Beautiful and also weird

Rating: 7/10 (31 January 2018)

I'm not sure how I feel about this movie. There is no denying that there is some beautiful visuals. And the romance is very beautiful at times too. But sometimes its also weird. I mean, he is an intelligent creature and I can get why she would see something more in him, but then in the next scene he's eating a cat. And its like.....that doesnt put her off? That doesnt make her take a step back and think "Am I sure about this?" I get that its a fantasy. A Modern fairytale if you will and therefore its not going to be hyper realistic and scenes are going to be embellished, but I dont feel like it works all the time either.
Sally Hawkins though is incredible and definitely deserves that oscar nomination. Its especially impressive because she really has to rely on her face and body movements. Octavia Spencer was good but you could honestly replace her with her character from The Help or Hidden Figures and you would never know the difference. She does the same thing in each of those movies. Richard Jenkins is good and very heartwarming too. I wanted to be friends with him. Michael Shannon is a great villain. He definitely is unhinged in the last act. And he plays it well. Doesnt top his performance in Take Shelter though.
I do think Guillermo deserves being nominated for directing because he is a beautiful filmmaker. I especially loved the scene where she wants to tell the creature how she feels and its conveyed through song. I thought it was so good how was shot and a beautiful nod to old Hollywood too. I think if anything the script was lost on me at times.