Director
Guillermo del Toro has reached into his film memories and distilled a wondrous,
modern fairy tale for adults that
will fascinate and move its audience in The
Shape of Water.
Set
in Baltimore in 1962, a time of racism and homophobia, Elisa (Sally Hawkins), a
mute cleaner at a government facility, lives in her own little world, and together
with her coworker, Zelda (Octavia Spencer), and her neighbor, Giles (Richard
Jenkins), form a bond of outcasts:
one unable to speak, one black female, and one gay male. When Strickland (Michael Shannon at his creepiest),
security head with a cruel and violent disposition, brings in a mysterious
water creature for study, Elisa becomes
fascinated and enamored with it and hatches a daring plan to save her amphibious
friend as the military and even the Russians close in. Unexpected alliances
are formed which culminates in a heartbreaking, transformative finish.
Hawkins excels in a
brave, challenging role relying exclusively on her facial expressions and body
language. Her Elisa is a romantic with desires and sexuality that become amplified
by the creature,
a remarkable creation which was inspired by del Toro’s childhood love of The Creature from the Black Lagoon.
A
recurring theme is about connecting to one another as each major character searches
for a meaningful relationship; it’s about lonely people helping each other. Beautifully shot and scored from beginning to
end, the film has a nice period flavor and paints a vivid, personal world; you
know you are in the hands of a master whose fertile imagination knows no bounds. This romantic
fable ranks up there with the director’s great Pan’s Labyrinth. Its magic is undeniable, and its emotional effect
profound. (Someone will win an Oscar.) Del Toro has a classic.
**** of
**** stars
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