Maggie Gyllenhaal offers a bold new take on the Frankenstein myth, based on Mary Shelley’s characters and inspired by the 1935 film “Bride of Frankenstein.” Jessie Buckley channels plenty of angst as the titular protagonist, hell-bent on dispensing justice in a misogynistic world, while Christian Bale plays the lonely monster longing for a mate. “The Bride!” is a visceral postmodern gut punch that combines the rebellious spirit of “True Romance” and “Bonnie and Clyde” with the flamboyance of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.” Madness takes its toll, indeed.
Taking inspiration from Elsa Lanchester, who played The Bride and Mary Shelley in the 1935 film, Jessie Buckley takes on both roles, starting with the author as our afterlife meta-narrator who frames “The Bride!” as a “spiritual sequel” to her 1818 novel. She rants and raves about never being able to fully explore the Bride’s story—the half-finished creature companion destroyed by Victor Frankenstein—so, like a malevolent entity, she possesses the body of gangster moll Ida (Buckley), who twitches and twerks while calling out misogynist mobster Lupino (Zlatko Burić). The crime boss is known for murdering and mutilating women, often cutting out their tongues. You can guess what happens to Ida.
The prohibition-era story unfolds in 1936 Chicago, where notable scientist Dr. Cornelia Euphronius (Annette Bening), who studied Victor Frankenstein’s work reviving dead tissue, is visited by his monster, “Frank,” who asks for a small favor. For 111 years, he has been without a mate, and he seeks carnal pleasure. The good doctor reluctantly agrees to help Frank, so off they go to the graveyard to dig up a companion—Ida reenters the story.
Euphronius successfully brings Ida back to life, but the experiment leaves a permanent black stain on Ida’s face, caused by a chemical reaction during the reanimation process. Symbolically, the splatter mark represents the ink of Mary Shelley’s manuscript bleeding out to tell the Bride’s unfinished story.
Ida has no memory of her past life, so Frank tells her they are married. Later in the film, she asks him what her name is. Frank wants to call her Ginger Rogers, but settles on Penelope or “Penny” for short. He takes her to the movies—Frank is a big fan of actor Ronnie Reed (Jake Gyllenhaal)—and they hit a nightclub where a couple of jerks get too handsy with our Bride, causing Frank to smash in their heads. The monster couple flees, becoming outlaws, à la Bonnie and Clyde. The killing spree continues after they take out a security guard who discovers them hiding on a train bound for New York.
Peter Sarsgaard and Penélope Cruz enter the story as a pair of detectives hot on the trail of the monster outlaws. She’s the brains of the operation, but because the world is sexist, Cruz hides behind her partner’s shield, acting as his assistant. Don’t worry, Gyllenhaal corrects the situation, maybe a little too easily.
“The Bride!” wears many veils. First, it resembles the film “True Romance,” with Frank and the Bride on the run from the cops and gangsters, like Clarence and Alabama, who flee the mafia in the 1993 romantic crime drama directed by Tony Scott. Then, we get a whimsical dance number as the creature couple shuffles their feet to Irving Berlin’s classic “Puttin’ on the Ritz” while possessing the entire club to mimic their dance moves. It’s funny, charming, and a tribute to Mel Brooks’ 1974 comedy “Young Frankenstein.” The musical interlude, punk-rock energy, and campy atmosphere also recall “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.”
Speaking of punk rock, “The Bride!” echoes the 1980 film “Times Square,” starring Trini Alvarado and Robin Johnson as teenage runaways (known as the Sleez Sisters) who develop a cult following that begins dressing like the teen protagonists. The same thing happens to Buckley’s Bride, with many followers sporting black splatter on their faces. There’s also another “Rocky Horror” connection, as Tim Curry plays the NYC radio DJ. Great soundtrack.
Following an incredible performance in last year’s “Hamnet,” Jessie Buckley is once again unforgettable as the Bride; she is electrifying. This is her second collaboration with Gyllenhaal after appearing in 2021’s “The Lost Daughter.” If you’re going to give Shelley’s character a voice, especially after the creature was tossed aside in the novel, and then only appeared for 5 minutes in 1935’s “Bride of Frankenstein,” there’s no one better for the task than Jessie Buckley. She adds deep emotional depth to the iconic character, elevating the film that some may view as too chaotic. Sure, it has its flaws, it’s inconsistent with drastic tonal shifts, but it is not “Joker: Folie à Deux.”
Christian Bale, in “big lummox” mode, manages to add warmth to a primal role, letting the audience empathize with the monster even when he’s smashing skulls. Sure, he lets out a few primitive screams, but they are shrieks of joy inspired by the Bride’s empowerment. Nothing like the monosyllabic grunts and groans that accompanied Boris Karloff’s classic portrayal.
I applaud Maggie Gyllenhaal for her boldness. She’s not concerned with appeasing horror fans; she’s here to correct the lack of autonomy given to the most iconic female member of the Universal monster club. Hildur Guðnadóttir provides a haunting score with Fever Ray (Karin Dreijer) contributing two original songs.
“The Bride!” is a funhouse feminist manifesto. Think of her as the goth cousin of Margot Robbie’s Barbie. Eleanor Roosevelt once said, “A woman is like a tea bag – you can’t tell how strong she is until you put her in hot water.” With that in mind, Buckley, Benning, and Cruz are running this show.
(3 ½ stars)
Now showing in theaters
This <a target=”_blank” href=”https://fortworthreport.org/2026/03/12/the-bride-review-gyllenhaal-gives-agency-to-universals-most-iconic-female-member-with-the-help-of-buckleys-electrifying-performance/”>article</a> first appeared on <a target=”_blank” href=”https://fortworthreport.org”>Fort Worth Report</a> and is republished here under a <a target=”_blank” href=”https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/”>Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License</a>.<img src=”https://i0.wp.com/fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/cropped-favicon.png?resize=150%2C150&quality=80&ssl=1″ style=”width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;”>
<img id=”republication-tracker-tool-source” src=”https://fortworthreport.org/?republication-pixel=true&post=445121&ga4=2820184429″ style=”width:1px;height:1px;”><script> PARSELY = { autotrack: false, onload: function() { PARSELY.beacon.trackPageView({ url: “https://fortworthreport.org/2026/03/12/the-bride-review-gyllenhaal-gives-agency-to-universals-most-iconic-female-member-with-the-help-of-buckleys-electrifying-performance/”, urlref: window.location.href }); } } </script> <script id=”parsely-cfg” src=”//cdn.parsely.com/keys/fortworthreport.org/p.js”></script>