The Hollywood Reporter by David Rooney

One of del Toro’s finest, this is epic-scale storytelling of uncommon beauty, feeling and artistry.

Philadelphia Daily News by Ellis Widner

Director James Whale's masterpiece is the definitive monster flick, one of the scariest films of all time. [04 Nov 1994, p.97]

The A.V. Club by Keith Phipps

Frankenstein works as a fast-moving thriller and, even now, a stylish, frighteningly atmospheric horror film, but also as a sad outcast parable. Frankenstein's creature may be a monstrosity, but he's also instantly sympathetic to anyone who's ever felt like a misfit.

TV Guide Magazine by Staff (Not Credited)

Nothing can detract from the power of the most influential monster movie ever made.

Village Voice by Elliott Stein

The most influential horror film ever made, this stark and stylish work has a weird fairytale beauty. Boris Karloff gives one of the most indelible performances in American cinema as the monster, misjudged by the society that created him, at once terrifying and pathetic, a moving study of alienation and primitive anger.

Empire by Kim Newman

Beautiful photography, a heartbreaking story, and iconic moments from beginning to end. Absolutely unmissable.

Chicago Reader by Don Druker

One of the most deservedly famous and chilling horror films of all time.

TheWrap by Steve Pond

Del Toro’s Frankenstein is a remarkable achievement that in a way hijacks the flagship story of the horror genre and turns it into a tale of forgiveness.

IndieWire by Beth Hanna

Whale’s direction nods to German Expressionism — the Escher-like dimensions of Dr. Frankenstein’s laboratory, the off-kilter camera angles, the long-armed shadows that extend over characters’ faces. Yet something softer anchors the film: sorrow.

The New Yorker by Pauline Kael

Probably the most famous of all horror films, and one of the best.

Chicago Tribune by John Petrakis

For its influence alone, this is a movie that more than deserves its classic status. [23 June 2000, p.M]

ReelViews by James Berardinelli

As much as the later movies diluted the character of the Frankenstein creature, nothing could blunt the impact made by Karloff in the role of the most memorable movie monster of all time.

The Telegraph by Robbie Collin

Over two and a half hours, the pop-gothic intensity can get a little much – at times I felt like a fire extinguisher was going off in my face – but you wouldn’t necessarily want to lose any of it.

Total Film by Jane Crowther

Cleaving closely to the source material, del Toro wants to explore the trauma that makes us, mankind's capacity for cruelty, the death we bring on ourselves through war, and the catharsis of forgiveness – all notions that make Frankenstein relevant in current world politics and social media savagery.

Time Out by Phil de Semlyen

As with The Shape of Water, del Toro makes no secret of where his sympathy lies and who the real monsters are, but there are surprises here. Not least of which is how moved you might feel in the end.

IndieWire by Ryan Lattanzio

If you want your del Toro weirder, Frankenstein might not be your cup. But if you want a period monster movie that’s solid, almost oaken in its sturdiness, you don’t need to knock on wood to assure that del Toro is keeping the innermost essence, the soul of cinema, alive at least.

The Guardian by Peter Bradshaw

Finally, inevitably, at the end of the protracted tale, we get to the question of which of the two is the “real” monster. The answer, in this high-minded and eventually rather sanctified romance, would appear to be – neither of them.

The Independent by Geoffrey Macnab

For all Del Toro’s formal mastery, this Frankenstein is ultimately short of the voltage needed really to bring it to life.

The Times by Kevin Maher

It is not the greatest Frankenstein ever. It’s not even an especially good one. It’s just, in the end, serviceable.

Next Best Picture by Josh Parham

Ultimately, the piece collapses under the weight of del Toro’s vision, a muddled collage of tones that consistently underwhelms. It’s a beautiful collage that amounts to a surprisingly arduous execution.