The Shape of Water (2017)

[Judderman]

This is a great film. It has a fairly simple and not entirely original plot but it is shot in such a charming and imaginative way, with some unique touches, that it appears original. A film that is hard to look away from. Guillermo Del Toro did a great job and there will likely be some awards to come. Anyone here watched it?
It is based in 1962 but has a fantasy element. Enjoy!

 

[Toby Frost]

I like the Del Toro films that I've seen. He always seems to come up with something that looks amazing. I was slightly surprised to find that the lead actress in this is Paddington's mum, but she's very good in Paddington so fair enough! It's one of the very few films I'm looking forward to seeing.

 

[Rodders]

This looks pretty interesting. Not a film that I’d normally watch, but I will watch it with the Mrs.

 

[clovis-man]

With the ubiquitous (and very talented) Doug Jones as the aquatic being.

 

[REBerg]

Winning "Best Picture" at the Academy Awards is something of a historic moment for science fiction fans.

 

[BAYLOR]

Winning "Best Picture" at the Academy Awards is something of a historic moment for science fiction fans.

LOTR was the first Fantasy to win for best Picture and that was a big deal and this is just as big.

 

[Luiglin]

My only issue with it is that the creature looks so familiar to Abe Sapien from Hellboy that I'd expect to see Big Red pop up.

I'm disappointed that Del Toro, with his imagination, couldn't come up with a different creature and surprised that Mike Mignola allowed it.

 

[Judderman]

It also looks rather like the Creature from the Black Lagoon.

I'm not sure if it is really sci-fi? It is set in the past with old technology. And just has a captured humanoid sea/river creature in it. It would make sense to be called fantasy.

 

[AlexH]

I'd call it fantasy rather than sci-fi.

I thought it was an excellent film. There were a couple of moments that took me out of it but other than that I couldn't fault it. Not one of my favourite films, but I'm very glad I saw it at the cinema.

 

[The Crawling Chaos]

I'm sorry to say the movie didn't do anything for me. I didn't buy the love story for a second, even within its heightened reality setting. In fact, I found it grotesque. Whenever the protagonist looked at the creature, I saw a progressive human being, rightfully appalled at blind cruelty on the part of human captors towards what is little more than a helpless laboratory rat. When that same protagonist proceeded to take that rat home to screw it, the movie lost me completely.

Not that the movie is without merits, far from it, but it kinda hinges on its ability to sell that central love story, and I don't think it did that very well. At all.

 

[Dave]

I only just got around to watching this.

I will watch it with the Mrs.

I did. It was actually her suggestion, but she found it too weird. I had no idea what to expect myself. I didn't even realise that it was a Guillermo del Toro Gómez film, or that had won an Oscar, otherwise I would definitely have watched it sooner that this

It would make sense to be called fantasy.

I'd call it fantasy rather than sci-fi.

It said it was Fantasy 'on the tin', so to speak, but it is a pastiche in the same vein as Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull or the Deep Space Nine episode: Little Green Men.

I thoroughly enjoyed it. I definitely think the creature was meant to be a nod toward the Creature from the Black Lagoon and therefore any similarity is entirely deliberate. And yes, there were some very well worn characters and themes from sci-fi B movies, but that was all part of the fun of it. It isn't something to be taken too seriously.

 

[Guttersnipe]

I loved the cinematography behind it all. The story was a bit simplistic, but it didn't bother me too much. It is a love story--the sexuality of it is not what's important; there are two "freaks of nature" that form a strong bond of trust and compassion. Don't watch this film if you think it's about a woman shagging a fish-thing.

Like I said, wonderful cinematography, but it's also a reminder of humanity and the characters are fantastically portrayed. The weirdness factor alone draws me in. This is Del Toro at the top of his game. Of course, it'll never beat Hellboy 2 for me, or even Pan's Labyrinth. But it's up there.

As for the genre: fantasy in the form of a romance with a bit of sci-fi thrown in.