Rotten Tomatoes Score: 68% (6.5/10) Box Office: Despite a seemingly audience-friendly premise, the $55 million gothic horror-romance has scooped just $61.9 million to date, yet another financial disappointment for Guillermo del Toro. The Verdict: Here's a film that fell wildly short of its promise but is nevertheless a fairly entertaining style-over-substance exercise. Yes, it's ridiculously predictable and there's not much here that hasn't been done better elsewhere, but it evokes an atmospheric mood thanks to superb crafts work from top to bottom, and of course, del Toro's ever-strong direction. Performances across the board accentuate the great visuals, with Jessica Chastain giving by far the best turn in the film, though it's sad to say that the film's fairly forgettable plot does mean that only a select few will probably remember the film a year from now. It's decent enough, but should've been so, so much better with this level of talent attached.
Stay at home dad who spends as much time teaching his kids the merits of Martin Scorsese as possible (against the missus' wishes).
General video game, TV and film nut. Occasional sports fan. Full time loon.
