Frankenstein--oi! A pretty good play *L* Seriously, Nick Dear is a bit heavy handed in some places, too sparse in others, but not a complete hack. No, the hack in this case of course was Mary Shelley, who thought it would be cool to try and outwrite/outgay her poetry spouting husband *L* Uh, not so much, Mary. No matter how good or bad the original story is, I cannot get past the monster learning to speak by reading Paradise Lost *L* So lame! Bit like Robinson Crusoe's pockets (don't get me started).  But the acting for the most part along with some keen effects, saved the play.

Ben Cumberbatch as creature, Jonny Lee Miller as Victor: Ben was genius! I ached for the creature and adored him and understood him right from the start.  Not to mention aching for poor Ben, who has had (and frankly I think he still has) pneumonia during this run, and says he loses five pounds a night. I believe it. The amount of choreographed movements during the creature's birth had my body aching, just watching. The hurty bits hurt, the funny bits were funny, and I got to pick up on that darling lisp all the way through. The makeup was brilliant, very creepy, not any of that schlocky Karloff green with bolts stuff. It really did look like his bits had all been stitched together like a doll.  Miller's Victor was a cold man, not really gay,  but impossibly vain, even as his world was crumbling around him. He's wider and tougher looking than Cumberbatch, and his character came off as a bit of a bully, less of a science geek. 

JLM as creature, BC as Victor: first off, Ben looked unwell. Gorgeous, natch, but definitely not recovered or at least it seemed that way to me. His Victor was spot on, though--no mucking up due to illness or anything. But, as with the creature, he brought real vulnerability to Victor, portrayed a vain man going mad, not just hanging onto his notions of his own genius, but seeing that he'd done wrong and had to atone (whereas JLM gave Victor more of a thirst for revenge against the creature vibe). Also, plot be damned, Ben naked as creature was divine, but Ben in riding boots and a loose fitting blouse--phwoar!! JLM's creature was more childlike than Ben's. You got the impression of a two year old making it's way into the adult world, rather than Ben's "autism/physical disability" approach.  This made the mood swings more understandable (terrible twos) and made for some "cute kid" moments. Also, again, body type--JLM's creature "got it together" better than Ben's, and was more articulate, although he was a drooler *L*  Scarier creature, too, again, more monstrous due to body type--more lumbering and menacing than Ben.

The rest of the cast were okay, except for the father, who was mostly stiff and lame in both versions. The fishermen/grave robbers were funny, and Elizabeth was sweet both times around. Good bits with the hooker/maid. The show was colourblind, which was a bit odd, but fairly easy to get used to by the second show.

Final verdict. Ben Cumberbatch needs to win all the acting awards in the universe, right now. Jonny Lee Miller has grown up and still has the acting chops we saw way back in Trainspotting. Danny Boyle thinks he's all that and a bag of crisps, and while I like some of his stuff, he better remember that the success of this show isn't just about him. The set pieces were gorgeous and I want the soundtrack.

And there better be a f**king DVD!!! Thank you National Theater for giving us this opportunity!