“Here comes the mother fucking bride!”
And she comes for sure, but she is not alone. The time has finally come for the world to be graced with the presence of Frankenstein’s Bride. But this time, she has the story to share, and not the other way around. Over a full century after the reincarnation of Frankenstein’s Monster, Mary Shelley wants her bride to get the spotlight she deserves. But does The Bride! truly do this for the world?
Drawing inspiration from the 1935 film Bride of Frankenstein and in turn Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel Frankenstein, writer-director Maggie Gyllenhaal has brought another female led story to the screen. It is her second feature-film as well. The film stars Jessie Buckley and Christian Bale, alongside them is Peter Sarsgaard, Annette Benning, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Penélope Cruz. It had its world premiere at the Cineworld Leicester Square in London, England on February 26, 2026 ahead of releasing world wide on March 6 2026.
Set in the 1930s, The Bride! begins in Chicago. Young female Ida (Buckley) endures a deadly accident. Frankenstein’s Monster (Bale) comes to town with a heart that wants his love. He finds Dr. Euphronius (Benning) and begs her to create a companion for him. Together, they find this unknown body of a recently murdered woman. Bringing her to life, without her memory intact, she becomes the Bride! As the unknown becomes more welcoming, the Bride and Frankenstein develop a romantic relationship. Along with their romance, cops head their way, searching down the murderous monsters that have been terrorizing the country.
Off the bat, you know why Gyllenhaal has once again cast Buckley as her protagonist. From the moment it begins, you are left completely stunned and grappled by Buckley’s performance. Her portrayal of Shelley comes across as a true ghost like character. Thus playing into the phantom story that is being created. With Gyllenhaal’s smart decisions, the character of Shelley is split into her own black and white space. The mystery comes through a lot more thoroughly with this separation. Truly stupendous just how wonderful Buckley is able to tackle three completely different roles that all coincide with each other in The Bride! She steps into multiple personas that feel unlike anything we have seen her do before.
“I thought you were a mad scientist.”
And mad we all are. Yet in her attempt to create something original and fresh Gyllenhaal might have gone too far into the absurdity of it all. At times it would appear The Bride! is not sure what it wants to be. Easily classified as a romantic comedy with where it goes, in terms of Frankenstein and his Bride, it becomes revealed that there is more to the film that just that. Who knows which genre it steps too far into for the results leave it a bit too overbearing to enjoy.
As the Bride comes to terms with Frankenstein, the two gallivant all over the country to no end. The only thing driving them forward appears to be the need to escape the cops, but with a want to watch Ronnie Reed (Gyllenhaal) pictures. It takes all too long for anything substantial to occur. Then when we are given these climactic moments, the film goes absolutely haywire. While Buckley and Bale are using their roles to break free and act completely obscure, their costars feel somewhat underused.
The Bride! wants to be a powerful and empowering piece of cinema when all it really needed to be was dark, comedic and fun. Instead, plot points are added that drag out the runtime and take away from the monster movie that is what Frankenstein and/or his Bride are. Instead, audiences are given that with the twist of female empowerment and an abusive mob boss on a spree.
With the excessive schemes mixed in, The Bride! becomes overwhelming and at times lost. For Ida more specifically, you do not understand her background until the very end. Some viewers may not worry too much about this. But for others, usually you want to know who your protagonist is. Buckley has three separate personas in the film, but only one that truly mattered. The Bride was not given her own life, there was something there that kept her back.
Held in such high regard from the moment The Bride! was announced, the results are less than what was hoped for. What could have been much more turned out to be too messy, a chance missed, all held together by an ensemble cast. A cast that could have done much more if given the chance. The Bride! might have come, but not in the way we had hoped for.
Yes, some fun concepts may be involved and a talented cast, but not enough to be that brilliant picture we all wanted it to be. The Bride! might please some audiences more than others, but the general consensus is where it appears to fail. For Mary Shelley, and especially Jessie Buckley fans, the best place to watch and support The Bride! would indeed be in cinemas. A big screen watch no matter which way the film unfolds in your eyes.