Crimson Peak

Ratings: 7.7/10

Film class: B+

Genre: Fantasy thriller

Scare factor: 1/5

Gore factor: 3.5/5

Young Edith (Mia Wasikowska) was revisited by her deceased mum with a message she couldn't decipher... Not until years later where a family tragedy and a love temptation would bring light to what the main plot of Crimson Peak is all about. 

Knowing the director Guillermo del Toro, that his style of movies were more fantasy horror than spine-thrilling ones like Pans Labyrinth and Hellboy, I figured I wouldn't be freaked out that much. True enough, Crimson Peak was more like a Period Drama Fantasy Thriller. And as Edith, who also happens to be an aspiring author puts it aptly in the movie, it's not a ghost story but merely a story with a ghost in it. Though she was referring to the draft of her novel, there was parallel reference to the actual movie itself. Think Sixth Sense in a fantasy era. The ghosts were more monster-like than ghostly.

*major spoilers ahead* Not everything links smoothly. Like how her childhood sweetheart has a hobby for collecting ghostly photos (so what if he did? There wasn't any follow-up after), or how even Edith was an aspiring author (perhaps just to hint the true genre of the movie as what I mentioned above) or how did a pivotal dog survive the harshness of the winter cold (did some ghost feed the dog?) and most importantly how did Edith's mum know about Crimson Peak? If she was indeed able to "see" the future, then wouldn't she have "seen" the death of the villains as well? 

Also, the in-your-face head smashing and cheek piercing gore was grossly unexpected, unwelcomed to say the least, but perhaps that was what was needed to erupt the horror adrenaline some members of the audience were hoping for. 

Despite it all, I liked it. The costumes were a feast for the eyes, vibrantly and extravagantly designed to captivate even the most cynical of audiences. The plot was twisted and the twist did make the movie more "intelligent" in a sense. It was creepy, not spooky, sweet, not romantic. 

Tom Hiddleston steals the limelight as usual, and to see Jessica Chastain in such a dark movie was also rather refreshing. 

Crimson Peak may have peaked if not for the unconnected subplots and the seeming sex-cut-scene between Mia Wasikowska and Tom Hiddleston but it did reach a climax that only a horror version of Pirates of the Carribean or The Lord of the Rings were capable of. Crimson Peak was indeed a true visual spectacle, mysteriously intriguing...