Every Guillermo Del Toro Movie - Ranked Worst To Best

With every Oscar frontrunner, some sort of controversy is bound to build up, but the supposed controversy surrounding Guillermo del Toro's eventual victor was bizarre. A period piece starring a deaf woman, who has a gay best friend, and ultimately falls in love with a humanoid sea creature is... too conventional? From the group that had only awarded period biopics or movies-about-movies for the first half of the decade, The Shape Of Water's victory is downright astounding.

Guillermo del Toro's mix of gentle romance, literal fish out of water story, Cold War parable and allusion to The Creature From The Black Lagoon is the director working at his best. The score by Alexandre Desplat helps complement the film's fable-like quality. When the film ends, the final moments are surprising and yet, on retrospect, feel inevitable.

This movie is also lifted by some of the best acting performances in the director's filmography. Sally Hawkins has long been a superstar bubbling under the surface and gets the opportunity to shine as Elisa. Supporting performances by powerhouse character actors Richard Jenkins, Michael Stuhlbarg and Michael Shannon, as well as a sympathetic confidante in Octavia Spencer give the film depth. But perhaps the most essential performance of the film is by del Toro staple actor Doug Jones as the amphibious creature itself. If his performance falls flat, the film fails to hold any emotional heft. Fortunately, Doug Jones succeeds as he always does.