Ever since viewing Guillermo del Toro’s Pan’s Labyrinth, I’ve had high hopes for subsequent films from the Mexican director. Unfortunately, this film doesn’t live up to the hauntingly beautiful 2006 Spanish-language film, but it’s still worth seeing for its gorgeous sets and costumes. That is, if you can stomach the gore.
Fans of Victorian ghost stories like Turn of the Screw will find much to like about this gothic romance/horror story. Edith Cushing (an ethereal Mia Wasikowska) is an aspiring writer who gets seduced by Thomas Sharpe (Tom Hiddleston), an English baronet traveling to America in search of business investors. They marry, and Edith moves to his damp, crumbling estate in the isolated countryside. After a few otherworldly encounters, she realizes that there’s much more to Sharpe and his icy sister, Lucille (Jessica Chastain).
Although predictable and heavily foreshadowed, the mystery at the film’s center is engaging. Crimson Peak has spooks and scares, but the heavy-handedness of the violence ultimately distracts from its gothic aspirations. However, the film receives an A+ for its haunted mansion, a lushly detailed, spooky set piece. Situated atop bloodred clay that drips down the walls and oozes through the snow, it’s visually striking, both disturbing and beautiful.
Should You See It? If you can stomach the gore, it’s a unique ghost story.
Viewed at Wehrenberg Ronnies 20 Cine