BY ZANDER REYES
Living in a gothic mansion, called Allerdale Hall, that is hundreds of years old can not be that bad… except when the people that died in that house are alive and awake. Plus, a house like that is bound to have some paranormal activity like thumping noises, doors unlocking when no one is behind it, and skeletons covered with liquid red clay dragging or walking themselves. Especially when it is in a semi-deserted English town and it’s two living inhabitants are secret murderers.
The name of this ghostly film is Crimson Peak, and it is one of the best fantasy/mystery movies out there as of right now. It was released on Oct. 16, 2015 and it was directed by world-renowned director Guillermo del Toro. However, the rating of the movie is a no-brainer when you see the blood and violence in the film. The young woman, Edith, is played beautifully by Mia Wasikowska and her rich, self-made father is Mr. Cushing, acted by Jim Beaver. The two outsiders, Sir Thomas Sharpe and Lady Lucille Sharpe are played by Tom Hiddleston and Jessica Chastain.
In this film, a young, born-into-richness girl named Edith is the daughter of the self-made Mr. Cushing. When a new, sort-of promising inventor named Sir Thomas Sharpe comes to look for some money to fund his newest invention, the automatic mining machine. However, what he is actually trying to do is to seduce the daughters of these rich men to marry him and eventually brutally murder their fathers. After, the girl goes to live with him and his sister, Lady Lucille Sharpe, in Allerdale Hall as there is no place to live for themselves and sooner or later signs away all their richness, wealth, and money to give him. Right after they sign that paper, Lucille, Thomas’ sister, murders them and the ghosts of these women live and haunt Allerdale until the end of time, scaring any newcomers that come to the mansion.
If anyone likes a unearthly, murderous, ghastly tale, this movie is for you. From the disturbing paranormal activity to the remains of dead wives covered in liquid red clay, this movie has got it all. If you are a fan of finding tiny little clues as what is going to happen, you will be in heaven, as this mysterious film gives you a massive amount of hints for you to figure out future events. The feature in the film that got my attention was the well-designed and brilliant settings. Allerdale Hall, the dark, gothic mansion that Sir Thomas Sharpe and Lady Lucille Sharpe lived in is one example of beautiful backdrops. It had a sinister bedroom, ominous lighting, and plenty of “peaceful” rooms.
I highly recommend this movie to basically everyone. Although, if you get scared very easily or are sick at the thought of anything dead, this disclaimer is for you: there is a decent amount of jump scares and a great deal of death, blood, and gore. Overall, it is beautifully directed and amazingly acted. Most young adults/regular adults will probably like this film, not kids or elderly, except if they love this genre.
