Universal
119 Mins.
Horror/Thriler
Mia Wasachowski Tom Middleton Jessica Chastian and Charie Hunam star.
Written and Directed by Guillermo Del Toro
Rated R for language, violence, gore, sexuality and nudity.
Crimson peak is a very frustrating movie going experience. Now usually I try to go into things with an open mind but in this case I couldn't set aside my high expectations for the material. Especially after seeing those hauntingly beautiful trailers and finding out about the fantastic cast, Even though I started to get nervous at the beginning of the week when I saw that the review embargo had not been lifted yet. Well I think it's quite obvious that I was disappointed. Not to say that CP is a bad film by any means it's just not what it should be. It all starts off very strong with Mia Wasachowski as a refreshing, independent young female writer in the 1800s. She than meets a charming baronette in Tom Middleton and begins to fall for him. But her father does not approve and neither does his creepy sister played by a wonderful Jessica Chastain in psycho mode. Eventually dark events happen which leads her into Middleton's arms. They move to his decrepit, gothic family home where she begins to see horrific ghosts and the events culminate to a somewhat expected finale. The thing is CP for about half of it's running time is wonderfully mysterious, charming and uniquely engaging but in the middle the material becomes a bit repetitive hitting a lull that makes the proceedings drag out a bit. And than it all leads up to a final 20 minutes that's bat shit crazy and disappointingly generic at the same time. Ultimately I'm sad to report that we've seen this simplistic story path before and executed far more interestingly. What once seems so complex and interesting eventually looses it's seductive luster and becomes just another tale of obsession. The film does sport some wonderfully entrancing visuals and the ghosts are the most horrific I've seen but it lacks the substance it should possess especially with all the names attached to it. Also the film never is as crazy or epic as it should be making it all feel a bit watered down. In the end CP has a decent amount to offer and ends up being a fairly predictable but pretty good film but the potential to be something greater is squandered for sake of insipid genre clichés. ***.5/5
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