Review by Roger Carpenter
Guillermo Del Toro has fast become one of my favorite directors. I first caught wind of him through his atmospheric ghost story The Devil’s Backbone, followed up by his theatrical debut of a few years earlier, the unique and touching vampire tale, Cronos. Though I missed Mimic and don’t care to see the Hellboy films, he continues to impress with the likes of Pan’s Labyrinth and the Academy Award-winning The Shape of Water. Crimson Peak, a neo-gothic romance in the classical vein, is no less impressive than the aforementioned films.
Del Toro is a stickler for details. He has read all the classic gothic romance novels as well as their precursors. He knows the tropes and characteristics of gothic romance intimately and his attention to detail is such that he simply cannot allow himself to be anything less than absolutely accurate, so there is likely no one better to direct a gothic romance than this man.
Crimson Peak is the story of a young woman, Edith (Mia Wasikowska), who lives with her widowed father, an entrepreneur, in 1901 Buffalo, New York. A dashing young Brit with big dreams crosses the pond to pitch an idea to her father for a new piece of mining equipment which will help the young man mine the rich, red clay on his land. Edith is immediately swept off her feet by this newcomer, Thomas Sharpe (Tom Hiddleston). However, Edith’s father doesn’t buy his story and hires a private detective to investigate the stranger, along with his melancholy sister, Lucy (Jessica Chastain). We aren’t privy to exactly what information was unearthed, but it is clearly enough for Edith’s father to buy the Sharpe’s out of America, with Thomas being forced to leave Edith behind as well.
But fate intervenes and Edith’s father suffers a horrible death, leaving Edith completely alone. Thomas invites himself back into her life and the pair are soon married, with Thomas taking Edith to his imposing English mansion, Allerdale Hall.
Allerdale Hall is a classic gothic edifice. Thomas and Lucy’s father managed to spend the family fortune before he died, leaving his two children to try to keep up the immense house with little income. Thus, Allerdale Hall is dank and dark and perpetually cold, especially in the winter. When it snows outside, the roof, which has partially collapsed, creates snow showers in the grand foyer of the house, a beautiful and striking sight which nevertheless doesn’t help the temperature within. To compound the problem, the house was built over the clay mine itself and is slowly sinking, with crimson-colored clay oozing up between cracks in the rotting floor. To say Allerdale Hall and the Sharpe Family have seen better days is an immense understatement. How fortuitous then, for Thomas and Lucy, that he has married the now extremely wealthy Edith so she can fund his mining invention and allow the restoration of both the family name as well as the centuries-old home.
As with any ancient, crumbling mansion, there is a history. And, per the usual, the history is a long and sad one, filled with misery, torture, human bondage, abuse, and death. With these extremely painful emotions come ghosts, and Allerdale Hall is full of ghosts. It so happens that Edith is a sensitive. Her first experience with a ghost was after her mother died. Her mother returned in ghostly form to warn her with a cryptic message: beware of Crimson Peak. Edith has never forgotten this warning though the meaning remains shrouded in mystery, even as the red clay of the land surrounding Allerdale Hall turns the white snow crimson as it continues to ooze to the surface.
Del Toro’s Crimson Peak is filled with detail, much of it so intricate and subtle the viewer will hardly notice. Such is his drive for perfection that even the tiniest details are important, even if invisible to the viewer. Nevertheless, there is plenty of detail for which one may take note. For instance, butterflies and moths play a central role in the film. Edith’s wardrobe mimics that of a butterfly, with big, puffy shoulders that look like wings and vibrantly colored dresses, while Lucy’s dresses are dark and drab, like the colors of a moth. Even the chair Edith sits in at Allerdale Hall is a huge wingback with corners that jut out in curved points, fashioning a set of wings as she sits. Allerdale Hall is filled with moths; they are everywhere. The only butterflies to be found are in killing jars set upon Lucy’s desk. Foreshadowing perhaps…?
Keys and keyholes are also symbolic and are to be found in everything from the stitching in the characters’ clothing to the design of the hallways in Allerdale Hall. Lucy carries a large set of keys which remain by her side constantly and which she guards jealously. Might these keys play a larger role in the mystery of Allerdale Hall?
For her part, Edith is surrounded and consumed by mysteries. Her father dies mysteriously and, now that she resides at Allerdale Hall, she has contracted a mysterious cough which seems to be getting progressively worse. She also wonders why her new husband is so distant; why, they haven’t even consummated their marriage yet. And why does Lucy keep pressing her for details of that act? And Thomas, though he clearly loves Edith, seems to have an unwholesome connection with his sister. And finally, there is the issue of the ghosts which lead Edith to discover mysterious recordings as well as several steamer chests stored in the underground mines…a location she has been forbidden to visit.
Simply put, Crimson Peak is lush and gorgeous. Del Toro spares no expense to ensure every detail is correct, from the story—a sweeping love story with a perverse twist, a central mystery, a windy moor, a spooky old castle, and, of course, ghosts—to the fantastic sets—the three-and-a-half story house was actually built from the ground up–and the turn of the century décor and costumes. The films builds slowly, though it is never less than absolutely engaging, until it resolves with a series of shocking revelations as well as a violent yet tender climax.
Lest anyone who hasn’t already seen the film is turned off by the use of the term “gothic romance,” please be assured this film is also absolutely chilling. There are a series of shocks that will jangle the nerves and the ghosts are fairly horrifying. While Del Toro himself chafes at the use of the term “horror,” the film itself has plenty of spooky scenes that won’t disappoint the horror fan. The score is absolutely beautiful and has a central theme I never get tired of hearing. The score also complements the more horrifying elements of the film as well. While Del Toro never revels in gory violence, one can usually count on a handful of shockingly violent, yet brief, scenes in his films, and this one is no different. While not gratuitous, there are two or three scenes—the death of Edith’s father, Thomas’ death—that are particularly startling, as much for their quick development, which catches the viewer off guard, as well as the brutality of the violence.
While Del Toro has created several genre films that are unique, highly enjoyable, and can be watched numerous times over, this may be my favorite of his films, and I believe it is a modern masterpiece. It is simply a can’t-miss film, especially for cinephiles who take delight in high-quality filmmaking and who may pay a bit more attention to the details within the film than the regular viewer. For those who need a bit of help, Del Toro’s superb audio commentary manages to shed more light on exactly what those details are.
I’m pleased that a company such as Arrow has chosen to release this film. Arrow have done a fairly astounding job in accumulating additional materials to help put the film in perspective. Along with the aforementioned audio commentary, this package also includes featurettes which cover nearly every aspect of the film, from a history of gothic romance in literature and film, to the design of the house and other sets, the costume design, the special effects which created the ghosts, an examination of the use of violence in del Toro’s films, the lighting and use of color in the film…the list goes on and on and also includes several deleted scenes as well. Aside from the two-hour commentary, the special features run over three hours.
As if this wasn’t enough, this special edition also includes, along with the Blu-Ray, a foldout poster, six double-sided lobby card reproductions, and an 80-page hardbound book. This film is now available for purchase at Amazon or you can purchase the film directly from Arrow Video at http://www.arrowfilms.co.uk/category/usa/.
