Knowing The Bride’s Early Twist Makes Christian Bale Movie More Enjoyable

Maggie Gyllenhaal’s The Bride is officially out in theaters now, and before going into the Christian Bale and Jessie Buckley-led movie, it might be worth knowing this important twist in the movie.

What is The Bride’s early twist?

While most of the movie does follow the story of Buckley’s “The Bride” and Bale’s Frank/Frankenstein having a whirlwind romance, the movie opens up in a surprising way. In The Bride, the movie begins with none other than the spirit of Mary Shelley, the author of 1818’s Frankenstein, discussing how she had more to say in her book, but was unable to due to the times.

It’s here that The Bride’s surprise twist occurs. To kick off the movie, Shelley reveals that she’s conceived of a brand new story while in her limbo-esque state, and then proceeds to possess the body of Buckley’s character. Throughout the movie, Shelley’s own inner dialogue continues to appear, often speaking up through “The Bride” and acting as the character’s more outspoken and “true” dialogue.

It’s an interesting choice for the movie to take, especially because the meta approach isn’t mentioned anywhere in any marketing for the movie. In a talk with USA Today, Gyllenhaal revealed that the thought behind the idea was that she always wondered if Shelley had more to say in her novel that she couldn’t, due to societal norms around women in the 1800s.

“I remember thinking, or fantasizing, or wishing, that maybe there was a whole lot more that Mary Shelley wanted to say, that was not only unpublishable in 1818 but actually maybe even unthinkable,” Gyllenhaal said. “And once I thought that, Mary Shelley became a kind of guiding force.”

Throughout the movie, Shelley’s spirit acts as a rebellious persona inside of “The Bride,” and is partly what makes Frankenstein fall in love with her. By the end of the movie, “The Bride” even calls out to her from time-to-time, seeking advice on not only what to do, but who she truly is. According to Buckley, the meta approach came into view for her while filming the scenes as Shelley. Buckley was eight months old at the time, and said she did feel like someone with “two heartbeats” inside of her during the filming.

“I remember being like, ‘Whoa, I’m kind of a monster right now. I’ve got two heartbeats inside me. I’m on the precipice of creation,’” Buckley told USA Today. “Maybe I’m sending some whispers down into my little daughter that she can kind of catapult into her life when she comes into the world.”

The meta approach to the movie is one that will be sure to divide fans. When I saw the movie, it definitely took me by surprise, and it was something I had no clue how to interpret for a moment. However, knowing the context behind the decisions and how they impact the movie does add some extra insight as to how the movie itself plays out.

Source: Comingsoon.net