Lisa Frankenstein

Eleven years ago there was a small independent film called "Warm Bodies" with Nicholas Hoult and Teresa Palmer about a young woman meeting and befriending a zombie which was a heartfelt film. Well, with "Lisa Frankenstein", we have a young woman meeting and befriending a corpse, however whereas "Warm Bodies" was much tamer than this film, both were similar yet had their respective originality.

This is 1989. A coming of RAGE love story about a misunderstood teenager, Lisa (Kathryn Newton) and her high school crush, who happens to be a handsome corpse (Cole Sprouse) after a set of playfully horrific circumstances bring him back to life, the two embark on a vengeful, murderous journey to find love, happiness... and a few missing body parts along the way. Lisa is misunderstood due to witnessing her mother's gruesome death a number of years prior, which leaves her hurt, fearful and isolated. Where is a person able to reconnect with others? How about a cemetery.

Others to round out the cast are Carla Gugino as Janet Swallows, Lisa's stepmother, Liza Soberano as Taffy Swallows, Lisa's stepsister, Joe Chrest as Dale Swallows, Lisa's father, Henry Eikenberry as Michael Trent, Jenna Davis as Lori, Trina Lafargue as Tricia and Bryce Romero as Doug.

This was directed with such clarity and subtle humor by Zelda Williams ("Shrimp" (TV movie) '18, Kappa Kappa Die" '20) plus music videos and TV. Surely this writer doesn't have a plethora of feature film experience, but since she has directed a fair amount of videos, this has served her well. Her ability to transform Lisa's change from this withdrawn, unpopular teenager into a popular and a virtual extrovert was genius since Lisa's change was amazingly subtle. She will receive more work. It was written by Diablo Cody ("Juno" '07, "Jennifer's Body" '09, "Young Adult" '11, "Paradise" '13, "Ricki and the Flash" '15, "Raised by Wolves" (TV movie) '17, "Tully" '18, "Most Likely To" (TV movie) '18, "So Much" (TV movie) '21) plus TV, videos and a short. With all the films this writer has penned, "Juno" is probably her best which is ironic considering it was her first film. She definitely is focused on 'rights of passage' films, this film proving that. This film simply takes the 'rights of passage' concept and makes it over-the-top in a bizarre and odd story. Even though Cody's trademark is the growing pains of people and written in a quirky format, this is still way 'out there' for even Cody. She is such a talented writer that, even if one isn't in love with some of her premises, they can't deny that the film is written well. Other than a small area of continuity issues and a small amount of choppiness, this film was unique and well worth the watch. 

If you're a Diablo Cody fan, you will be very comfortable with this, however, if you're not used to her work, you might want to Netflix something a bit tamer, like "Juno". This way to can see her talent, but not be faced with work that is quirky and odd on a good day. I enjoy her work which is primarily why I finally went to see this and it was Cody--true to form.

Out of 4 Stars: 3                                            Rated: PG-13                                    101mins.