Without a doubt, Guillermo del Toro is one of the most talented, exciting, and significant filmmakers working today. The way that he uses genre stories to convey poignant social commentary is unparalleled. Del Toro has contributed to a number of genres – he’s made horror movies, superhero movies, sci-fi movies – but his most critically acclaimed movies have been fantasy movies.
The director’s two finest fantasy movies are Pan’s Labyrinth, a fairy tale set against the backdrop of Francoist Spain, and The Shape of Water, a cross-species love story set against the backdrop of the Cold War by way of an homage to Creature from the Black Lagoon.
Pan’s Labyrinth Is The Best: It’s A Mature Version Of Alice In Wonderland
Pan’s Labyrinth has often been described as “Alice in Wonderland for adults,” and that’s pretty apt. The central character who goes down the rabbit hole and discovers the hidden fairy tale world is still a little girl, but the themes are darker and more mature than in Lewis Carroll’s classic tale.
Most fantasy stories are retellings of earlier narratives because the genre grew out of fairy tales, one of the most traditional fields of literature. A mature version of Alice in Wonderland was a great springboard for Guillermo del Toro to explore themes of choice and destiny.
The Shape Of Water Is Second: Sally Hawkins’ Performance Is Breathtaking
Sally Hawkins had been around for a long time when Guillermo del Toro cast her as the lead in The Shape of Water. Throughout her whole career, all she needed was one role – the right role – to showcase the full range of her acting abilities.
That role arrived courtesy of del Toro, with the role of mute janitor Elisa Esposito providing enough raw dramatic material for Hawkins to sink her teeth into and give the performance of a lifetime.
Pan’s Labyrinth Is The Best: Guillermo Navarro’s Cinematography Brings The Story To Life
Guillermo Navarro received an Academy Award for Best Cinematography for his work lensing Pan’s Labyrinth, and deservingly so, because it’s one of the most beautifully shot movies ever made.
Del Toro always has a very specific vision for his movies, and Navarro has worked with the director since his debut feature Cronos, so they have such a perfect rapport that whatever del Toro envisions, Navarro can bring it to life.
The Shape Of Water Is Second: It’s Wholly Original
While del Toro has said that Pan’s Labyrinth is his take on a kind of Narnia story, The Shape of Water is wholly original. Apart from the obvious jumping-off point that is Creature from the Black Lagoon, The Shape of Water is its own beast.
Del Toro lost the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay to the only 2017 screenplay that was more original than his own: Jordan Peele’s Get Out.
Pan’s Labyrinth Is The Best: The Haunting Fantasy Imagery Is Beautifully Contrasted With The Bleak Horrors Of War
The scenes in Pan’s Labyrinth set in “the real world,” in which Ofelia’s Falangist stepfather hunts down republican rebels, don’t sanitize the bleak horrors of war. Those scenes would be at home in a straight war movie without any fantasy elements.
This contrasts beautifully with the haunting fantasy imagery. The parallels between imagined supernatural horrors and very real historical horrors.
The Shape Of Water Is Second: It’s About The Struggles Of Being Different
With a disabled protagonist who falls in love with a mysterious humanoid amphibian abducted from a South American river, The Shape of Water is a cinematic portrait of the struggles of being different.
These themes tie in with the strong African-American female sidekick and the closeted homosexual roommate living in the less enlightened ‘60s setting.
Pan’s Labyrinth Is The Best: The VFX Create A Kind Of Visual Poetry
There’s something deeply poetic about the way Pan’s Labyrinth is structured. Instead of telling a lucid story from beginning to end, it flows in and out of the structure of a traditional fairy tale with plenty of unexpected detours.
Watching Pan’s Labyrinth is a real experience, because the viewer gets swept off their feet and taken along for the ride through gorgeous VFX-driven visual poetry.
The Shape Of Water Is Second: The Supporting Cast Is Fantastic
While Sally Hawkins and Doug Jones anchor The Shape of Water as the two lead characters who fall in love, they’re surrounded by supporting players who each give fantastic performances.
From Octavia Spencer as Elisa’s best friend to Richard Jenkins as her closeted gay roommate to Michael Shannon as the snarling villain, The Shape of Water has one of the best casts of any 2010s movie.
Pan’s Labyrinth Is The Best: It Encapsulates The Escapism Of Fantasy
Ultimately, the purpose of the fantasy genre is the pure escapism of it. When audiences are whisked away to Middle-earth or a galaxy far, far away, they’re not worried about the problems in the world or in their personal life – they just get swept up in the story.
In Pan’s Labyrinth, Ofelia uses fairy tale iconography as a literal escape from the oppression of Francoist Spain and the cruelty of her stepfather.
The Shape Of Water Is Second: The Love Story Feels Real
When it was first released, The Shape of Water was jokingly nicknamed Grinding Nemo, because it’s a movie about a human woman falling in love with a fish-man. But against all odds, del Toro wrote and directed a love story between a woman and an amphibian that actually works.
As both a mute and a woman living in the male-dominated 1960s, Elisa feels like an outsider, so she identifies with the “asset” and their emotional connection feels real.