Guillermo del Toro's "The Shape of Water"

[StarLord]

Amazon

Explore the art and making of Guillermo del Toro’s new masterpiece, The Shape of Water, winner of the Venice Film Festival’s top prize, the Golden Lion.

From master storyteller Guillermo del Toro comes The Shape of Water—an other-worldly fairy tale set against the backdrop of the Cold War-era United States circa 1962. In the hidden high-security government laboratory where she works, lonely Elisa (Sally Hawkins) is trapped in a life of silence and isolation. Elisa’s life is changed forever when she and coworker Zelda (Octavia Spencer) discover a secret classified experiment. Rounding out the cast are Michael Shannon, Richard Jenkins, Michael Stuhlbarg, and Doug Jones.

Guillermo del Toro’s The Shape of Water: Creating a Fairy Tale for Troubled Times chronicles the entire filmmaking journey, from development to design to filming. Featuring interviews and commentary from key actors and members of the creative team, the book also showcases the amazing concept art and design work created for the film.

For del Toro fans and movie lovers everywhere, it’s the perfect way to explore this exciting new movie from a master filmmaker known for his poignant storytelling and visual grandeur.

This title will be released on December 19, 2017.

 

[Marvolo]

His Pan's Labyrinth Making-of book is wonderful so I will be getting this Shape of Water Making-of for sure. There is also a making-of book for Devil's Backbone that is being released in November:

https://www.amazon.com/Guillermo-de..._title_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1508917510&sr=1-9

 

[StarLord]

Bloody Disgusting

We learned today that Guillermo del Toro’s The Shape of Water, his other-worldly tale set against the backdrop of Cold War-era America, will now open in New York theaters on December 1st before arriving in Los Angeles on Dec. 8th and expanding nationwide the week after.

Damn. The UK doesn't get it until Feb 16th.

 

[Hordakfan]

Sounds like Shape of Water is a return to form for Del Toro. I'm thrilled.

You mean to independent roots?

A love story between a mute woman and a fish man... I'll watch it.

If this movie ends with him dead and the mute woman pregnant with his baby, it would be in tune with Del Toro's style, but I'd be like...naw.

Nothing wrong with outside species/outside human race romance in fiction!

This movie should be a hit and one of the year's finest movies as i'm a Sci-fi/fantasy nut myself and a Del Toro fan since i was 13 when i rented Cronos. This feels like Terry Gilliam/Jeunet influence to it and looks like Bioshock meets Beauty and the Beast and Splash.

 

[redhawk23]

I'm seeing this tomorrow night! I will report back with my thoughts. I'll keep it spoiler free.

 

[redhawk23]

I will keep this spoiler free.

I will try to avoid just using superlatives as "Best This" and "Best that" aren't really helpful.

First off I will say I am really thankful that Guillermo del Toro teamed up with Vanessa Taylor. This script for this film is all around well polished. The characters are all very well rounded, all have their own little corner of the story. The dialogue avoids that rough, stilted quality of GDT's last couple of English language films.

Both the story and the style of the whole film take some very surprising turns. Most of what we've seen from these trailers is from very early in the movie.

GDT is a filmmaker whose work is easily recognizable but I appreciate that while he brings certain sensibilities, he and those he works with are able and willing to mix things up. GDT is not at risk of becoming like an early 00's Tim Burton, slapping a rote aesthetic onto things where it doesn't belong.

In this film, GDT and his production designers bring their attention detail and color theory to an early 60s milieu that's somewhere between Mad Men and the Manhattan Project but then combined with the fluid camera movements of a classic musical. It is recognizable Del Toro but different from his other work. I really appreciate it.

The quality writing I mentioned really gives all of its actors something to work with and the performances are all around very good. Michael Shannon gives the kind of barely restrained manic performance you might have come to expect from him but it is all given such an odd and unnerving edge by the character that he has been given.

Richard Jenkins is alternatively deeply funny and quite sad.

Sally Hawkins establishes a full personality for her character very quickly, even without verbally speaking. Even beyond just actual sign language, her performance communicates so much attitude and desire. Again, wonderfully executed through the performance but also just so well written.


By now through the trailers and clips and things, we've seen much of the film's central gill man. The movie is not cagey about trying to hide him but I also don't think he is over used by any means. Doug Jones does top notch work getting a lot of character across through the costume. I do believe some digital effects were used to enhance his eyes but it all comes together as singular believable being. While it also builds upon the influence of the Creature from the Black Lagoon, much as Abe Sapien did, and with the same actor, the design work here pushes the character away from Abe enough I feel. I love the costumes of the Hellboy movies, but this really felt much more like a living, breathing creature. The layers of texture, and spines really get it across. Much more Coelacanth whereas Abe is smooth, and plasticy at times.


All around, a really well put together movie that really surprised me in its style and again just the quality of the writing overall.

 

[Abudefduf]

Thanks for the review! I hope I enjoy it as much as you did. But what I want to know is, is it Del Toro's best movie so far?

Damn. The UK doesn't get it until Feb 16th.

Same here in my country. Yeah, it sucks, but what can you do.

 

[redhawk23]

Thanks for the review! I hope I enjoy it as much as you did. But what I want to know is, is it Del Toro's best movie so far?

Same here in my country. Yeah, it sucks, but what can you do.

It is far and away the best thing he's made in English at the very least.

