information imparted may at least offer assurances that this was handled with the typically excellent curation by Sony of its catalog and that Kenneth Branagh was included. There are manifest and quite noticeable differences in this presentation and the one offered over a decade ago on the original Sony Blu-ray and a few perhaps more subtle ones between Arrow's 1080 and 2160 presentations. I'll simply refer those interested to my Mary Shelley's Frankenstein Blu-ray review of Arrow's 1080 release for my thoughts on the overall look and with regard to certain specific differences I noticed when comparing this new transfer to the now positively ancient one from Sony. Rather interestingly, while there's still the same general warmness in this 2160 presentation that I discuss in the 1080 review, there are some kind of interesting changes in the palette courtesy of HDR and/or Dolby Vision, and in fact the red-purple cape that Helena Bonham Carter wears in a garden scene and which I specifically mention in the 1080 review has a definite crimson undertone in the 2160 presentation that brings it arguably closer to the tone seen in the Sony release. The increased resolution definitely adds noticeable fine detail at times, as with the bristly fur on the unfortunate monkey hand that is made to "do tricks". As with the 1080 presentation, grain is noticeably grittier looking throughout this version as well, not just with regard to the Sony release but I'd say also with regard to Arrow's own 1080 release, That tendency can lead to one arguable deficit here, and that is somewhat chunky, yellowish grain that can accompany darker scenes in particular, and which can at least slightly mask otherwise excellent fine detail levels at times. The chunkiness of the grain field is especially noticeable throughout the opening arctic sequences, where a prevalence of dark and/or blue graded material makes it all the more noticeable and frankly kind of rough looking. Things improve materially once the story shifts to more secure lighting, though rather thick grain is still the order of the day and can easily be spotted against bright backgrounds in particular.

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein features DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and LPCM 2.0 tracks, both of which offer solid support for the film's intermittently ambitious sound design. The surround track definitely opens things up for some of the big set pieces, like the film's opening storm sequence, one place where Marty felt the original Sony Blu-ray provided decent immersion (no pun intended). Marty's observation that surround activity ebbs and flows is certainly still very much in evidence here, but I found the surround track to be decently consistent and to offer increased spaciousness in any number of outdoor scenes in particular, and also with regard to underscoring. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

While Arrow continues with its standard operating procedure of offering only separate 1080 and 2160 releases, commendably both formats sport the same array of supplements:

• Audio Commentary by Michael Brooke and Johnny Mains


• Mary Shelley and the Creation of a Monster (HD; 29:37) features British gothic specialists David Pirie, Stephen Volk and Jonathan Rigby discussing the source novel and its many subsequenct stage and screen adaptations.


• Dissecting Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (HD; 15:32) offers Pirie, Volk and Rigby again detailing differences between the source novel and the adaptation, as well as things like their favorite scenes.


• Frankenstein (1910) (HD; 12:55) is the first screen adaptation of the novel, directed by J. Searle Dawley and released by Edison Studios in March of 1910.


• Interviews

  Stitching Frankenstein (HD; 14:53) features costume designer James Acheson.

  
  

  We'll Go No More A Roving (HD; 12:40) features composer Patrick Doyle.

  
  

  Making it All Up (HD; 14:22) features make up artist Daniel Parker.

• Trailers

  Trailer #1 (HD; 1:29)

  
  

  Trailer #2 (HD; 1:53)

• Image Gallery (HD; 2:40) is authored a bit strangely, unlike anything I've encountered before, with each still allotted ten seconds, at which point you need to chapter skip ahead to the next still. For any math challenged folks (and I needed to chapter skip through each still to confirm my "homework"), that means there are 16 stills in the gallery.

Additionally Arrow provides their typically well appointed insert booklet, with some interesting essays, technical information and a cast list.

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I'm not quite the fan of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein that Marty is/was, but I certainly appreciate the efforts to deliver a more "literary" horror film, and there's absolutely no question in my mind that this release offers arguably improved video as well as inarguably better supplements than the original Sony release. While the film is a kind of hit and/or miss affair, this release offers secure technical merits and excellent supplementary material, always one of Arrow's most defining calling cards. With caveats duly noted, Recommended.