The sparkling marquee lights beckoned and I found myself at the movie theater again. This time to see Lisa Frankenstein, the latest film from Diablo Cody, and the film directorial debut of Zelda Williams.
Lisa Frankenstein is a horror comedy (or a “coming-of-rage story” to quote the promos) set in the 1980s. The film follows misunderstood Kathryn Newton and a zombified Cole Sprouse as they gather the body parts he lost in decomposition to bring him back to life.
Full disclosure, I am absolutely the target audience of this film, I loved Jennifer’s Body, I love campy horror films, and female revenge stories are my guilty pleasure.
Lisa Frankenstein hits in all the right places. It is funny and charming, it’s not particularly gory (which many horror films tend to go over the top on for me), and the love story at the center of it makes it a great Valentine’s release without it being a true rom-com. It fills a gap in the film world, with the camp of old-school horror and the humor to make fun of the tropes that litter film today (think OG Scream). By not taking itself too seriously, Lisa Frankenstein gets to be a film where the actors are having a good time and the audience does too.
Sprouse and Newton are so silly together that you are rooting for them to actually communicate and get together just like a classic rom-com. They bring out the best in each other and it was refreshing to see Sprouse in a role where he doesn’t seem trapped like he did at the end of Riverdale. Kathryn Newton is proving herself to be an indie horror movie darling following her tour-de-force in Freaky (a must-watch for any comedy-horror fan!). But the real stand-out to me was Liza Soberano, who plays Newton’s step-sister Taffy. I was not familiar with Soberano before this movie, but she was so much fun and will for sure be on my must-watch list in the future!
I went into this movie following the news that Diablo Cody said the film exists in the same universe as her 2009 film Jennifer’s Body, which stands as the premier female revenge story for me (hello, Adam Brody). Being that Lisa Frankenstein takes place in the 80s, I figured that there wouldn’t be much of a link between characters, but the way that Cody creates situations in which the female revenge is just so juicy and mirrors that of Jennifer’s Body. The moral of the story is don’t mess with a badass female, she might just turn around and plot her revenge.
Whether you are looking for a nice girls’ night out movie, a date night film, or just going solo, Lisa Frankenstein is a silly romp that will make you laugh and cry and has a pretty stellar 80s soundtrack! Stream the only rerecorded song featured in the film and get ready for a new favorite!