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Director Guillermo del Toro is known for his dark fantasies—movies like Hellboy and Pan’s Labyrinth, which take audiences into worlds that are inventive and original. And his latest, The Shape of Water, takes Cold War drama and adds in one remarkable character for a fascinating fairy tale.
The Shape of Water stars Sally Hawkins as Elisa Esposito, a mute woman who works as a cleaning lady at a high-security government facility. When a top-secret new asset is brought to the lab, Elisa is fascinated to find that it’s a strange kind of amphibian man (played by Doug Jones). The lonely cleaning lady takes an interest in the equally lonely—and often tortured—creature. She spends her lunch breaks playing music for him and teaching him sign language. And when she hears that the general in charge is planning to have him killed, she becomes determined to save him.
Guillermo del Toro definitely has his own filmmaking style—and that makes The Shape of Water unlike anything else that you’ll see this award season. So much of this film is in its atmosphere. It’s Elisa’s apartment above a movie theater, with the neon lights breaking through the darkness. It’s the nighttime streets of Baltimore, illuminated by the glow of ‘60s diners. It’s the period costumes and classic Hollywood musicals. And, of course, it’s the mysterious lab in a cement bunker with harsh fluorescent lighting, where government scientists study this mysterious creature that was worshipped like a god in his South American home.
Del Toro clearly loves creating remarkable imaginary characters—and while The Shape of Water isn’t filled with creatures, this one creature is really all the film needs. To some, he could be the key to getting ahead in the Cold War. To others, he’s a fascinating creature to be guarded and studied. To Elisa, he’s a thinking, feeling being who deserves to be treated with the same kind of respect that anyone else does.
In the midst of the dark settings and harsh lighting and Cold War suspicions, Hawkins gives the film its heart as Elisa. She doesn’t need lengthy monologues to convey her feelings; her actions and expressions say it all. It’s certainly a challenging—and unconventional—role, but she gives it a stand-out performance. And she’s perfectly paired up with her polar opposite in Octavia Spencer’s lovably chatty Zelda.
The story about the growing relationship between two outsiders isn’t especially surprising or original. What’s most surprising, then, is how del Toro weaves the fairy tale-like story into the drab Cold War setting. The romance between woman and amphibious creature is, admittedly, odd—but there’s also something strangely magical about the fantasy and imagination in a time of suspicion and hostility.
With its distinctive style and its unusual story, The Shape of Water is a fascinating film. It certainly isn’t a mainstream drama, but it’s a strikingly beautiful choice if you’re in the mood for something completely different.
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