Crimson Peak

Del Toro's cold visual exhibition lacks any narrative innovation or moment of surprise. If it was a random, budding filmmaker, we would no doubt be impressed by the arrangement and depth of the shots or the disturbing visual symbolism, but in the case of the renowned Guillermo, I find it reprehensible that he has wasted his formidable talent on a subject so generic and accessible. Moreover, the crossover between historical realism and ghost horror doesn't work 100%, and in a story where the main evil is represented by humans and their greed, the ghostly interludes feel slightly out of place, even though they are the ones where del Toro vehemently displays his unique imagery. Next time, master, be wiser when choosing a project. 65% (08/03/2016)

I'm not at all surprised that Stephen King likes Crimson Peak so much. It is based on the idea that he so often and gladly promotes (and which was most recently used in the similarly great Dream House), namely that supernatural beings are often the last thing we should fear. Much worse are simply the living flesh-and-blood people. Guillermo del Toro made this romantic horror drama with great clarity. Visually, it is something beautiful (especially the bright colors are very refreshing in this genre, but all the period costumes are a joy to look at as well), in the quiet conversational scenes I was really interested in who was saying what to whom and why, and in the harsher to rough scenes (which the film is definitely not afraid of, see especially the sink and the heart attack ending) I was as tense as a string. In short, everything as it should be, including the performances of the main trio of actors, of which I must once again highlight the amazing Jessica Chastain. Well, we should. And now the third Hellboy, please. (15/10/2015)

That Guillermo did not stick with just production this time can only be understood as a wish to double his earnings. Crimson Peak’s run-of-the-mill, unoriginal subject matter is barely worthy of a 90-minute runtime. In addition, there is no tension and he tries to achieve the wow effect by using old-school tricks. The set designs, however, are really beautiful, the cast is superb and the occasional splattering of blood is satisfactory. The potential of the twisted romance that emerges from this offered more possibilities, but Guillermo would have had to resign himself to satisfying a broad audience and strike a more perverted chord. It’s a shame that the maker of such distinctive and captivating cinematic worlds stooped this low. (17/10/2015)

Visually stunning film, where some scenes completely captivated me and I couldn't even believe that such a thing could be filmed. And yet the film carries Guillermo's signature. In that aspect, it is beautiful, but story-wise, the movie didn't really grab me, the acting is fine, but not great. It's a shame, the visuals are amazing, but otherwise, it just isn't it. (28/12/2015)

I was wary because to me Del Toro is a pretty overrated director, but en the end I loved Crimson Peak for its artistic style – its not very original story notwithstanding – and I’m giving it almost the highest rating. The money put on it can really be seen. Given that right now there aren’t that many big narrative horror films, I don’t think it’d be fair to throw Crimson Peak among the average. The cast is wonderful, finally someone who really knows how to act in a genre film. A proper gothic-horror in the best sense of the word, and I’m sure it will make it to my TOP 10 this year. (16/10/2015)