#REVIEW: “THE BRIDE”

Review by Justin Waldman for Mr. Will Wong

Actor-turned-Filmmaker Maggie Gyllenhaal has shown great ability and promise as seen in The Lost Daughter.  She is back at it again with The Bride. Let’s start with the positives. Her direction and the quality of Cast are unmatched, and the Cinematography by Lawrence Sher is breathtaking. The Script however is a bit of a fever dream and that missing ingredient here. We can’t help but feel this sublime Cast deserved so much more. The Bride is an exhaustive re-imagining of The Bride of Frankenstein. One part Bonnie and Clyde,  and other parts Joker: Folie a Deux (which I actually liked a fair bit).

The Movie starts off with Mary Shelley (Jessie Buckley) as she is telling her story, searching to find a new body to take over – something to that effect. She wants to live in another mind, so she finds spunky Ida (Jessie Buckley) whose inner voice and possession comes from Shelley, herself. Ida is quite a presence, she’s brash and loves to say what’s on her mind at any cost, Unfortunately for her, says the wrong thing about a Chicago mob boss, Lupino (Zlatko Buric), who makes it a mission to ensure Ida doesn’t continue to be a problem.

Switch story points now and we meet Frank (Christian Bale) who refers to himself as Frank/Frankenstein, as he is trying to meet Dr. Euphronius (Annette Benning), as he is lonely, calling upon the mother of creation to help him source a partner. There is a joke about not finding an attractive red head, and lo and behold, the body they uncover is that of Ida. Without fully getting into nitty gritty and spoiling anything, Ida has no recollection of who she is, Frank swoons over her and tries to win her over, and their Bonnie & Clyde adventure gets rolling into the thick of the plot. Throughout The Bride, we’re introduced to a film star that Frank is obsessed with, Ronnie Reed (Jake Gyllenhaal),  as he wants to visit all the locations of his films, and has worked as background in his films previously. But they’re not alone in this adventure, as Bonnie & Clyde goes, they’re now being hunted down by the police, led by Detective Jacke Wiles (Peter Sarsgaard) and his partner, Myrna Mallow (Penélope Cruz).

The Bride is an ambitious retelling of The Bride of Frankenstein, but examined through a feminist lens. It takes big swings, but misses. This feels like it could’ve and should’ve been a limited series, as there are so many ideas which need the proper amount of time and space to develop. But with the limited time we’re given here, some subplots begin and never quite get the treatment they deserve, like the one involving Ronnie Reed. This is such an outstanding Cast (and Director) and they could elevate anything really. But even with their best efforts, The Bride still manages to feel disjointed and hollow, which is a shame. A more focused Script would have made a world of difference.

This Film had everything to make for something extraordinary, and while we trust that Gyllenhaal and Sher‘s continued partnership will yield something dynamic and iconic, The Bride is best left at the alter here.

Warner Bros. Pictures Canada release THE BRIDE Friday, March 6, 2026.