Frankenström (2001)

Frankenström (2001) - Finland
Directed by: Markus Staaf

ABOUT THE FILM:
Frankenström is a 2001 independent horror/comedy film from Finnish film crew Bad Egg Films, who have graced the Finnish underground scene with classics such as Epäkuolleet and Bugi Fiction in the early 2000's. Bad Egg Films first made their debut in late 1999 with the 20-minute slasher short Sipolan Teurastaja and continued to make short and feature length films until they sadly went defunct in 2004 after their final endeavor, Maanantai.

Frankenström tells the story of friends Aleksi and Teemu who visit their friend Vihtori Frankenström on his birthday, and the two gift Vihtori with a DVD and a metric fuck-load of cocaine. The three party and indulge in endless coke-snorting, but things take an ugly turn when Vihtori overdoses and dies. Aleksi and Teemu panic and attempt to resurrect their friend with an adrenaline shot by needle, but to no avail. Luckily, their friend Aapo is a medical student who is also fascinated with resurrection, so they go to him to bring Frankenström back to life before his girlfriend Maikki or anyone else notices. The operation is a success, but after a chunk of Frankenström's brain is accidentally eaten by Aapo, Frankenström turns into a complete monster and kills a police officer. The hunt begins; special forces are on the gang's tail and events of epic proportions ensue.

REVIEW:
Frankenström is a ridiculous yet thoroughly entertaining horror/comedy that is sure to suck you in within seconds of turning the movie on. You will be amazed and enthralled by the over-the-top and cartoonish acting, the dodgy green screen effects, the overly fake wigs and costumes, and the sheer energy that the actors put into their characters. And the movie only gets better and funnier as the story progresses, never once becoming boring or overstaying its welcome and perfectly balancing its serious aspects with its comedic elements. As a comedy, the film does a good job of getting the viewer invested in characters you can laugh at. And while the characters do give their share of laughs, at the same time, you can't help but want to root for them and see them win when in peril. The actors do a fairly good job of getting the viewer invested in the characters, and even if their performances aren't Oscar-worthy material, they're still very enjoyable to watch and made me laugh a lot.

For an independent shot-on-video production, Frankenström has a lot working in its favor. Full on gore-effects, explosions, gunplay, elaborate (if dodgy) green screen effects, action-movie style stunts and even a well-done car crash scene. The movie is competently edited and scored with an array of metal tunes and classical pieces. The camera work, while not perfect, focuses nicely on the action and there are some very well-thought out shots such as the seemingly endless yet hilarious shot of special forces troops running out of a small van. While Frankenström isn't driven solely on its gore, there are quite a few bloody scenes and they're executed pretty well, minus a few effects that could have used more work. There are plenty of squibs and exploding faces and heads, heads are cut and drilled into, limbs are blown apart, it's all there.

If you're looking for a movie with a different, yet straightforward approach to the classic Frankenstein mythos, you're going to be quite disappointed. However, if you want to shut your brain off and just watch some good ol' mindless B-movie fun, I can absolutely recommend Frankenström.

RELEASES:

-Frankenström made its theatrical premiere in Finland in December, 2001 and would later see a DVD and VHS release courtesy of Bad Egg Films and Future Film. The DVD came packed with Finnish and English commentary tracks, Finnish, English and Swedish subtitles, three making-of featurettes, deleted scenes, a photo gallery, trailers, two music videos and a short film called El Pok Erimas Sacre.