Crimson Peak                    2 ½ stars

Crimson Peak, a gothic horror movie, was written and directed by Guillermo del Toro who brought us such master works as The Shape of Water and Pan’s Labyrinth. Although the movie is filled with striking visions, elaborate sets and outstanding costumes and camerawork, the story just doesn’t match up to his other works. Edith Cushing (Mia Wasikowska of Alice in Wonderland and Piercing (and whom I saw in person at Sundance)), the daughter of a wealthy businessman in 1890’s New York has an unusual interest in ghosts and likes to write ghost stories. She is swept away by the visiting Thomas Sharpe (Tom Hiddleston of Thor movies, Avengers movies etc. and I Saw the Light), an English inventor and baronet, and quickly agrees to marry him and go to live with him and his sister in England. The sister, Lucille (a sinister Jessica Chastain of The Tree of Life, Zero Dark Thirty and Molly’s Game) obviously has less than trustworthy intensions toward her new family member. In England the scene shifts to one of the most elaborate and creepy haunted mansions seen out of Hollywood. It is immense with long corridors and underground chambers that hold old secrets. It also has a decaying roof, is full of moths and is built on a field of red clay that gives the structure its red color that seems to symbolize blood. Edith’s gift of seeing ghosts leads to her horrifying visions of blood covered spirits that both terrify her and give her clues about what the more human demons have in store for her. The movie is great to look at, but I didn’t find the story to be anything special. For more interesting horror movies check out Relic or Amulet or even The Rental. You could also go back and see del Toro’s The Shape of Water for a real treat.