《Frankenstein》(Frankenstein) extended version retrieves a parricide scene

 Guillermo del Toro cut an important scene from Frankenstein in which young Victor poisons his father.Now, this plot has returned to Frankenstein: The Reborn Cut, released by Criterion Collection, and also changed the direction of the first act of the story.

The film is adapted from Mary Shelley's novel, and the father, Leopold Frankenstein, is played by Charles Dance.Del Toro explained in the newly recorded audio commentary that it was James Cameron who suggested he delete the entire scene.He still believes that this suggestion makes sense as far as the theatrical version is concerned.

Cameron is worried about two things.First, it may be difficult for viewers to identify with a Victor who kills his father.Secondly, if he has killed his father and avenged his mother, he has completed his mission. Why should he continue to pursue immortality?Del Toro understood this concern about dramatic motivations, but still couldn't bear to part with the scene: “This is one of my favorite sequences I have ever filmed.” When talking about whether the audience can identify with Victor, he also added that even if this paragraph is deleted, the audience will still find it difficult to identify.

The rebirth cut is 2 hours, 38 minutes and 43 seconds long, while the original theatrical version is 2 hours, 30 minutes and 10 seconds, a difference of 8 minutes and 33 seconds.Most of the new content falls at the beginning, giving the Frankensteins more room to get along before their creation appears.The theatrical version had been viewed 29.1 million times in its first three days on Netflix.

Victor has more bonding moments with his brother William, played by Felix Camerer, and William's fiancée, Elizabeth, played by Mia Goss.Another newly added horror sequence shows Victor's mother's face gradually decaying and being eaten by maggots.

What’s on Netflix’s review of the new version focuses on the cyclical relationship brought about by the patricide plot: Victor kills his father, and later his creation also wants to kill his “father”, but the cycle of violence is broken at the end.Critics also believed that this new paragraph strengthened Victor's Oedipal complex and also made the arrangement of Goss playing both Elizabeth and Victor's mother more vivid.

Criterion's version was released in 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray and DVD on October 27, and includes both cuts.This is the seventh Del Toro work included in the label, following films such as Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio.

Extras include del Toro’s newly recorded audio commentary for the 2026 Rebirth cut and a one-hour making-of documentary, The Anatomy Lesson: Director’s Cut, which is further expanded on the 45-minute version already released by Netflix.

《The Parlour》(The Parlour) A conversation around the craft of film, with del Toro, Jacob Elordi, Mia Goss, Oscar Isaac, as well as director of photography Dan Lausterson, production designer Tamara Deverell, costume designer Kate Hawley and creature stylist Mike Hill.The set also includes Q&A sessions hosted by Martin Scorsese and Patti Smith, a 17-minute interview with composer Alexandre Desplat, and an essay by writer Christopher Frayling.

Netflix currently still provides the original theatrical version, and the rebirth edited version is currently exclusively distributed by Criterion. There is no confirmed news of being released on Netflix.