“Lisa Frankenstein” centers on a misunderstood teenager (Newton) and her high school crush, who happens to be a handsome corpse (Sprouse). After a set of horrific circumstances bring him back to life, they embark on a murderous journey with one another. Liza Soberano (“Make It with You”), Henry Eikenberry (“The Crowded Room”), Joe Chrest (“Stranger Things”), and Carla Gugino (“The Fall of the House of Usher”) round out the cast.
We’ve seen in recent years that the right horror movie can break out in a big way. “M3GAN” remains one of the biggest original movies of any kind since the pandemic began, taking in $181 million worldwide against a similar $12 million budget. “Lisa Frankenstein” feels like it’s going for a related audience. At the same time, Focus has ushered a more modest marketing campaign for the film relative to “M3GAN” and other recent studio horror hits such as “Smile” or “Thanksgiving.” Could this movie be missing out on a larger audience due to a lack of awareness?
The best-case scenario here would be for “Lisa Frankenstein” to leg out in the coming weeks. Maybe it does open to $14 million or so. But maybe that’s enough for it to take the number one spot away from “Argylle,” and maybe get some ink spilled in its favor. Maybe audiences who do see it will have nice things to say about it. Maybe that leads to a better-than-usual hold in the weeks that follow. Maybe this is me being optimistic, but it’s not out of the realm of possibility.
“Lisa Frankenstein” hits theaters on February 9, 2024.