 

[redhawk23]

Guillermo Del Toro has shared some concept art for one of the sets in the movie.

GDT's own early sketch

From Guy Davis

From Vince Proce

 

[scarlet-witch]

Thanks for sharing your review! I can't wait to see this.

 

[redhawk23]

http://www.rollingstone.com/glixel/...uillermo-del-toros-the-shape-of-water-w512626

Videogame creatir Hideo Kojima on how the themes if Shape of Water relate to the struggles of creating art in a corporate world.

Kojima and GDT previously attempted to make a Silent Hill game together which was cancelled despite the rapturous reception of the demo they released.

 

[redhawk23]

Interview with Michael Stuhlbarg.

https://www.gq.com/story/michael-stuhlbarg-shape-of-water-interview

 

[guitarsingerguy]

Off topic, but James Cameron's story about almost getting into an Oscar fight with Weinstein over Del Toro was pretty funny. He couldn't even make himself sound like a badass when HE was telling the story. He supposedly hit Weinstein with the Oscar. That's nothing but a high brow ***** slap fight, and if they'd have been in the right neighborhood, weaves woulda been flying!

 

[Sithborg]

This reminds, I definitely need to pop in my Criterion Chronos blu ray.

 

[Marvolo]

Off topic, but James Cameron's story about almost getting into an Oscar fight with Weinstein over Del Toro was pretty funny. He couldn't even make himself sound like a badass when HE was telling the story. He supposedly hit Weinstein with the Oscar. That's nothing but a high brow ***** slap fight, and if they'd have been in the right neighborhood, weaves woulda been flying!

Have you ever heard what Del Toro has said about his experience of working with Weinstein and Miramax?

“My first American experience was almost my last because it was with the Weinsteins and Miramax,” he said. “I have got to tell you, two horrible things happened in the late nineties, my father was kidnapped and I worked with the Weinsteins. I know which one was worse…the kidnapping made more sense, I knew what they wanted.”

Del Toro's statements, plus Cameron coming out and saying that he got into a fight and assaulted Harvey because of the way Del Toro was treated, and knowing that Harvey is genuinely a vile POS really makes me wonder just what in the hell happened behind the scenes during Mimic's production.

 

[Rjones1325]

This is hands down one of Sally Hawkins' best roles of her career and she never even says a word. We know how Hawkins sound like but just to see her flawlessly express her dialogue through sign language is magnificent. There is a scene where she’s acting her ass off as she expressly explains how she feels about The Asset and it really just gives give you chills because all of her dialogue is in sign language. For a long time, you’re so drawn to her performance that you believe that Hawkins is mute. In a MoMA Q&A I attended, del Toro revealed that he made Hawkins study silent film legends of the past including Harold Lloyd, Buster Keaton, and Charlie Chaplin to help get a sense of the character and how her performance should be. Well now knowing this kind of makes one convinced that Hawkins stayed up for weeks studying these films like it was a college assignment and it all paid off.

If all we’re going to get from now are on are R-rated films from del Toro, then I would want them to all feel like this where it is realistic and has a human theme within the realm of weirdness. Its as if del Toro saw “Beauty and the Beast” and literally said that his next film would be, “The Mute and the Missing Link Monster.” On the surface, this might be a strange story especially considering that there is an intimate scene between Elisa and The Asset (Don’t worry you don’t see any creature-human sex scene) but some way the romance between Elisa and the monster is believable. It earns your emotion for you to root for them the entire way through. Director Guillermo del Toro does a brilliant job displaying characters motivations and fleshing them out at on a complex degree. Some of their arcs are done by the second act, and then some go on for a while, but it does progress the story and the urgency. The film has the visual beauty of "Pan’s Labyrinth" mixed in with "Crimson Peak" and the comedic tone of a "Hellboy" movie. While some of his past films were imbalanced with more thrills than a steady tone, this knows what it's trying to go for and excels at it. There is a balance with both the thrills, the humor, and the intensity. The story is predictable but the lengths it goes by having all of these likable characters helmed by a remarkable performance by Hawkins.

FULL REVIEW HERE: https://www.rendyreviews.com/movies//the-shape-of-water-review

(I met del Toro at a screening on Sun. and Hawkins when she came to my job months ago for Maudie but I found it relevant for this obviously)

 

[Kane52630]

 

[Doctor Jones]

Seeing a screening of this with a Q&A with Delo Toro next week. Psyched.

 

[Matt Mortem]

I'm tempted to drive out to LA to see this once it premieres out there. With no word on a wide release who knows when it's gonna come to Arizona.

 

[redhawk23]

I'm tempted to drive out to LA to see this once it premieres out there. With no word on a wide release who knows when it's gonna come to Arizona.

With them having screenings even half dead cities like St. Louis, I expect this to be pretty wide.

In fact, there's a screening in Tempe.

http://advancescreenings.com/screening/the_shape_of_water/us/az/tempe

 

[redhawk23]

Release schedule for Shape of Water.
https://mobile.***********/shapeofwater/status/936379768525684736/photo/1
https://mobile.***********/shapeofwater/status/936379768525684736/photo/1

 

[Kane52630]

Next week then. Great.

 

[Broseph44]

Really dying to see this one.

 

[Luigi]

It's coming to my neck of the woods on Christmas Day, which makes it one helluva Xmas present.

 

[Kane52630]

Next week then. Great.

Scratch that... I got passes to see it this Sunday.