NINETOES VS THE BRIDE

Ninetoes wanted to spend a quiet day with a movie. He did not expect to get swept up in a movement in a modern retelling of Frankenstein, THE BRIDE.

In 1930s Chicago, Frankenstein asks Dr. Euphronius to help create a companion. They give life to a murdered woman as the Bride, sparking romance, police interest, and radical social change.

Directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal

Written by Maggie Gyllenhaal, based on the works of Mary Shelley

Starring Jessie Buckley, Christian Bale, and Annette Bening.

Run time: 2 hours 6 minutes

Hey there, movie lovers! It is your old pal, Ninetoes, coming to you from Ninetoes HQ. Today I am taking a look at Maggie Gyllenhaal’s The Bride!. I have popcorn in my system and my thinking cap on, so let’s get to it!

First thing to note, there is a woman in either bottom corner at various times, signing for the hearing impaired. At first, I thought I hit a button or something on my remote, but apparently, it is part of the movie.

Next, we start with the “ghost” of Mary Shelley, and she has a lot to say that she never could when she was alive. Who shall she use as her voice? Hmmm….cue the slightly crazed blonde (Jessie Buckley) who is tired of being pawed at a table, and let the feminine rage begin, and it does not disappoint. Things go sideways for said blonde, and before you know it, she is no longer among the living.

This would have been one hell of a short movie, but then we see a hulking brute walking the streets of Chicago to get to a mad scientist. This brute has a major case of the lonelies and wants her to help him create a companion.

Wait, didn’t a slightly crazed blonde get killed? Yeah, she will do…

Before you know it, the two are on a madcap adventure that goes from Chicago to New York and back, all the while stopping to catch a movie and sparking a movement that strikes a blow for women everywhere. THIS is where the viewer should pay attention, because if you do not, the point of the movie will blow by you faster than you can blink.

Personally, I was down for the point. I was raised in a house full of women. I have always stood for women’s rights, and always stopped to listen, and that is the one thing the men in this movie did not want to do: listen to ANY woman who had something to say. This is a problem women have faced for ages, and still face today.

The other point this movie drives home with the force of a thunderbolt is that of patriarchal control over a woman’s body. You would think that, as a modern society, we would have evolved past men telling women what they can and cannot do with their bodies. This is not the case. My personal stance has always been that as a man, I have absolutely no right to tell ANYONE, male and especially female, what they can and cannot do with their bodies. Yet, this movie is fraught with men doing exactly that, and The Bride takes a definitive stand against it. The black inky substance that marks her body is a definite symbol of her not cowering down to the patriarchy anymore. The ink shows how she is reborn, and her rebirth is irreversible.

This movie is perfect for anyone who wants to take a stand against the patriarchy, for women’s rights, for the rights of those who are different, and for anyone who likes really good drama.

Darren “Ninetoes” Perdue is a book and media reviewer. When he is not reading, he is watching true crime shows, cooking for his family, or working on a plan for universal domination. If you see him on his porch, say hi. He does not bite…much.

PLEASE NOTE: The views and opinions of the staff of Memento Mori Ink do not necessarily represent those of Memento Mori Ink or Crystal Lake Publishing. Thank you for understanding.