Review #20 | "Crimson Peak" (2015)

"Crimson Peak" is a metamorphosis of the horror genre. It's been a long time since any horror film had commentary to show the audience. It seems like only now do we appreciate "Psycho" and "Halloween" for the social commentary they possess, and "Crimson Peak" will follow in their footsteps. This film is weird. Like, what just happened? Leaving the audience dumbstruck is the only way you can leave the theatre without taking anything too literally. It's a movie, where the absurd things are supposed to go. It's okay to feel a little outlandish.

Mia Wasikowska, Tom Hiddleston, Jessica Chastain, and Charlie Hunman made up an amazing cast and created an even better ensemble. Wasikowska, Hiddleston, and Chastain all developed a rhythm which never lacked in energy and kept even kept the audience on track through the weirdest plot developments and most head-scratching moments. Even Hunman's character, who is thousands of miles away most of the time, kept the pace of the film going. Yeah, he's that one guy that shows back up and you say, "GTFO, SAVE YOURSELF!"

But what is surprising is that this movie is sexy! And horror should be sexy! Rest assured that in good horror, sex is there for a reason. It's up to the director to showcase sex as a plot tool and not porn, and it's the job of the screenwriter to use discretion. Even the non-sex parts of the film give off a feel of smoldering embers, doused by the debilitating house only to be coaxed again by the house drawing a breath - yet everyone inside is choking. Everything is too unpredictable, dangerous, and mysterious - seductive. Yet here's the thing - no tits. None. At all. How's that for modern social commentary?

This production is very stylized, and an average moviegoer without education on the genre or it's influences may become blinded by the absurdity of some of the choices director Guillermo del Torro made. The acting is, at times, very operatic - overly dramatic. The setting and the screenplay make sure that the film can keep up with that kind of flair. The set itself is lavishly draped and the costumes are wonderfully theatrical. Everything about this production has to look good and stand out to show the audience the characters and where they fit into the world. Color and parallels are heavily prevalent tools used in this film, and to del Torro's credit, they work splendidly well. In a promotional ad, costume designer Kate Hawley said that she even painted some of the costumes to enhance the characterization and symbolism. Yeah - heavily stylized. And yeah, it's pretty freaking beautiful.

As the story progresses, echoes of the great tragedies - Shakespeare, Sophocles, et al. - creep into our cultural psyche. The twists and turns of the plot, coupled with costuming and cinematography, turn time from Victorian Era England to Ancient Greece. Jessica Chastain stands tall and noble, statuesque, as the denouement approaches.

"Crimson Peak" blends everything from almost every genre into one movie. Drama, romance, horror, ghosts, blood, aesthetic graveyards, symbolism, color, costumes, amazing sets, ensemble casting and great acting. It's a fun movie, and if you can glean any of the knitty gritty social commentary film historians will be lecturing about in ten years then you've done better than a lot of other moviegoers nowadays.

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"Crimson Peak" is rated R and runs 119 minutes.

Directed by Guillermo del Toro. Screenplay by Guillermo del Toro and Matthew Robbins. Starring Mia Wasikowska, Tom Hiddleston, Jessica Chastain, Charlie Hunman.