Crimson Peak

Guillermo del Toro's latest foray into horror reads more as a gothic romance and this didn't bother me. Don't get me wrong. This film definitely has moments where you are creeped out by the surroundings and situations. Overall, though, this was not the scary film I had been expecting. It was creepy, romantic, wrong and breathtakingly beautiful. While it did differ from del Toro's other films as he focused completely on the gothic look of the film, his vision still shone through mainly with the physical appearance of the ghosts.

The film begins in Boston at the turn of the 20th century. Edith Cushing (Mis Wasikowska) is an aspiring author who lives with her industrialist father Carter (Jim Beaver). She struggles to get her stories published as she is a woman (what a world to live in).

Cue Sir Thomas Sharpe (Tom Hiddleston) and his sister Lucille (Jessica Chastain). Thomas is in America to try and get Edith's father to invest in a contraption he needs to gather the valuable red clay found underneath his estate. Carter Cushing does not trust him and refuses to fund him. Lucille seems determined that they stay until they can get the funding and during their stay, Thomas and Edith fall in love. Carter is murdered and Edith marries Thomas. She leaves her life in America and her best friend Alan McMichael (Charlie Hunnam) to move to her husband's English estate.

The appearance of the mansion is perfectly gothic. It is vast and beautiful at first glance, but then we see that the wooden floors are rotting due to the red clay underneath and there is a hole in the roof that leaves the house exposed to the elements. The pipes deliver red water before it turns clear, and the walls seem to bleed with the clay. During the winter the red clay is exposed underneath the snow making it look as though it is stained with blood, thus giving it the name Crimson Peak.

Then there are the ghosts. Each ghost is different in appearance, although it is hard to see the differences at first. Some ghosts are black while others the signature crimson color. Glimpses of how they died can be found on their bodies. All but two lack distinguishing facial features and while I was hoping to see more of them than I did, when they were on the screen they were worth it as they were beyond creepy.

The film is gorgeous to look at and of course del Toro knows how to keep his audience on the edge of their seat. The cinematography gave glimpses of the ghosts before fully revealing them and shots of walls full of insects (some dead, some not) added the perfect touch.

The script was well written and the actors all did a great job. Mia Wasikowska kept the film going while Tom Hiddleston was able to play all the emotions his character is feeling without giving too much away. The standout performer though, is Jessica Chastain. She has a coldness to her and while you suspect that nothing is quite right with her, some of the revelations did catch me off guard. The three main characters played off of each other well and were able to keep the audience invested in their story lines.

Overall raitng: 3.5