There’s so much beauty to be found in The Shape of Water
Guillermo del Toro’s latest is an alluring and delicate tale of acceptance and tolerance anchored by an awards-worthy Sally Hawkins.
Director Guillermo del Toro is a master of taking established narrative forms like the ghost story or fairy tales and infusing them with social commentary that makes us question our place. His latest, The Shape of Water, is a timely, achingly enchanting film about what makes us human and how our society castigates those who are different. Anchored by a performance by Sally Hawkins that demands an Oscar, The Shape of Water is breathtaking to behold and the most romantic movie you’ll see about a woman falling in love with a fish man.
Elisa (Hawkins) is a mute janitor who works in a top-secret government facility. While cleaning one day she witnesses the arrival of the latest “asset,” an amphibious man (played by Doug Jones) set for vivisection. The two quickly form a bond, leaving Elisa one choice: to break the Amphibious Man out. Though successful this puts Elisa in more dangerous as a government operative named Strickland (Michael Shannon) is hot on their trail.
Del Toro’s work tends to focus on the outcast and marginalized. The Shape of Water’s heroine, Elisa, is a woman desperate for connection who, oftentimes, has connections forced upon her. She lives alone; her only companion is her neighbor Giles (Richard Jenkins) who drags her to a local pie shop daily so he can flirt with the store owner. For Elisa every day is the same, and part of what fuels her connection to the Amphibious Man is that he “doesn’t see what I lack or how I’m incomplete.”
So much of what makes The Shape of Water so emotional is how it treats relationships, specifically with regards to disability. For Elisa, her friends, though kindhearted, see her as a sounding board for their own troubles. They fail to take her words into consideration. A scene where Giles misinterprets Elisa’s signing is a brilliantly subtle examination of how the voices of those with disability are often misinterpreted by the able-bodied. As Elisa and the Amphibious Man become closer, they realize they can talk to each other for the first time in their lives. They see the other as a person, regardless of societal flaws. Sally Hawkins is spellbinding as Elisa, and though she doesn’t have dialogue, she makes an impact. Hearing the slap of her hands in mounting frustration, or the pained look on her face as she begs Giles to help her, showcases the deep well of emotions Hawkins is drawing from.
The rest of the cast is equally superlative in how relatable they are. At times it doesn’t seem like we’re watching actors act — outside of the plot that involves a fish man — but seeing people discuss things as humans. As Giles, Richard Jenkins presents a warmth and humor to a character who, at times, is domineering and vain. His plotline, involving the issues with being gay in the early ’60s, is just as affecting as Elisa’s. Octavia Spencer is also delightful as Zelda, a tough coworker to Elisa who constantly talks about the problems with her husband, Brewster. And one has to give love to Michael Stuhlbarg as Dimitiri, a double-agent who, despite his political ties, is goodhearted.
But the character with the harshest impact on the story is Michael Shannon’s Strickland. When he arrives at the facility clad all in black, it’s obvious he’s the villain of the story. Strickland represents everything wrong with American masculinity: he’s misogynistic and racist. His bright sunny home is mired in ’50s conservatism involving oppression and terror. His spouting of various Bible stories posits him more as an angel of death.
It’s also worth pointing out The Shape of Water’s look. All of Del Toro’s features are distinctive in their cinematography, but Dan Lausten’s work here is utterly superb. Green is the film’s key color that, coupled with the water-based imagery, creates a landscape that’s perpetually underwater.
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With a wonderful message audiences need to hear in 2017, The Shape of Water is a tender romance that praises differences. Sally Hawkins and crew are amazing, and it’s hoped the awards love keeps rolling for this one. It’s not Del Toro’s best work, but it is his most romantic.