A master of horror with such classics as Chronos and The Devil's Backbone to his resume, Guillermo Del Toro apes the style of a 19th century pot-boiler to bring us his latest vision, Crimson Peak.
Edith Cushing (Mia Wasikowska) becomes enthralled with the British Aristocrat, Thomas Sharpe (Tom Hiddleston), when he seeks funding from her industrialist father. Despite her common sense, and against the wishes of her father, a relationship develops that soon sees Edith married, and moving to England. As she enters the dilapidated Allerdale Hall, Edith discovers that not all is as it seems - not her loving husband, or his devoted sister (Jessica Chastain). Ghastly apparitions tread the decrepit halls carrying a warning for Edith to 'Beware Crimson Peak'.
There is the deliberate quality of a lurid Victorian supernatural melodrama about this film, rather than that of a modern horror. The ghost themselves serve a very specific element of the plot, acting less as threats from the other world but more as ghastly warnings to the heroine. The camera often irises in and out of scenes, mimicking early cinema. Elements from the era are often name checked, or woven into the plot - from the age of industry, to wax cylinder recordings, spirit photography, and the works of Arthur Conan Doyle. Even the heroine's surname is shared by one of the stars of the Hammer Horror era (with their love of Gothic material).
Yet most telling on the structure is the slow, measured pacing of the film. Crimson Peak crawls along in a very leisurely fashion, delivering few chills along the way. Instead of quantity, Crimson Peak concentrates on quality, making the audience's skin crawl with every spectral summoning; all as it slowly ramps its way towards a bloody and hysterical climax.
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Hiddleston is born to play the role of tragic nobility. His voice is like worn velvet, his bearing perfect, with just a hint of menace about him. Jessica Chastain as the over-protective sister, doesn't limit herself to mere hints of menace, instead having the energy of a caged panther, ready to take advantage of any careless moment. Compared to these performances Mia Wasikowska is shuffled a little into the background, playing the bookish but almost porcelain Edith Cushing, but manages to find enough energy and verve by the climax to make the role pay off.
Guillermo Del Toro brings us a lavish Gothic realm. The crumbling walls of Allerdale Hall are full of vivid details, lit by an eerie flicker of green or red light. It is a world that could have flowed from Edgar Alan Poe's pen, full of decay and secrets. Wonderfully shot and beautifully realised, Crimson Peak is not going to be something to appeal to everyone due to its slow pacing, but a little patience will be well rewarded with ghastly thrills.
Originally published in X-Press Magazine
