Crimson Peak (2015)
Ari Drew
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Starring Mia Wasikowska, Jessica Chastain, Tom Hiddleston
Directed by Guillermo del Toro
A film that has been years in the making, Guillermo del Toro’s Crimson Peak will finally descend upon audiences this week, the culmination of tireless seasons of development, delays, studio bargaining, and casting shuffles. Seeking to harken back to the more grand, cinematic feel of old Hollywood in lieu of the found footage or small-scale horror of the recent decade, del Toro imagined a massive film that would recall the likes of The Haunting or The Shining, and his vision remained impressively unshakable for the better part of a decade.
Fueled by a primary goal of crafting a timeless story rife with lush visuals, romance, and intrigue, Crimson Peak is indeed the ambitious type of film that allows the visionary director to play to his strengths, while changing up his approach some as well. With a healthy budget for an R-rated horror film (to the tune of $55 million), del Toro is able to satiate his longtime fans’ need for that delicious “eye protein” he has come to be so known for, while also infusing the tale with some refreshing characteristics.
Crimson Peak tells the story of Edith (Wasikowska), a young American woman living in the gilded age whose life begins to change when she meets Sir Thomas Sharpe (Hiddleston). Thomas, an English working man seeking financial backers abroad for an industrial endeavor, falls for the independent and creative Edith almost immediately, and despite her general avoidance of romantic love, she is ultimately charmed by Thomas and takes his hand in marriage. Ultimately, Edith leaves the spoils of American wealth, following Thomas and his sister, Lady Lucille Sharpe (Chastain), to their hauntingly beautiful family mansion in northern England. However, it soon becomes clear that her husband may not be who he seems; Edith, a spiritually sensitive girl since childhood, begins seeing terrifying apparitions haunting the mansion’s halls, and she comes to find that the family is harboring some very dark secrets that are now bubbling to the surface.
While wearing the dressings of a classic ghost story, del Toro’s film has adamantly been touted first and foremost as a traditional Gothic romance. Although suspicion has arisen regarding the quality of Crimson Peak as a final product – largely in part to the strict review embargo established by its production studios following screenings – genre fans can now rest assured as we confirm that Guillermo del Toro has fully realized his grandiose vision to an extremely impressive result. Crimson Peak is in fact the epic Gothic romance del Toro has wanted to make all along, a carefully crafted and stunning film that maintains his signature directorial sensibilities while amping up his vision of grandiosity. An added plus, the film also features a heroine that we enjoy watching, a likable woman who ultimately finds power in embracing her personal strengths and identity.
Hiddleston and Charlie Hunnam delivery solidly in their roles here, but Crimson Peak truly belongs to its women, with themes of feminism throughout that are conveyed to great success through its leading lady’s story of love and search for the truth. Mia Wasikowka’s Edith – a writer who would rather be Mary Shelley than, say, Jane Austen – is a fascinating protagonist for whom you consistently root. Despite the typical gender tropes within the subgenre, del Toro maintains her intelligence and grace throughout the film, never letting her fall to desperation. Wasikowska, who has admittedly never made much of an impact on me in the past, delivers a performance that is charmingly witty, while also excellently conveying Edith’s underlying fragility, an understandable trait for someone who quite literally sees ghosts on the regular. She is for all intents and purposes a 19th century independent woman who, despite her best efforts, falls into love with Thomas not out of necessity, but as an organic result of their perceived system of mutual support. Regularly providing feedback on and encouragement for Edith’s promising writing career, as opposed to treating her as a showpiece, you can understand her attraction to Hiddleston’s assured Thomas. This of course makes the plot turns later in the film so much more effective and allows Edith to ultimately rise as a powerful and resilient force, despite the onslaught of horrific threats descending upon her.
Chastain’s Lucille is played quite conversely against Edith as very different kind of powerful woman. As the cold and potentially menacing sister of Thomas, she commands control over every situation in her brother’s life and plays the creepy third wheel with menacing joy. It’s a riot to watch Chastain’s calculating expressions as she sizes up Edith, and her many side-eye glances and snarls elicited many well-placed laughs. However, there is also a heartrending nature to Lucille, particularly as her backstory unfolds, and despite her character’s trajectory, you do feel genuinely saddened for her at times. Whether she is ultimately deserving of this or not becomes another question entirely by the final act, but Chastain’s performance is wickedly entertaining and continues to solidify her as a dynamic starlet.
The film aesthetically follows in the vein of Pan’s Labyrinth and The Devil’s Backbone to an extent, in that there is obviously a very healthy visual emphasis placed on wonder and terror. The ghosts in the film are horrific, shrieking, and bloody; and there are scenes of striking violence that certainly earn the film its R rating. However, Crimson Peak is more about a fairytale-level grandeur in its execution than the somber, emotional darkness of the aforementioned films, and even moments of violence or sexuality are aimed to inspire feelings of cinematic awe at the beauty of their execution rather than more visceral reactions. We do care about the story unfolding before us, but more so as the audience of a grand storyteller conveying an epic drama (think echoes of Edith Wharton or Daphne du Maurier elevated with the visually majestic). This may put off some filmgoers who are expecting a focus on intense scares or emotionally layered tragedy, both cinematic feats del Toro has proven quite capable of conveying in other stories. Crimson Peak is just not that type of film.
To its undeniable credit, the film will never once bore you. While the story’s mystery and resolution are quite straightforward, they are also deeply satisfying by the blood-soaked conclusion. Additionally, Guillermo del Toro is a master of technical magnificence, and the world he creates within the dark mansion is always a breathtaking sight. The 3½-story Victorian home was an intricate set built for the film, and del Toro’s focus on its ornate and hauntingly decrepit structure and architectural details are a testament to the level of care he put into this very massive undertaking of a film. Complete with gorgeous costume design and a rich color palette that brings the film’s most arresting images to life, Crimson Peak is a shoo-in for many an Oscar nod in the technical categories.
Ultimately, Crimson Peak is the kind of cinematic achievement that does feel absolutely timeless. While some horror fans may be put off by its more dramatic focus and traditional narrative (surprising twists and turns in the plot are few here), what we are treated to is a pure and simple callback to a time when films inspired childlike wonder and were capable of far removing you from the mundanity of everyday life. It truly is the grandest kind of movie-going experience, and I’m holding out hope that we do not have to wait another ten years for the next one.
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Film
Categorized:Reviews
