Crimson Peak (Guillermo del Toro)

[Henry Gale]

http://www.flickeringmyth.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/One-Sheet-900x1335.jpg

IMDb (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2554274/) / Wiki (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crimson_Peak)

[Henry Gale]

Kinda exhausted from various things, but especially from having been lucky enough to have seen so many screenings these last few days, so might not have full thoughts 'til later, but I liked this, though much of my viewing experience was recalibrating my perception of the film I was watching from the film I was expecting and anticipating. Even though I knew Del Toro was keen on classifying this as a "gothic romance" as much as the mid-to-late October release date and the marketing would like to make it out to be a Halloween-ready scare-fest. It's certainly deeply unsettling and fiercely bloody when it wants to be, but it's super old-fashioned both in its world-building and filmmaking sensibilities for so much of it. It's also maybe the last time I haven't outright loved a film of Guillermo's since.. the first Hellboy? (And even then I was about 13 and it being right at the dawn of really solid comic book movies, I liked it quite a bit.)

Definitely worth seeing, but not sure it's got enough there for me to love it. Feels more well-worn than it should, less immediate and vivacious than I was hoping, and all around more low-key than I was expecting, but I still want to see it again after getting to the end and realizing what it's actually going for and generally all about.

[Henry Gale]

It's weird how much this has improved in my mind since seeing it less than a couple of days ago.

Had a similar thing Pan's almost a decade though. I had issues with it in the moment, only left a mild impression on me, and then over time it stewed in my mind and suddenly became something different and more revelatory that later re-watches confirmed were always there.

Not saying this is anywhere as impressive (it still has too much of an overt slow-burn that feels counterproductive to propelling its narrative and the CG ghosts don't have the brunt of the practical ghouls, or even the deeply impressively practical everything-else), just that I might like it more than I thought. Eventually anyway.

It's rearranging and re-shaping, coming together to something I already want to experience again. Just a shame it didn't hit me like that in the theatre the other day.

[dreamdead]

Mild yay that could become a more unreserved yay over time. Del Toro's control of the gothic romance elements (a genre that I'd love to see make a comeback) is masterful, so while the initial positing that the ghosts are going to be more central to the narrative--a fact seen mainly in the promotional material--is undone, it's still interesting. Some other narrative details are just silly McGuffins that don't pay off: the oddity of needing to mine deeper and deeper when the ore or whatever rises to the surface anyway.

Nonetheless, the set design is particularly worthy of mention. It's wonderful, and Wasikowska looks wholly pallid and overwhelmed throughout, which is wonderfully intentional. And Chastain is delicious throughout--her performance anchors the film for me.

All told, it's a lot of surface pleasure because it's all handsomely made. And the ornateness often works, creating a lush environment to stage the gothic elements. The ghost aspect of the film is the biggest undercutting--since they're more of a plot device and less integral to the plot, individual scare scenes lose some of their potency. But the final appearance of Hiddleston is fine stuff. Good enough, but slightly depressing for those who've anticipated it for the last year.

[Peng]

Kind of mixed, but still on the yay side. Its mix of the old-fashioned (storytelling and homages) and the new (special effects; instances of gore and sensuality) is pretty uneven for me, with many actors a little too mannered, and the story too leisurely paced so that its simpleness comes off as half-baked rather than a throwback, especially in the early going.

Two splendid things in the film absolutely nail that mix of the old and the new though: the gorgeous, ravishing mansion, with its wonderful creaks, insects, and dusty halls; and Jessica Chastain's fiercely controlled performance. She strikes a great balance between classical acting, baroque campiness, and deeply felt emotions. The film have a laborious set-up and a mildly lackluster story, but when all the three players arrive at Allerdale Hall and Chastain's Lady Lucille becomes more pronounced, the delicious atmosphere and her presence help smooth over a lot of those shortcomings.

[number8]

Sometimes I seriously suspect that Guillermo del Toro makes movies specifically just for me.

[ciaoelor]

Why aren't more faux-IMAX movies shot in the 1.85:1 aspect ratio? I was a total critic of the Lie-Max experience until I saw this. Just gorgeous!

[Henry Gale]

Why aren't more faux-IMAX movies shot in the 1.85:1 aspect ratio? I was a total critic of the Lie-Max experience until I saw this. Just gorgeous!

I hear ya. Didn't see it in LieMAX exactly (lucky to have won tickets for a screening in UltraAVX, Cineplex Canada's version of it), but it really did look great. It helps that Del Toro only ever operates in the 16x9 window (the only time he considered switching to anamorphic it was when he was attached to Hobbit) to have gotten so good at it over the years, but still, the stuff in the mansion particularly – the swirling, towering shots, especially anything involving the staircases, and all the colours and textures amongst them – probably as stunning as any imagery I can think of from this year.

Also, post more! Definitely been a while since I saw you pop in with thoughts.

[TGM]

So many people complaining that the writing is weak, that this movie is all style, no substance. But me personally, I thought the writing was lovely, as was everything else in this movie, and thought that the style and the writing both complimented one another throughout.

[number8]

Many of those same people had no problem forgiving the writing in Pacific Rim.

I hate when people conflate predictable writing with bad writing.

[Dukefrukem]

Many of those same people had no problem forgiving the writing in Pacific Rim.

I hate when people conflate predictable writing with bad writing.

The dumbest thing in Pacific Rim was shooting a flare gun at a kaiju. That is bad writing.

[Scar]

The dumbest thing in Pacific Rim was shooting a flare gun at a kaiju. That is bad writing.

A man's last gasp at defiance?

