The Shape of Water: The Grown up Fairy-tale Version of Beauty and the Beast

Rating: 8/10 (20 February 2018)

This is a romantic fantasy drama, set in the 1960's at a top secret laboratory, a very tender love story between a mute cleaning woman and a captured 'sea monster', both isolated due to their individual circumstances and incapable of human speech.
Starring Sally Hawkins, she is the mute, and has access to all the top secret areas in order to clean them. Octavia Spencer is also a cleaner, and crucial to the plot later. Richard Jenkins is her neighbour and Michael Shannon, is brilliant as the evil government security agent in charge of the 'monster'. It becomes obvious that he is more of a monster than the actual monster!
The 'monster' is also referred to as the 'asset' and is being studied for any advantages that it could offer the USA military in the cold war with Russia.
The mute says so much in her attitude, she offers the monster compassion and care, she slowly grows fond of the monster and builds a friendship through boiled eggs, sign language and music. The relationship develops further and grows into love. When she hears they propose to kill the monster she urgently plans to help it escape, houses it at her home and eventually set it free into the sea.
This film has a very atmospheric, classic look, is about characters that are misfits but have inner beauty. 13 Oscar nominations.