Set in 1989, Lisa Frankenstein follows traumatized teen Lisa Swallows. Alienated and outcast, she spends most of her time in a dilapidated graveyard where she befriends a handsome headstone. When an intense bolt of lightning sends the corpse buried under said headstone stumbling to Lisa’s front door, together they embark on a murderous mission to make the corpse whole again.
Lisa Frankenstein is Diablo Cody’s return to horror-comedies after a fifteen year absence. Her previous effort was the wildly popular Jennifer’s Body (directed by Karyn Kusama). While that film tried to do both horror and comedy equally, Lisa Frankenstein leans fully into the comedy with better results.
Kathryn Newton plays the titular Lisa, and does a pretty good job (Certainly better than her efforts in Quantumania). She makes Lisa a very likable character, even as she grows into an arguably worse person as the flick rolls on. Carla Gugino (QUEEN!), plays Janet, the reluctant and hateful adoptive mother of Lisa. While her role/performance can’t match the insane heights of her role in The Fall of the House of Usher, Gugino is still very funny and memorable with limited screen time (and yes, thankfully there is a RHPS joke involving her).
Liza Soberano is very good as Taffy, Lisa’s adopted sister. Taffy is one of the cool, popular girls at school. She’s shown to be fairly dumb and vain, but is one of the few characters who treats Lisa with any kind of kindness and empathy. She’s surprisingly likable and memorable.
Cole Sprouse (of Zack and Cody and Riverdale fame) plays the re-animated corpse that Lisa falls for. He is mute for 99% of the movie, but his reactions to events are highly entertaining. He does a lot with just his body language, the way he moves, and his facial expressions. It also doesn’t hurt that Cody grew up to be pretty damn cute (and all of his outfits look great on him)! He just about steals every scene he’s in. I can’t wait to see him in more movies.
Zelda Williams (daughter of Robin Williams) directs Lisa Frankenstein. She has directed some very independent films before, but she seems to have mostly directed music videos. Under her direction, Lisa leans heavily into the goofy and the silly. It can be a bit jarring, but at least it’s consistent with its humorous tone.
Mark Worthington is in charge of production design and Paula Huidobro does cinematography (and is it just me, or is Huidobro too much fun to say?). Lisa Frankenstein is highly stylized, so-much-so it practically bleeds style. The film looks and feels like it’s set in the late 80s, to the point where audiences should be able to tell the time period it’s set in just by the way the flick looks (we don’t get confirmation of the year until well into the 2nd act). Lisa features two delightful animated sequences as well as a fun dream sequence. These, as well as the overall tone and style, help to set Lisa Frankenstein apart from other films of its ilk.
Those expecting any kind of horror from Lisa Frankenstein are bound to be disappointed. It would seem Diablo Cody learned lessons from Jennifer’s Body and has decided to stick to what she does best: Comedy. Lisa is practically wall-to-wall jokes, and most work incredibly well. There’s also a good deal of heart and sweetness hidden under the cotton-candy bubblegum aesthetics. Lisa does feel like it wraps up a little too quickly, but when that’s the biggest problem with your film, there is little need to worry.
Lisa Frankenstein is certainly flawed in some respects, but damn if it isn’t a bunch of laugh-filled fun. Diablo Cody’s return to horror-comedies is mostly a success. Luckily for us, this flick is far from a shambling, stumbling corpse. It’s confident, assured, and fairly memorable. Teens and adults should find much to enjoy with this macabre, funny flick.
3 STARS
No comments:
Post a Comment