One Of My Favorite Movies Of The Year

Rating: 10/10 (8 December 2017)

"The Shape Of Water" is the new project from writer/director Guillermo Del Toro who brought us Pan's Labyrinth, Pacific Rim, The Hellboy Movies and to an extent The Hobbit trilogy (which gets to much hate). I wasn't a huge fan of Crimson peak, but the Shape Of Water really looked intriguing from the trailers. I sat there blown away by what I was seeing. This is one of my favorite films of 2017. It is unique, original, interesting, intriguing, and weird all at the same time.
Sally Hawkins gives a really great performance in one of the most inspirational performances I have ever seen. her character is mute and has no lines of dialogue aside from a dream sequence, but man does she play this character with confidence. The supporting cast also does a really great job, Michael Shannon of course being the next standout, and no one phone sin a performance at all.
This film has that old school vibe to it. There is a use of a lot of practical effects, and the makeup and hairstyling is some of the best I've seen on film this year. The amphibian creature, if it is motion captured, is seamlessly integrated into the movie that the use of practical effects looks so appealing.
The set designs are also really great. Lots of little details that you have to pay attention to that you wouldn't normally pay attention to. The lighting in these scenes also adds a lot of depth to the movie. There are scenes that are dim for a reason, and some with more lighting for a reason. It is really a great way to use lighting to convey the details of the environment.
This is a story that grabbed me from the beginning. Not once was I bored watching this movie. It kept me engaged and there is so much character development that it ended up making me care at the end. Out of all of the characters that you root for, there is not one single character that you end up not liking.
And if my memory serves me correctly, there is not one scene of exposition in this film. Not one. There are some "hints" here and there as to what is going on in the background, but from what I remember it's not explicitly stated. It leaves it up to you to put together all of the clues and I really like that about this film.
I'm happy we got something original in Hollywood. Everyone craves for something original, and then everyone hates it when something original comes out. It was a nice breath to just see something so refreshing instead of plot threads being retreaded and following clichÃ©s that we see in movies nowadays. This is one of my favorite films of the year.
I am going to give "The Shape Of Water" an A+.