Horror Movie Review: Lisa Frankenstein (2024)

Lisa Frankenstein is a comedy horror film directed by Zelda Williams, in her feature-length directorial debut, releasing in 2024.

In 1989, teenage Lisa Swallows is still struggling to come to terms with the loss of her mother, who was killed by an axe murderer two years earlier. Her father has since remarried a woman named Janet, who also has a daughter from a previous marriage, Taffy. Lisa spends much of her time at a local cemetery.

Lisa heads to a party with Taffy, who encourages her to socialise. She has an awkward encounter with her crush and is accidentally drugged by one of his friends. Lisa returns to the cemetery and speaks to the grave of a young man who died in 1837. A bolt of lightning strikes his grave after Lisa leaves, and the man is brought back to life as a zombie.

The man breaks into the house. Lisa is initially terrified, but eventually recognizes him as the man whose grave she dotes on, and decides to hide him in her closet. The Creature is mute, covered in debris, and missing multiple body parts.

Lisa claims that a burglar broke in to explain the mess made by the Creature, but Janet claims she is making it up for attention. When she threatens to send Lisa to an asylum, the Creature kills Janet and cuts off her ear before the two dump Janet’s body in the cemetery. Lisa sews Janet’s ear onto the Creature, but discovers that the parts will not work without a current. They use Taffy’s tanning bed to revive the ear, which also restores the Creature to a more human appearance.

Lisa then lures Doug to the cemetery so that she can cut off his hand for the Creature. The Creature kills Doug and hides his body with Janet’s. Once again able to play the piano, the Creature starts to bond with Lisa.

The police start to investigate Janet’s and Doug’s disappearances. Lisa is implicated but refuses to cooperate with the investigation. Check out Lisa Frankenstein to find out what happens next!

You might go into watching Lisa Frankenstein thinking you know exactly how events are going to play out but you could be surprised. The thing I enjoyed most about this movie is the unconventional and unexpected way in which the plot plays out. Lisa is a really interesting character because she blurs the lines between good and evil on a number of occasions. There are times in which it makes you ask the question, who is the monster?

Additionally, Lisa Frankenstein offers a fresh and inventive way to utilize the whole “Frankenstein” story. The usage of the tanning bed as a mechanism to rejuvenate the monster is a fun idea. You see the man slowly becoming more and more humanlike each time which is a nice touch. Talking of the zombie guy, props to Cole Sprouse for delivering a really fun performance here.

The aspect that obviously stands out is the delightful aesthetic on display. The 80s vibes are in overdrive with a number of needle drops that feel really well placed. There’s a really cool and creative dream sequence that I liked a lot.

The characters on the whole are decent and each add to the story in the story in their own way. Also, don’t you love it when an ending to a movie gives you exactly what you wanted?

I would say that I felt the film could have been funnier and at times feels somewhat confused on exactly what it wants to be.

Overall, Lisa Frankenstein is a pretty zany horror comedy that won’t be for everyone but I found it to be a lot of fun.