THE SHAPE OF WATER REVIEW

*MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS*

Despite being a film fan, I'm ashamed to say that I've only seen one of director Guillermo del Toro's films prior to watching his latest feature, The Shape Of Water, and that was his 2013 action-packed sci-fi, Pacific Rim. However, I can understand why he's regarded as one of the most imaginative and creative directors working today. His dark fantasy, Pan's Labyrinth, which was released in 2006, certified that statement and won three Academy Awards including Best Achievement in Cinematography, Best Achievement in Art Direction and Best Achievement in Make-Up. Mainly because I haven't seen Pan's Labyrinth yet and I'm sure when I do get round to watching it, my mind may change, however, I think that The Shape Of Water may be del Toro's best work yet. 

Set against the backdrop of Cold War era America circa 1962, the hidden high-security government laboratory where she works, lonely Elisa (Sally Hawkins) is trapped in a life of isolation. Elisa's life is changed forever when she and co-worker Zelda (Octavia Spencer) discover a secret classified experiment. Elisa is fascinated by this creature and it doesn't take long for her to bond with it. Unfortunately, the poor creature is being tortured by the boss of the laboratory, Richard Strickland (Michael Shannon) and Elisa soon realises she must save it before it's too late.

Because I was unfamiliar with the majority of del Toro's work, I had no idea what to expect from The Shape Of Water, fortunately, I was pleasantly surprised. In many ways, the story is similar to that of Beauty and the Beast as both tell the story of a woman that falls in love with a monster. However, despite its unusual appearance, it has a kind personality and that's why Elisa falls in love. When the creature rises out of its pool, Elisa isn't frightened, she's more intrigued. This leads to her visiting it every day when she's at work and she feeds it boiled eggs, plays music and teaches him to communicate using sign language. This is where the romantic aspect of the film comes from. On paper, it may sound ridiculous for a woman to fall in love with a create that resembles a large human fish, however, the execution is beautifully done. I doubt anyone will walk away from this film without feeling something for the creature whether that's love or sympathy for its situation where it's tortured on a daily basis. The Shape Of Water succeeds in telling a true love story. At the time of writing this, it was nominated for the Best Motion Picture award at the Golden Globes and I wouldn't be surprised to see the Academy acknowledge it too.

Despite barely uttering a word, Sally Hawkins is captivating as Elisa. When writing the screenplay, del Toro said that he only pictured Hawkins in the role and he wanted Elisa to be beautiful, not in a 'perfume commercial kind of way' but, rather, you could believe this woman would be sitting next to you on the bus but, at the same time, she would have a 'luminosity, a beauty, almost magical, etheral' look about her. I couldn't have described Hawkins' performance better myself. In the past, Hawkins has given various supporting roles in films such as Submarine, Blue Jasmine and in the 2014 monster feature, Godzilla. She's currently best known for appearing in the family-friendly Paddington films. However, as Elisa, she certainly gives her best performance yet. I'm sure she'll be nominated for a Best Actress award at this year's Oscars, however, I do think it's about time she won. Last year's Best Supporting Actor nominee, Michael Shannon, gives a dark and twisted performance as Strickland who delights in bringing pain to the creature. Solid supporting roles come from Octavia Spencer, as Elisa's colleague and friend, Richard Jenkins as Elisa's neighbour and Michael Stuhlbarg as the scientist, Dr Robert Hoffstetler. Doug Jones is best known for portraying the Pale Man in Pan's Labyrinth and, since then, has frequently collaborated with del Toro. Instead of using motion capture for his portrayal of the creature, known as 'Amphibian Man', Jones spent three hours getting into the costume and he has said that it was nothing compared to the previous costumes he's worn for del Toro's films. 

In terms of visuals, The Shape Of Water is stunning and features some beautiful pieces of cinematography, directed by Dan Laustsen, including a shot of Elisa embracing the Amphibian Man underwater. It's a breathtaking shot and I can understand why it's on the front of the promotional posters for The Shape Of Water.

Following the release of his highly successful dark fantasy, Pan's Labyrinth, del Toro went on to direct the sequel to Hellboy, Pacific Rim and Crimson Peak. While the latter two features were generally received well by critics and audiences, they were far from the quality of Pan's Labyrinth. However, The Shape Of Water is certainly a return to form for del Toro as it tells a engaging and original story about love and features some stunning visuals and Sally Hawkins' best performance yet.

8/10