4.5 out of 5 stars (4.5 / 5)

Just beautiful.

I never thought a horror film could be quite as enchanting and cosy as this. It took a pro like director Guillermo del Toro to take the genre and make it sparkle. Haunted house? Check. Girl exploring said house all alone? Check. But Crimson Peak is so much more than that.

Aspiring writer Edith Cushing (Mia Wasikowska) makes acquaintance with Thomas Sharpe (Tom Hiddleston) while working at her father’s office. As Edith and Thomas become closer and Thomas’s sister Lucille (Jessica Chastain) comes into the picture, Edith’s father grows suspicious of their true intentions.

It was actually disappointing for me not to be able to award this 5 stars. It has so much going for it: top-notch acting (and who knew Jessica Chastain would look this good as a brunette?), gorgeous sets and scenery, exquisite period costume design, interesting story, and even some extremely touching moments too. Not only that, but this is a film that makes you think. You get that wonderful feeling of walking out of the cinema and having an ever-so-slightly different perspective on things.

Yet I still reserve the top rating to films which, in my point of view, are close to perfect. Unfortunately, this one wasn’t quite there; the main culprit being CGI. In some scenes it looks like they borrowed the CGI skeletons from Pirates of the Carribean and dripped them in red wax. Less is more, people! I can’t help but think it would have been so much eerier if they had taken it easy on the digital effects. Secondly, the plot – although very interesting, wasn’t quite as polished as it could have been. But don’t let that dampen your spirits. Its enjoyability factor is through the roof, and that’s the main thing!

Just in time for Haloween, this one is a definite must-see. Crimson Peak premieres in Sweden on October 16.


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