Frankenstein. When most people hear this word, they immediately think of Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein, and an evil, scary looking monster. The film Van Helsing is usually not the first thing that comes to mind. Van Helsing is one of many films that takes up and remediates the original Frankenstein story and brings it to life using animation. The original story of Frankenstein says one thing and the film Van Helsing uses the original story of Frankenstein to create a much more complex story. The primary “thesis” of the film Van Helsing in its re-telling of the original Frankenstein story is to give Victor Frankenstein’s creation a more intricate purpose. His creation plays two completely different social roles in the original Frankenstein story and the film Van Helsing.
In the original Frankenstein story, Victor Frankenstein’s creation was only given life for one reason. Victor Frankenstein only wanted to prove that he could infuse life into an inanimate object using science. He believed that God was not the only one who could give life. His creation does not really have any other significant purpose in the original Frankenstein story. He is only viewed as a monster that does not belong in the world and is not needed for anything.
In the film Van Helsing, Victor Frankenstein’s creation is one of the main characters. He is actually named Frankenstein as opposed to Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein, where he remains nameless and is only referred to as “the creation,” “the creature,” or “the monster.” Actually having a name sort of gives him a more human-like and less monstrous quality. This also sometimes helps people to realize that he really is not a monster and leads them feel sympathy towards him. However, his physical appearance in the movie is the typical physical appearance that most people think of when they hear the word Frankenstein. He is very large and looks like he has been put together with many different parts that do not belong together. He is quite scary looking to most people who see this movie. He is literate and is actually a very insightful and intelligent being just like in Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein. In the movie, anyone who sees Frankenstein automatically thinks he is a terrible monster, but all he really wants to do is be able to exist and not be looked down upon by everyone who sees him just because of what he looks like. He does not want to hurt anybody or cause any problems. He actually even saves a couple people’s lives in the movie. Unlike in Mary Shelley’s novel, he actually loves his creator, Victor Frankenstein, and is very upset when Dracula murders him. Frankenstein even calls Victor Frankenstein his father, which shows that he has a better relationship with Victor in the film, Van Helsing, than in the original Frankenstein story.
One specific scene in the film, Van Helsing, where the film gives Victor Frankenstein’s creation a more intricate purpose in its re-telling of the original Frankenstein story is when Anna Valerious and Van Helsing first discover Frankenstein in a dark cave. “The Frankenstein Monster!” Anna gasped when she spotted the large figure hiding in the darkness of the cave. “Monster! Who’s the monster here? I have done nothing wrong, yet you and your kind still wish me dead!” the creature replied. Frankenstein is hiding in this cave because he does not want to be found by Dracula and the other vampires. He is the key to his father’s machine – the same machine that had given him life – and the only one that can give lasting life to Dracula’s children. Frankenstein tells Anna and Van Helsing to kill him because he does not want to take part in giving life to Dracula’s children even though all he really wants to do is live. He really does have good intentions and does not act like an evil monster. He does not want to be responsible for giving life to so many monsters even though so many people consider him a monster. Frankenstein’s role in Van Helsing is so much more complex than the role he plays in the original Frankenstein story.
The material and medium specific characteristics of the film, Van Helsing, also help to give Victor Frankenstein’s creation a more intricate purpose in the film’s re-telling of the original Frankenstein story. The energy that Victor Frankenstein used to create Frankenstein and is needed to give Dracula’s children life is like how film uses energy to create what it does. Energy is needed to create the film, Van Helsing, which uses animation to bring the original Frankenstein story to life. Frankenstein’s energy is necessary to give life just like how energy is necessary to create films and bring novels like Mary Shelley’s novel,Frankenstein, to life. The entire film Van Helsing is also very dark with a lot of flashing lights and lightning just like many scenes in Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein. The film also shows Frankenstein in his typical, most common physical appearance, which helps bring his character to life.
There are many films that take up and remediate the original Frankenstein story. Van Helsing is a great film that gives a much more complex purpose to Victor Frankenstein’s creation and brings the original Frankenstein story to life using animation. Is it possible that Mary Shelley’s original story of Frankenstein was created so that others would be able to use it to make creations of their own?
Works Cited
Van Helsing. Dir. Stephen Sommers. Universal Pictures, 2004. Film.
