Lisa Frankenstein (15)

Dir: Zelda Williams

Cast: Kathryn Newton, Cole Sprouse, Liza Soberano, Henry Eikenberry, Joe Chrest, Carla Gugino

Diablo Cody’s throwback to 80’s comedy-horrors slowly finds its feet but never quite measures up to the cult classics it pays homage

There has been plenty of criticism as of late regarding the Academy Awards and their inability to recognise the unquestionable female talent that is working in the industry today. Most notably, writer-director Greta Gerwig is yet to receive an Oscar despite directing three Best Picture nominees in a row. However, there are signs that the now more diverse members of the Academy are gradually learning their lesson, as we have seen the likes of Chloe Zhao and Jane Campion become the second and third women respectively to win for their directing.

Two categories that were shockingly absent of female winners for a number of years however are the two screenplay categories. In recent times we have seen female screenwriters Emerald Fennell, Sian Heder, Sarah Polley and most recently Justine Triet win in the screenplay categories but for almost fifteen years this was not the case. At the 80th Academy Awards in 2008, a then 29-year-old Diablo Cody broke onto the seen as she won the Academy Award for Original Screenplay at the first time of asking for the critically acclaimed Juno.

The comedy-drama saw the scribe tune into the feminine insights of both teenage girls and young parents, whilst delivering plenty of humour and a plethora of quotable lines. While Cody has never quite reached these heavy heights again she has penned other off-kilter tales of female empowerment, such as the criminally underappreciated Jennifer’s Body (2009) and the spikey Young Adult (2011). Cody’s latest project ‘Lisa Frankenstein’, would make an excellent companion to the aforementioned, Megan Fox vampire flick, as another modern take on the classic movie monster.

Helmed by Zelda Williams (daughter of Robin Williams), in what is her directorial feature, ‘Lisa Frankenstein‘ stars Kathryn Newton as the titular Lisa, a reclusive 80’s goth, who witnessed her mum get brutally murdered by an Axe murder, only to see her dad get re-married to the frustratingly intolerant Janet (Carla Gugino). When she is not avoiding her peppy cheerleader stepsister Taffy (Liza Soberano) the socially distant Lisa spends her days daydreaming at a nearby cemetery, wishing she could be with the deceased occupant of her favourite grave. After a a lightning storm straight out of Weird Science strikes the cemetery, the actual occupant of the grave, a heart-broken Frankensteinian creature (Cole Sprouse), takes Lisa’s wishes to heart, abandoning his coffin and joining her in the land of the living.

The initially terrified Lisa begins to warm to the cold and bug-ridden corpse as she finally comes out of her shell and grows in confidence. She begins donning the Madonna-esque clothes of her step-sister and begins turning heads at her school, including her crush Michael (Henry Eikenberry). The love-struck creature is clearly smitten, despite his years of decay rendering him unable to talk or listen, but Lisa only uses the walking cadaver as emotional support. It is only when the tone takes a turn and the duo become responsible for a handful of murders that Lisa begins to emotionally connect to the creature, in her own unique and quirky way.

On paper, with all the talent at its disposal, ‘Lisa Frankenstein’ has all the ingredients of a modern cult classic but it unfortunately never quite lives up to its full potential. I think the main issue is Diablo Cody trying her hand at too many genre’s at once, never quite materialising as any, resulting in the narrative feeling patchy and stitched together like Sprouse’s lovelorn creature. The film gradually starts to find its feet by the second and third acts but it feels rather safe by Cody, who doesn’t push far enough in any of the many directions the story tries to take us. There is still a good time to be had with ‘Lisa Frankenstein’ thanks to the two leads, the always reliable Kathryn Newton who has become a staple of the genre in recent years thanks to her fantastic body-switching performance in Freaky (2020), and also has an upcoming role in horror-comedy Abigail later this year. Clearly inspired by his performance as Edward Scissorhands, Cole Sprouse does his best impression of a young-and-sad Johnny Depp of the era – making him instantly watchable and likeable despite his dialogue being limited to a handful of grunts.

‘Lisa Frankenstein’ proudly wears its influences on its sleeve, with clear nods to Heathers (1988) and the many works of Tim Burton, showcased in particular with a gothic animated opening sequence that could easily be found in one of Burton’s sketchbooks. However, these just serve as reminders of better films from the sub-genre that you could be watching instead, which have stood the test of time over thirty years later, a feat that ‘Lisa Frankenstein’ will most likely not achieve.

‘Lisa Frankenstein‘ serves as a de-fanged gateway to Cody’s way more ambitious, substantial and violent ‘Jennifer’s Body’ but despite feeling saturated, there is plenty of fun to be had thanks to some great imagery, performances and a banging soundtrack of excellent 80’s hits.

Lisa Frankenstein is now showing in UK Cinemas