[Wryan]

GOD DAMMIT DEL TORO STOP BASHING PEOPLE'S FACES IN. MAKES ME CRINGE THE FUCK OUT IN MY CHAIR.

*Shudder*. CGI ghosts were pretty silly, but I dug everything else pretty much. I liked Jim Beaver a lot too, mostly because I love exactly that kind of setup character, and he did fantastic.

[Grouchy]

Like 8, I feel Del Toro is a filmmaker after my own heart. When you reference Peter Cushing and iris transitions on the first ten minutes of the film, you are essentially seducing me.

The movie is all around excellent. The story is great. Classical, morbid and psychologically exciting. I wish we'd seen a bit less of the ghosts, they are a bit too "corporeal" for my tastes, but this is the same complaint I had about Devil's Backbone which is even better so I guess it's just a matter of personal taste.

[ciaoelor]

Also, post more! Definitely been a while since I saw you pop in with thoughts.

I'm so self-conscious of my ability to elegantly articulate my thoughts on things that I hesitate. Sorry and thanks :)

[Mal]

Beautiful and frustrating. Sometimes I found the performances really, really bland but at other points I had no issue. I do kind of wish it had a little bit more visual darkness, but otherwise the production of this film is stellar.

[Dead & Messed Up]

My viewing was impeded by someone texting to say they'd call and then not following up, so 90% of my brain was engaged but 10% was concerned about about real life stuff.

But seriously this movie is the most beautiful film of its kind since "Sleepy Hollow," maybe even Coppola's "Dracula." It is opulent to the point of being a sexual assault on the eyes. And while Mia isn't terribly interesting as a hero, Hiddleston and Chastain especially are on point. I was surprised that del Toro didn't play up the suspense as much during the ghost scenes, and one of del Toro's strengths might end up hurting the film a bit, as Crimson Peak (the place) was always just a wee bit too lush and decadently gorgeous to be imposing and off-putting in the same way as something like the House of the Seven Gables or Wuthering Heights or even the House of Usher. Those places creeped me out while I was reading, they felt unnerving and unwelcoming. Crimson Peak, man, I'm excited that it has some vacancies now, ya know? I could live there.

[Irish]

This was bad, but bad in a way that only Del Toro can be: with a surfeit of style.

My biggest beef isn't the story, which is admittedly weak, but with those visuals. They're so dense and layered that the whole film becomes artificial and everyone in it struggles to appear human. It's also gotta be one of the only Gothic Romances I've ever seen that feels completely sexless.

I could take a non-existent second act in stride if Del Toro didn't insist on slapping me in the face with his metaphors. This is why the writing is bad; it's not because the plot is predictable. I laughed out loud when Edith visits a publisher and explains that her story isn't a ghost story but rather a story with a ghost in it. "The ghosts are a metaphor for the past," she says. I could practically feel Del Toro elbowin me in the ribs to make sure I caught that line (but it's so obvious, Guillermo, who wouldn't?). See also: Edith and Lady Sharpe were sitting outside talking about butterflies and black moths. The dialogue is ridiculously on the nose, and Del Toro underlines it by putting Edith in a bright yellow dress and Sharpe in deep black. See also: The tedious dialogue about bricks and red mud and the name Crimson Peak to explain why it looks like the estate is bleeding.

The ending was a yawner. I thought of that old Roger Ebert line—"To the extent I understand, I don't care." The plot isn't so much predictable as it is meaningless. The big reveal is generic, at least in the sense that you could plug virtually any explanation into the ending and it would change absolutely nothing about what went on before.

This movie is 2 hours long, but why? There are no subplots. There's a single main plot about a single protagonist. Everything plays on the surface. It strives for mood and emotion, but the pacing and cuts betray that effect.

Blah.

Edited to add: My biggest disappointment is that, when the credits rolled, I realized there was a really good, interesting story in this movie and almost none of it appears on screen.

[Dukefrukem]

Aesthetically beautiful but needs more ghosts. It's Devils Backbone all over again.

[Grouchy]

Aesthetically beautiful but needs more ghosts. It's Devils Backbone all over again.
I'm curious. You want the ghosts to be more prominent in the story (that is, less murder mystery and more paranormal) or you just want them to appear more often? If it's the second, I totally disagree with you. I think Del Toro's ghosts are way too explicit as they already are.

I mean, I think Devil's Backbone is a creepy film, but every time I watch it I wish I could remove the CGI blood emanating from the kid's forehead. It's a detail that could work in literature, animation or comic books, but in live action it just looks like a special effect.

[Dukefrukem]

Kinda both? I mean, even the end to the climax is just a ghost standing there. And it wasn't even a vengeful ghost. It was just Sharpe standing there; accepted his fate.

And both revelations were extremely obvious. (Siblings and poisoning by tea). It didn't leave anything to the imagination for me.

It also suffers from the rather clumsy, explain-your-master-plan-to-the-person-you-are-about-to-kill misstep.

[Grouchy]

Well, I liked the film overall a lot more than you did. I didn't mind if a couple of plot elements were clichéd because I assumed what I was watching was a high-profile, stylish homage to Hammer Film Productions. In fact, I'm kind of surprised that so many viewers and reviewers bring up the plot as a weak element - it perfectly enabled the atmosphere for me, which is what a film like this is about.

I was mostly talking about my feeling that Del Toro's ability to provoke actual dread is ruined at times by his insistence on doing ghosts like elaborate special effects. Taking this film as an example, the early scene where a black ghost warns her about Crimson Peak is awesome, but later when she converses with another ghost (one of the dead wives? I don't recall) the effect is way too obvious and in-your-face.