Gothic intrigue blurs with reality as Mary Shelley conjures more than just a monster.
ROWING WITH THE WIND
In the summer of 1816, Percy Shelley, his mistress Mary, and her stepsister Claire visit Lord Byron at Lake Geneva. Byron challenges each to write a horror story, and Mary begins her novel, Frankenstein. She imagines the monster becoming real, and for the next six years, as tragedy befalls those around her, she believes the personification of her imagination is the cause. Against this backdrop, Claire has Byron's baby then is estranged from him and barred from her daughter. Byron and Percy continue their friendship, the one self-centered and decadent, the other wildly idealistic. The Shelleys take up residence near Pisa.
Quick Answer
Rowing with the Wind is a 1988 Spanish drama, horror, romance, and thriller film directed by Gonzalo Suárez about Mary Shelley's fateful summer with Lord Byron, where the creation of Frankenstein blurs the boundaries between fiction and reality.
Programmer's Pick
Where else can you watch Lord Byron and Percy Shelley out-brooding each other while Mary Shelley’s imagination threatens to reshape their world? This is literary drama laced with gothic unease and a little scandal on the side.
— SassyFlix Programmer
Overview
Why This Matters
This Spanish film dramatizes the lives of Mary Shelley and her literary circle, and achieved critical recognition by winning six Goya Awards.
Cast & Crew
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Why Cult
See Lord Byron, Mary Shelley, and Percy Shelley brought to life in all their flawed, passionate glory.
The film dramatizes the infamous 1816 summer that inspired Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, exploring the novel's eerie inception.
Expect brooding lakes, candlelit confessions, and tangled relationships under the shadow of imagined monsters.
From empire fashion to lakeside villas, the lush visuals capture the mood of 1810s Europe.
Scene Gallery
Threat File
Byron challenges friends to write a horror story
Mary's imagined Frankenstein monster
Mary believes tragedies are caused by her creation
Lake Geneva and 1810s Europe
Questions from the Vault
When was Rowing with the Wind released? +
Rowing with the Wind was released in 1988.
Who directed Rowing with the Wind? +
Rowing with the Wind was directed by Gonzalo Suárez.
How long is Rowing with the Wind? +
Rowing with the Wind has a runtime of 126 minutes.
What genre is Rowing with the Wind? +
Rowing with the Wind is a drama, horror, romance, and thriller film.
Does Mary Shelley's imagination become a curse in the film? +
Mary becomes convinced that the monster she created in her novel Frankenstein is responsible for the tragedies affecting her and those around her.
