Director – Zelda Williams (Kappa Kappa Die, Dark/Web)
Starring – Kathryn Newton (Freaky, Supernatural), Liza Soberano (She’s the One, Everyday I Love You), and Jenna Davis (Stay At Home, M3gan)
Release Date – 2024
Rating – 4/5
Diablo Cody has made a name for herself after penning several unforgettable films over the years. While I’m not really of fan of her dramas and comedies, I’m a huge fan of her forays into horror. Jennifer’s Body may draw criticism from horror hipsters, but I enjoy it. I think it’s a great popcorn horror flick. When I started receiving press releases for Lisa Frankenstein, the newest film written by Cody, I was very interested in it. I heard a lot of great things about it when it hit theaters, but I wasn’t able to check it out during that time. However, I was lucky enough to land a review copy of the film on blu.
**Spoiler Alert** The film follows Lisa (Newton) who lost her mother to a deranged axe murderer some time ago. Her father remarried to a verbally abusive woman with a genuinely kind daughter. She spends her spare time at an abandoned cemetery near her new home. One evening while laying on a grave she makes a wish that she was with the guy buried there before the headstone is struck with lightning. That night the corpse awakens and breaks into her home after mistaking her plea for help with a proclamation of love. Now she must traverse high school in the 80s while trying to hide a living corpse that loves her so much, he is willing to kill for her. **Spoiler Alert**
Jennifer’s Body is a seriously underrated pop horror flick, and I was expecting more of the same from Lisa Frankenstein. After diving into it I can safely say that I enjoyed it just as much, if not more, than Jennifer’s Body. I’m clearly not the target audience for the film either but it is still enjoyable especially if you are in the mood for something with a bigger budget and a little on the family friendly side.
The acting in this one is so much fun. Kathryn Newton is amazing as the film’s lead while Cole Sprouse does so much while doing so little. These two are created together. We then had unforgettable performances from Liza Soberano, Carla Gugino and Joe Chrest. This is a fantastic cast and when you add them to the beautifully written characters you are left with something that sticks with you days after watching it.
The story for this one has a lot that I can appreciate, not only as a genre fan, but as a movie fan in general. I love the playful name that reminds a certain age group of the folders, pens, pencils, and other school supplies they had from the late 80 and early 90s. You then have a lot of characters with very developed backstories and a story that fits the namesake very well. I do have some questions like why is a Victorian era corpse so fresh? I know it’s a romantic horror comedy catered to the female demographic, and it takes liberties to make the story work but a moment to explain a few things would go a long way with some of the viewers.
Finally, the film has a lot of make-up effects and few gags that look great but nothing that will impress the genre fans looking for blood and gore. I loved the look of the creature but that is the extent of the effects. Overall, Lisa Frankenstein is a fun pop horror flick that absolutely works. I seriously enjoyed it and I hope Diablo Cody continues writing horror titles.
