Guillermo Del Toro has become a bit of a tradition for my October review challenge. I reviewed “Cronos” (1993) and Mimic (1997) in previous years. This year I’m checking out “Crimson Peak” from 2015. Del Toro directs this from a script penned by himself and Matthew Robbins. Long time collaborator Dan Lausten provides the cinematography and Fernando Velázquez provides the soundtrack. The movie stars Mia Wasikowska, Jessica Chastain and Tom Hiddleston. This one I’ve been sitting on for a while so I can watch it as part of the October challenge. It’s actually one of Del Toro’s personal favourites, despite the fact it lost money in the box office.
Ghosts Are A Metaphor For The Past
Our movie opens in 1887 and we are introduced to a young Edith Cushing (Wasikowska), who is visited by the ghost of her dead mother. Her mother warns her to beware “Crimson Peak”. Years later and Edith is an aspiring author struggling to get her ghost story published. Publishers are not keen on a woman writing ghost stories it seems, even though Edith insists the Ghosts are just a metaphor for the past. Edith is the daughter wealthy businessman, Carter Cushing (Jim Beaver), one day she is wooed by a dashing young man, Sir Thomas Sharpe (Hiddleston). He and his sister, Lucille (Chastaine) are visiting America from England in the hopes of finding investors for his invention, a digging machine.
Carter is firmly against the relationship, but after he dies under mysterious circumstances Edith ends up moving to the Sharpe estate in England. A foreboding mansion situated atop a red clay mine (Which it has been sinking in to for years). Things are not what they seem though. Edith is becoming ill and keeps seeing ghostly figures around the Mansion. These ghosts scare her at first, but she begins to realise they do not mean her harm and may be trying to warn her. Meanwhile, Dr. Alan McMichael (Charlie Hunnam), a friend of Edith and her Father from back home suspects foul play in Carter’s death and is investigating.
Red Snow At The Crimson Peak
Since this is a Guillermo Del Torro movie it is no surprise it is a beautiful film to look at and it really is end to end with this. From the snow storms, to the old mansion (Inside and Out) the use of the red clay, the machinery, the look of the ghosts, it all looks great. More impressively though it is all pretty original looking. I mean, I’ve seen a million creepy old mansions, but Del Torro makes it feel new and unique. The same for the ghosts. The plot on the other hand is as old as the gothic romance genre in general. I’ve definitely seem this plot before, or one very similar. The only difference here being the inclusion of the ghosts. However, these ghosts tend to be on the periphery of the plot. They add an extra layer to the film, sort of like the creatures of “Pan’s Labyrinth” Despite how they look, they are not malicious threats and for the most part can only been seen by Edith.
But this is what makes Del Torro special. He is like a cook that takes something like beans on toasts and throws a little twist to it that makes it a culinary delight. Without the ghostly elements and the clever visuals this would be almost the default gothic romance. Nothing to see here at all. But he adds a twist and it becomes something more. Of course this is also a film with a fairly small main cast. Predominantly three characters and so a lot of the weight of the film falls on these three. Luckily for the film these are Tom Hiddleston, Jessica Chastain and Mia Wasikowska. All very capable actors. None of them blew me away, but they all did well.
Conclusion
Your mileage may vary with this movie. A lot really depends on how much you like gothic romance. For me, I have some affection for the gothic romance films of the 1940’s, such as “Rebecca” (1940) and “The Spiral Staircase” (1946). They aren’t my favourites, but I like them. If those are among your favourites however, this may be an all time classic for you. If not, well, you will still enjoy the visuals but probably be quite bored. Personally, I felt the plot was a little too generic and since the film is quite slow paced it did drag in places. But, even when it did, I was still able to enjoy what was on screen. For me, this is a strong 6.5/10.
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