The Shape of Water

Guillermo Del Toro is one of the unique visual directors sometimes referenced for movies that are either gothic science fiction fantasy or big action. He is well-known for the former with his flair for the darkness, impressive practical makeup effects, and gorgeous design of those worlds when Del Toro is at his peak. While I haven't seen all of his featured projects, my personal favorites of his work includes both of the Hellboy films (though the second one is better) and Pan's Labyrinth, which is arguably his best entry to date (honorable mention goes to Pacific Rim). The latter in particular took his strengths to new heights with great performances, excellent use of practical effects, and harsh darkness mixed with gritty realism. It's been more than a decade since that project and while he's been busy with producing other films, it's questionable to when he will do another gothic science fiction entry with the caliber of Pan's Labyrinth, which brings us to The Shape of Water. The marketing campaign showed an interesting yet familiar premise alongside a display of the directors classic impressive special effects on a budget. After seeing the abundance of critical acclaim it's been receiving (in addition to awards nominations), I entered the theater excited for the creativity the director has been known for and left it ecstatic over the beautifully, magical experience the film provided.

Any spoilers about the film in question will be kept on the yearly retrospective page. 

Plot: The story follows a mute janitor woman working at a research facility who bonds with a mysterious sea creature being studied and tortured in 1961 Baltimore. What helps support this plot is an overarching theme of outcasts with societal disabilities (such as sexual orientation, race, or physical) finding comfort with one another despite being ostracized by those around them, which is handled in a respectful manner considering the time period. Every character serves a purpose and gets their chance to shine as the intensity of the situation involving this amphibian increases. The bonds they share with one another is established immediately and is capable of standing out without feeling repetitive. The pace is slow but doesn't drag as we get to know what motivates each person involved and it manages to pick up near the third act. There might be a few minor details that could be a bit off putting at times with some individuals and a number of subplot but it doesn't necessarily ruin the experience (or at least for my taste).

Style: The 1960s setting lends itself to feeling cheerful at times when the soundtrack manages to let the happy moments our main lead have feel like a genuine magic. For a time period that's unforgiving to those who aren't deemed social acceptable, it can drive outcasts to find joy with each other before going to off to the monotonous glum nature of their lives. There are underwater scenes presented in a gorgeous impressive manner that serve to provide crowd pleasing imagery that are worth watching. They aren't anything massive in scope, but the quality over quantity approach lends itself well in how its crafted. One thing to note is that there's a certain color shown with certain characters that spells the imminent doom approaching to look out for. There's an aqua related palette spread throughout the scenes nice enough to keep an eye out for.

Characters: The individuals to focus on are Elisa (Sally Hawkins) and Colonel Strickland (Michael Shannon), Elisa is a mute janitor who meets a sea creature and forms a unique relationship with the amphibian. Sally gives a great performance as a silent protagonist with good work in handling facial reactions to and line delivery via sign language (with a special shoutout for an awesome one liner that one person wants to know what they are saying. Strickland is the arrogant, racist, abusive man in charge of the research team. Michael Shannon is in 100% beast mode as he goes all out in being as menacing as he's capable of, which is felt in those quiet intimidating moments where it's hard to tell what he's going to do next. While there might be some criticism against him in terms of his cartoonish nature, his motivation is displayed more through his actions and his scare intimidation factor increases throughout the film (pulled off well by the actor).

Honorable mentions go to Zelda (Octavia Spencer) and Giles (Richard Jenkins). Zelda is Elisa's friend and co-worker whose sassy attitude provided by Octavia's solid portrayal adds to their supportive friendship (keep in mind Elisa is mute, not deaf, so she's basically a good listener), along with some humorous moments. Giles is Elisa's closeted commercial artist friend and neighbor who helps her with a predicament later in the story. Richard gives a sympathetic and delightful portrayal as someone who cautiously approaches life considering how harsh it can be but is supportive where it counts. Overall despite some script issues with a few of the characters, the actors are capable of bringing their all into their performances.

The Amphibian Man: The other leading character is our mysterious Amphibian Man (Doug Jones) who's been captured and taken to a research facility where most of the main cast works at. The practical effects used in the latest monster creation from Guillermo Del Toro is beautiful to look at when you observe the detail on him such as his gills, his hands, and his eyes. However, for as good looking as it is, he's still pretty dangerous like a wild animal when provoked at times (for instance if you torture him or make him easily startled). What makes the bonds it shares with our mute janitor more interesting is how their communication is nonverbal and that she teaches him with sign language since he only makes his screeching-esque sound. The mannerism displayed by Doug Jones's performance also play a factor in how the monster interacts with the environment (it also helps that the actor is one of the directors frequent collaborators with creature roles in previous projects like Pan's Labyrinth as The Faun and the Pale Man).

Overall Consensus: The Shape of Water manages a perfect balance of suspense and magical glee with strong lead performances, a great soundtrack, gorgeous visuals, and familiar social commentary. ⭑⭑⭑⭑⭑🍿🎟

Reasons to watch it: You like any of the aforementioned actors. You are a fan of Guillermo Del Toro's gothic sci-fi work. You enjoy watching relatable characters during the Cold War time period. You are interested in seeing another monster in the directors repertoire. You have seen Pan's Labyrinth and are interested in determining if The Shape of Water can match that quality. You enjoy rooting for misfits trying to fit into the world. You don't mind a few subplots in a drama with familiar social commentary. You don't mind nudity in R rated films. You want to see how the Amphibian Man compares to Abe Sapien from Hellboy.

Reasons to avoid it: You dislike any of the aforementioned actors. You dislike Guillermo Del Toro's gothic sci-fi work. You dislike two hour films that have a bit of a slow pace. You are sensitive to injuries or severed body parts. You dislike romances between a human and a monster. You are annoyed with numerous subplots. You don't like antagonists that become cartoon-ish.

Coming up next: December has just been elevated further by the beauty contained with The Shape of Water. So far it's been quite a stellar month of review experiences between samplings from distinct genres such as dramedy (dramatic comedy), comedic biographical, and sci-fi drama. Well there's only one review left for 2017 and it's one of the most anticipated blockbusters from a well-beloved science fiction action franchise. The studio may have had some crazy behind the scenes firings drama with their other upcoming projects but this one has been completed despite the death of the well-known actress after filming was completed...so this has to be perfectly good on its own right? Tune in next time as Screening Spectacles will return to a galaxy far far away to determine if the force is strong with the eighth episode and second entry in this new trilogy, Star Wars: The Last Jedi!!!