Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

This unfairly maligned adaptation of the classic novel has some unintentionally campy moments but generally succeeds as a lavishly mounted horror drama. Following Mary Shelley's novella more closely than previous FRANKENSTEIN pictures (in contrast to producer Francis Ford Coppola's other horror epic, the misleadlingly titled BRAM STOKER'S DRACULA), Kenneth Branagh's film features himself as the idealistic Dr. Frankenstein, Helena Bonham Carter as his hapless fiancee, and Robert De Niro as an existentially troubled monster.

It's ironic that many critics applauded the visual vitality and broad cinematic strokes that director Branagh brought to Shakespeare in MU...