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Frankenstein by Mary Shelley is one of my favorite classic novels, so I was very nervous but hopeful for Guillermo del Toro's adaptation, Frankenstein (2025). Luckily, I shouldn't have worried because this was easily my favorite adaptation of the story by a long shot. It makes a few changes, but they really worked for me here. The cinematography and production design are stunning. It made my day when I realized that the set of Captain Anderson's ship was designed by Matthew Betts who also designed the ship sets for The Terror (2018). I also enjoyed Alexandre Desplat's score, especially the darkly whimsical track Body Building. Oscar Isaac's performance as Victor Frankenstein is, as usual, excellent, but Jacob Elordi as the The Creature is the real standout of the film. I've never seen him in anything before that I know of, but now I'm looking forward to seeing what he does in the future. I wish I could have seen this movie on the big screen, but I was still absolutely hooked by this film adaptation. I'm really looking forward to del Toro's upcoming adaptation of The Buried Giant and I'm hoping he will adapt The Phantom of the Opera. Other books I hope he may adapt in the future are Dracula by Bram Stoker, both The Hacienda and Vampires of El Norte by Isabel Cañas, Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalo, and The Strange Case of the Alchemist's Daughter by Theodora Goss. Please and thank you!
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Predator: Badlands (2025) is a new favorite of the year. I'm glad I had the opportunity to see it on the big screen in 3D. I loved this just as much or maybe more than Prey. It's also a fun crossover with the Alien franchise. I was just pleased to see a Predator in the leading role and Dek goes on quite a journey here. Elle Fanning (and even Bud) steals the show with her dual roles. Honestly, I really appreciated the found family and fire forged friends elements as well. Please, I hope there will be more of these!
My review is also on Letterboxd.
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The Creator (2023) is a movie that I was looking forward to seeing. Originally, I was hoping to see it at the movie theater, but that just never happened. Anyway, it looks pretty impressive and I'm sure it would have looked amazing on the big screen. That said, the rest of the movie is never as good as it manages to look on the surface. It just felt all too familiar and lazy at times. I like Gemma Chan, Allison Janney, and Ken Watanabe and they did their best, but it wasn't enough. John David Washington needs better luck.
My review is also on Letterboxd.
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First Men in the Moon (1964) is fun adventure. Ray Harryhausen's effects are pretty cool too. I wonder why this isn't more well known. I also wonder how things could have gone if Cavor went by himself. You know, since Arnold's first instinct was to fight and kill the Selenites on sight.
My review is also on Letterboxd.
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This week I watched the third episode of Travelers, Season 3 (2018). So far I'd say this is my favorite episode of the season so far. I really liked the mystery element as MacLaren is putting together the mystery of what happened with him and the boy that is part of the next mission the director has given the team. The reveal was pretty intriguing. I also liked the detail that we learn about the historians of the groups as well. I wasn't expecting that and it definitely fills in some gaps.
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Honestly, I was hoping for much more of a sci-fi time travel element than I got with Behind Yesterday (A Thomas Watson Mystery #1) by Richard D. Taylor. I was hoping it would be at least decent as a historical fiction/ World War II story, but unfortunately it's much too long and it needs more editing because the writing is a awkward and at times tricky to follow what was going on. Plus, it was more boring that it should have been given everything that's going on.
My review is also on Goodreads and The StoryGraph.
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Silhouette (Peacer #1) by Dave Swallow is a solid cyberpunk mystery series opener. However, my expectations might have been slightly too high. The book is compared to both Minority Report and Blade Runner and that's a very tall order. It's not bad at all, but it comes nowhere close to those highs. I don't think I'll be back for the sequel.
My review is also on Goodreads and The StoryGraph.
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The Pirate Loop (Doctor Who: New Series Adventures #20) by Simon Guerrier is a solid adventure. The author got the tone of the 10th Doctor right. Martha was decent on but not quite all the way there for me, but you could see her character shine through in a few moments.
My review is also on Goodreads and The StoryGraph.
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Peacemaker (Doctor Who: New Series Adventures #21) by James Swallow was a lot of fun for me. I don't read Westerns often, but the mashup with sci-fi adventure worked well for me. I also think it captured both the 10th Doctor and Martha really well. This was also a case where I would like to both Martha and Rory meet in some way.
My review is also on Goodreads and The StoryGraph.
My review is also on Goodreads and The StoryGraph.
Are you taking part in SciFi Month 2025? Have you read or watched any of these? As always, thanks for visiting my blog and perhaps even commenting down below!
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