The earliest reactions are in for The Bride, but they are not a good sign for the film. Maggie Gyllenhaal’s new movie is one of two Frankenstein adaptations this year, with the other helmed by Oscar-winner Guillermo del Toro. The Bride will take the world of Frankenstein to 1930s Chicago, where the тιтular character asks Dr. Euphronius to help create a companion, bringing a murdered woman back to life. Its leading cast includes Jessie Buckley, Christian Bale, Jake Gyllenhaal, Penélope Cruz, Peter Sarsgaard, John Magaro, and Annette Bening.
Per Puck, the early reactions have been revealed for The Bride. It’s not looking positive, with the head of one production company saying, “to give her [director Maggie Gyllenhaal] anything more than $15 million to make the movie is irresponsible, as far as I’m concerned.” Early test screenings have not been universally positive, with some reporting that the film might be too arthouse and not as neatly categorized in the horror genre to draw in enough audience to recoup its budget.
What This Means For The Bride
The Bride Could Lose Big Money
The Bride‘s estimated budget is supposedly over $100 million, which is the equivalent budget of many Hollywood action movies or other large-scale productions. Films usually need to make 2-2.5x their budget to break even after the cost of publicity and advertising. This means that The Bride needs to make $200 to $250 million to break even before going into profitable margins. This is a hefty sum even for movies that are concretely in the horror genre, as only a select number of genre films cross this threshold yearly, making this test screening feedback troubling.
The Bride‘s troubling prospect could have negative implications for Gyllenhaal as a director. Though she has been acting for years, this is only her second feature film in the director’s chair. The first was 2021’s Netflix movie The Lost Daughter, which had a reported budget of only around $5 million. Still, the movie was nominated for three Academy Awards, including Gyllenhaal for Best Adapted Screenplay. While this started the actor-turned-director’s behind-the-scenes career off strong, this could all go downhill if she loses a major studio a bunch of money.
Our Take On The Bride Early Reactions
Its Budget Seems Unrealistic
If The Bride‘s budget is indeed as high as it was reported to be, this seems like a pretty surprising choice from the studios. While this is not directly a Frankenstein adaptation, the closest comparison point I see for an arthouse The Bride is 2023’s Poor Things, a highly artistic film with a Frankenstein-reminiscent storyline. Even with an established director, that movie had a budget of only $35 million, which is much smaller by comparison. As such, it seems like The Bride is not just a misdirection if the reactions prove true, but also a case of over-budgeting by the studio.
Source: Puck
