Beautiful Movie

Rating: 8/10 (12 January 2018)

This beautiful and very clever movie will not be for everyone, but if you are prepared to suspend your disbelief it really is a lot of fun (I see from other reviews that not everyone did this). Sally Hawkins is fantastic (I've loved everything she's been in recently) and Michael Shannon is the perfect stereotyped bad guy. The story is simplistic, sure, but the sets and the cinematography are the real stars here. If you've played the video game "BioShock" then a lot of it will look familiar.
If you're a fan of Guillermo Del Toro and enjoy all genres of movies (including, but not limited to, science fiction, romance, musical) you may well "get" this movie, otherwise you should probably skip it. Even if you do enjoy it, there are a few noticeable sub-plots and themes that don't really go anywhere (Richard Jenkins' character being a gay man in the 50s, for example) ... my only gripe.
Go watch it, have fun. But leave your brain at home.