articles / Pop Culture
At the Movies: Alexandre Desplat's Frankenstein Score
Composer Alexandre Desplat discusses Frankenstein score and working with Guillermo del Toro with Classical California's host Brian Lauritzen.
Alexandre Desplat’s score for Frankenstein marks his third collaboration with Guillermo del Toro, a partnership defined by creative freedom and early involvement in the filmmaking process. Encouraged by del Toro’s openness, Desplat crafted an expansive musical palette, ranging from intimate and gentle moments to sweeping, passionate passages driven by twirling strings, church organs, an 80‑piece choir, and violinist Eldbjørg Hemsing. Drawing on Victor Frankenstein’s complex emotional history, Desplat shaped themes that reflect both the scientist and the Creature, always prioritizing the film’s emotional core over literal scene‑by‑scene scoring. Ultimately, he aimed to capture the soul of the story, creating a musical dimension that deepens Mary Shelley’s classic tale.
