The Shape of Water is more than just a strange but equally beautiful love story.
While watching the movie some of the symbolism and themes from Guillermo del Toro's latest
seemed pretty obvious to me.
It's essentially a story about a group of outcasts finding hope and love in a cold war-stricken
1960s america that is hell bent on eradicating anything different from it.
And it's a bittersweet analogy to the United States right now (especially politically)
and the world in general.
It's bitter because, several decades after the cold war, there are still large groups
of people that look down upon anyone who's different in any way.
And it's also a sweet analogy because, like the main characters in The Shape of Water,
there's always this glimmer of hope and optimism that things will get better, slowly
but surely.
What I love most about del Toro is the way he manages to combine heavy social messages
and themes with his signature fantastical filmmaking style, whether it's through stunning
and particular set design and costume design, or the fantasy stories del Toro loves to tell.
He manages to relate these zany fairy tales with the real world.
He did it best with Pan's Labyrinth, a film about a young girl trying to escape her harsh
reality in a suppressive 1800s Spain by imagining to go on a magical adventure.
With The Shape of Water, del Toro says, both subtlety,
and not subtlety, that it shouldn't matter what skin color you are, you're social and
economic background, and how much of a freak you may be, we're all equals at the end
of the day.
Sally Hawkins' character Elisa is basically viewed as being this strange "other."
Someone who can't speak, works at a dead end job as a cleaning lady, and with a few
noticeable scars on her neck.
Notice how, throughout the film, she is treated very well and as an equal by those who are
just as ostracized as her.
Whether it's Octavia Spencer's character Zelda, Elisa's best friend who has a difficult
time living as a black woman, especially in 1960s America.
Or Richard Jenkins' characters Giles, a gay man with balding hair and no future in
sight in terms of having a career.
Or, finally, Michael Stuhlbarg's Doctor Robert, a Soviet spy who's not accepted
by either America nor Russia.
All of these individuals are constantly beaten and talked down and are put through insurmountable
obstacles just because of where they are from, or how do look, or what and who they like.
Of course, there's also the fish man Elisa falls in love with (played by the wonderful
Doug Jones), who also sees Elisa as his equal.
He looks past all of her flaws and sees her as she is -- Elisa says as much at one point
in the movie.
What's even more telling is who ends up actually becoming the monster in the end of
this story, and that's Michael Shannon's character Richard Strickland.
Early on in the film Richard is portrayed as this successful, straight white male who
has everything going for him, and an individual with a great position of power.
He has a loving wife, two children, and is involved with a top secret project for the
US government that, if it goes well, will land him a promotion.
But the more Richard oppresses people who he views as being beneath him - Elisa, Zelda,
the fish man, dr. robert -- the more he loses his mind and becomes more and more physically
afflicted.
He starts taking more and more pills, his fingers completely deteriorate, and he finds
himself all alone with no one really caring about him.
The one who is supposed to be the ideal individual in this society ends up being the one who's
most out of place.
I know on paper the message del Toro is trying to get across is very typical and has been
told hundreds of times before.
But it's the way he relays is message is what makes The Shape of Water so special.
We've seen this love story a million times before as well - Beauty and the Beast anyone?
But it's del Toro's signature filmmaking style that elevates The Shape of Water, and
turns it into a fascinating and original take on a love story and subject matter that might
seem done to death already.
As for whether or not this is del Toro's best film?
Well, I actually don't know yet.
I still think Pan's Labyrinth might be a tad better just because it's slightly more
original, at least in my opinion.
But The Shape of Water is still yet another fine piece of work from one of the best directors
working today.
And now, more than ever, I can't wait to see what else
he has in store.
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