Crimson Peak

[klen7]

[mr.negativity]

[lhb412]

Wow, I can hardly believe we'll be seeing this in only a few days!

This is also a rare case of me being relatively unspoiled before a film I'm very excited about. I want to be surprised!

[Dr Kain]

This movie better be good because I'm skipping Bridge of Spies to see it this weekend. The lack of reviews is kind of worrying.

[jellydonut25]

[lhb412]

[Dr Kain]

[jellydonut25]

[Dr Kain]

[klen7]

^ Someone did you a major disservice. It's an escapist film about a child stuck in the middle of the Spanish Civil War.

i think GDT succeeds foremost as a world builder, maybe more consistently than any other film maker currently working.

[lhb412]

Got my ticket for tonight!

[lhb412]

Just got back from it. Very satisfying and, despite what some people have been saying, it is certainly a horror movie. Basically, if you love classic Universal/Hammer/Vincent Price movies this is truly that type of movie.... except much more violent.

[Dr Kain]

lol

Oh my god, we should not have watched Jeremy Jahns' review because we all decided to go see Goosebumps on Sat morning instead of this. I lost half of my interest when he talked about them being CGI ghosts and then the other half when he talked about how irrelevant they were. I'll just Netflix it next year.

[lhb412]

^The ghosts are actual costumes and makeup with CGI mist swirling around them and they are occasionally transparent... basically an expansion on Santi in The Devil's Backbone.

[Dr Kain]

[jellydonut25]

Just got back. It's good. I kind of doubt we'll ever get to see a movie like this in theaters ever again. The sets are spectacular, the costuming is on-point, the colors are vibrant (seriously GDT's biggest strength in any of his movies), and did I mention the SETS?!? My word, I could just stare at the sets all day. Nothing would have to happen, I could just stare and soak it in.

So, I kind of think from that perspective alone, if you're the kind of person who goes to the theater often, and you are sick of CGI and everything looking washed out, you should check it out. This is like nothing that's in theaters right now, nothing that's been in theaters for a LONG time, and maybe like nothing that will ever be in theaters again.

As for the ghosts complaint, I disagree with that being a problem, honestly. One of the things that ALWAYS happens in ghost stories like this (and Crimson Peak is no exception) is that at some point, we find out that the ghosts really aren't all that bad, or there's some sort of climactic, ridiculous showdown that involves one of the ghosts and things get a little eye-rolly. Crimson Peak manages to subvert the eyerolls by making the ghosts more of a part of the general aesthetic and background of the film instead of "characters" and I think that's actually kinda clever. Also, they aren't COMPLETLEY irrelevant to the plot. They specifically point Mia Wasikowska's character to at least two different, really important pieces of the plot, and one reveal that kinda made the movie.

I also hate the comment that the characters aren't good, but Tom Hiddleston and Jessica Chastain's characters are. There are like 3 real characters in the entire movie, in terms of people that aren't basically just relegated to being background characters, and if two of them are good, then how can you pick on the characters? There's not enough time to give the lawyer a whole backstory and make him an interesting character.

Now, I DID have some problems with it: Mia Wasikowska's character isn't very good or interesting and part of that is that Mia Wasikowska just isn't very good or interesting and she definitely does what she does and makes the same face at all times. Also, it's not scary...but then, I don't think it's really trying to be SCARY, and more just gothic and disturbing and it actually kinda succeeds there. Also, the third act has some issues; I already mentioned the ghost thing, but said how that's more or less forgivable, but there are definitely some issues in the climax...which is funny because that's the part this Jeremy Jahns guy (seriously, WHO? Never heard of this guy) seemed to like the best, but it's the most sloppily written, scripted, and put together portion of the film. I wish Del Toro had ended it TOTALLY differently, and much less bombastically....for a movie that's otherwise not at all intended for mainstream audiences, it feels like this ending was tacked on to satisfy the kinds of people who would complain if this type of thing hadn't been in there.

It's gory, unsettling, well-acted, DECENTLY paced (I felt a bit of a lull in the second act), and overall enjoyable. I'd give it a 3.5 out of 5 but I feel like the gorgeous set design, vibrant colors, and superb direction make me want to bump it to a 4/5 right now.

Also, I can't believe we're surprised about CGI ghosts here in 2015. What an odd (and confusing) complaint.

Also, also, how can you be a fan of film and not know about Guillermo Del Toro's Spanish-language films? Devil's Backbone and Cronos are great. Do people not use Wikipedia or IMDb like I do to take a look a the filmography of a person if they like their other works?


I feel like Crimson Peak is gonna get a similar reception to Pacific Rim, in that a lot of people are going to claim it's just straightforward, stock, and not that creative a story, and overlook the few little things it does differently to take something that IS a straightforward stock thing and make it GOOD. Though ultimately, I don't think people will enjoy this as much as PacRim nor will it make as much money. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if this movie winds up taking a bit of a bath.


So, if you DON'T go to the theater often, read some spoiler-free reviews, get a feel for what it seems like it does right and doesn't and make up your own mind...but if you go to the theater every week or multiple times a week) I feel like there's no reason you should avoid this...or if you do avoid it, maybe don't complain that nobody makes movies that look like this anymore.

VERY good, not quite great, but so cool to be able to get a gothic horror like this in theaters at this time of year.

[lhb412]

[Dr Kain]

[DannyBeane]

I'm probably going to catch this on Tuesday because my work week starts tonight I'm really excited for this as I love the aesthetics of GDT's films. Instead of cheating the mood by washing out the colors and then giving the film a blue/green/orange tint etc He just loads up on all the colors. Pacific Rim is one of the most colorful monster films I've seen in years and the Hellboy films are straight up like paintings.

[kiryugoji04]

Seeing this tonight!

[MekaGojira3k]

I saw it and loved it. I love how it plays with all of these ghost story tropes. Probably the most fun I've had at a theater all year aside from Jurassic World.

[jellydonut25]

For people who care about this kind of thing, it's projected to have only about a $13 million opening, putting it at #4 for the weekend, and since most indications are that the audience is heavily loaded with adults who pre-identify as Del Toro fans, it's not expected to see much repeat business at all.

Color me unsurprised. I'm just glad something like this was made in the first place.

[lhb412]

[jellydonut25]

$12.85 mill.

Not so good.

[tbeasley]

I thought it was fantastic. It's such a smart, creepy, weird movie. It might be my favorite film from del Toro next to The Devil's Backbone, another small spooky movie dealing with ghosts and the consequences of violence. In fact, a design from Devil's Backbone makes a cameo near the end of Crimson Peak which I thought was quite cool. It's such a captivating movie and it's a real shame it's not doing well financially. Hopefully, like most of del Toro's work, it'll find its audience.

For those unfamiliar with del Toro's smaller films I can't recommend these enough, Pan's Labyrinth should be joining them soon -
https://www.criterion.com/library/expan ... 25&s=spine