10 Most Disappointing Horror Movies Of The Decade (So Far)

There must be 2 Guillermo Del Toros: one of them makes Oscar-caliber movies like The Devil’s Backbone and Pan’s Labyrinth, the other makes car crashes like Mimic and Pacific Rim.

Crimson Peak yearns to be classic Del Toro, but it lacks the wit and invention necessary to pull it off. It’s a period gothic that’s aiming for profundity, but for all its symbolism and self-importance, the movie is all surface and no substance.

The cast includes Jessica Chastain, Tom Hiddleston and Mia Wasikowska, all of whom are trying so hard to breathe life into the material. Unfortunately, the script is so unpolished that despite their efforts, the characters still sound like the invention of a screenwriter steeped in gothic literature. “The things we do for love like this are ugly, mad, full of sweat and regret,” Chastain says at one point. “This love burns you and maims you and twists you inside out.”

And so it goes for 2 hours, with the plot unfolding pretty much as you’d expect.