Respected American neuroscientist Dr. Frederick Frankenstein, inheriting his infamous grandfather's castle in Transylvania, initially wants nothing to do with the family's disturbing legacy. Despite his insistence on pronouncing his last name as "Fronkensteen" to distance himself from the mad experiments that made his ancestor notorious, Frederick is soon drawn into the world of reanimation after discovering the elder Frankenstein's private library and lab. Skeptical yet intrigued, he decides to continue the experiments on reanimating the dead, prompted by his grandfather's past research and the potential scientific breakthroughs it suggests.

Assembling a quirky team consisting of the hunchbacked Igor, the beautiful lab assistant Inga, and the stern housekeeper Frau Blücher, Frederick sets about recreating the infamous experiment. Igor is tasked with obtaining a pristine human brain, but a mishap leads him to bring back an abnormal one instead. Undeterred, Frederick successfully brings to life a creature, but his initial success is short-lived as the creature escapes. Faced with the monster's unpredictability and the looming threat of it terrorizing the nearby villagers, Dr. Frankenstein must confront the ethical and moral implications of his work, while also dealing with an unexpected visit from his socialite fiancée, Elizabeth.