Film Review: The Shape of Water (2018)

Rating: 9.5/10
Genre: Drama/Fantasy
Related Titles: Pans Labyrinth, Crimson Peak, Mother!
By Leanne Harragan

Elisa works as a cleaner in a secret, highly protected laboratory in 1962. When she discovers a secret creature hidden in a water tank her life changes forever. 

The first Odeon Screen Unseen of the year and what a treat it was. Director Del Toro deserves huge recognition for this film and truly deserves the Golden Globe Best Director, the film is absolutely breath-taking. Every scene is so carefully put together, as is the creature, the score, the script, I thoroughly enjoyed everything about this film and was hooked on the screen.

As Elisa is a mute, the film occasionally relied upon the score and who better than Alexandre Desplat for the job (if you have seen 'Suburbicon' or 'The Grand Budapest Hotel' then you will understand how wonderful his work is.) Shout-out to anyone who worked on the set/costume designs of on this film because I can't stress how much I loved the look of the film. Another amazing part of this film was the creature itself, it looked fantastic and being a main part of this film, that was hugely important. 

The cast were also incredible Sally Hawkins as Elise is so enchanting, even though she doesn't say a word you can't help but to fall in love with her. Octavia Spencer was great Elise's friend, she brought humour and sass . Michael Shannon was a wonderful villain, he really looked the part and brought something special to the part. I could talk about more of the cast but to prevent myself from going on; I will give final cast mention to Richard Jenkins, who flawlessly played Giles, Elise's charming, closeted best friend who stands up for what is important and understands the meaning of a true friendship. 

My favourite thing about this film was the humanity that came through. All of the characters were heroes and I felt a whole bunch of emotions while watching this film, I laughed, I cried, worried and smiled. The monstrous twist on a classic fairy-tale was an all-round delight to watch in my opinion and I loved every single second of it. I could easily have watched much more which is something I rarely say these days. 

Even though it is sometimes a little predictable, it is incredibly original and stunning to watch, I'd definitely recommend giving this one a try.