A disabled lady in her early 30’s fondles herself in her bath every morning for three minutes, so desperate for love and a sense of belonging that she falls in love with a questionable creature which takes the form of a fish type being. In essence to accept this movie you have to step out of your comfort zone, possibly have previous experience with bestiality and either have strong misogynistic tendencies or be entirely passive aggressive in nature.
It’s the kind of movie that in fifteen years time people will look back and go what were you guys thinking, 13 Oscar Nominations, 12 BAFTA nominations, was this really the height or your high brow sophisticated society, this topped common entertainment as your idea of intelligent cinema?
In summary The Shape of Water doesn’t quite cut it as a master piece, however there are some great individual performances and in fact there are some great scenes in this movie which both delight cinematically and theatrically at times. The film has some great moments to its credit which challenge topics such as white privilege, sexism, gay rights, authoritarianism, and racism. The film also works very well to weave in this fantasy setting which is akin to Pan’s Labyrinth and successfully removes you from the world you know, and you gently forget you’re on a well crafted adventure.
However this is also the movies downfall as sometimes the extraordinary is less than believable which leads to implausible scenes and poor quality character development. The film feels more like a series of events which results in the plot growing thin meaning it doesn’t make the impact it should. Disappointingly although it touches on the topics mentioned above it never really challenges them so you’re left with a feeling of disappointment and lost potential by the end of the movie.
Wouldn't worry about missing the tide on this one as it's only mildly enjoyable but altogether uneventful and forgettable.
Art by Jennifer Dionisio @DionisioJen
It’s the kind of movie that in fifteen years time people will look back and go what were you guys thinking, 13 Oscar Nominations, 12 BAFTA nominations, was this really the height or your high brow sophisticated society, this topped common entertainment as your idea of intelligent cinema?
In summary The Shape of Water doesn’t quite cut it as a master piece, however there are some great individual performances and in fact there are some great scenes in this movie which both delight cinematically and theatrically at times. The film has some great moments to its credit which challenge topics such as white privilege, sexism, gay rights, authoritarianism, and racism. The film also works very well to weave in this fantasy setting which is akin to Pan’s Labyrinth and successfully removes you from the world you know, and you gently forget you’re on a well crafted adventure.
However this is also the movies downfall as sometimes the extraordinary is less than believable which leads to implausible scenes and poor quality character development. The film feels more like a series of events which results in the plot growing thin meaning it doesn’t make the impact it should. Disappointingly although it touches on the topics mentioned above it never really challenges them so you’re left with a feeling of disappointment and lost potential by the end of the movie.
Wouldn't worry about missing the tide on this one as it's only mildly enjoyable but altogether uneventful and forgettable.
Art by Jennifer Dionisio @DionisioJen
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