Art more than entertainment

Rating: 6/10 (5 September 2018)

Shape of Water is a period-piece of adult fairy tale romance with magical realism. Placed in Cold War 1960s, the movie tells the story of a mute cleaner at a government facility who falls in love with a captured fish-man being held for research. They escape, fall in love and have to avoid being caught by the government agent overseeing the operation.
It's a slow and familiar tale for most of the story. I wasn't overly captivated and would definitely see this movie as more of a piece of artsty, oscar, festival worthy cinema-making than an exciting or fun movie. Obviously, the talented director and cast intended to make it that way, leading to their Oscar win. All the acting is very high quality and the directing shows an incredible attention to detail. A few twists help make the ending more exciting. However, the bad guy lacks depth, the good guys lack any bad-side and the story drags and feels familiar at times. However, I'm glad I saw it and have to respect what it accomplished - although I won't be rushing to re-watch.