The Shape Of Water LFF Review: 8 Ups & 2 Downs

4. It Cleverly Combines Many Genres

Del Toro's film is a true original in many senses, perhaps most notably as the writer-director dares to meld so many unlikely genres together, and the end result still feels so cohesive.

Most prominently, the film sticks within the filmmaker's favoured genres of fantasy and sci-fi, but it is also heavily involved with romance, period drama and even a sprinkle of film noir, considering how many of the film's confrontations feature armed, jacket-clad men staring each other down in the pouring rain.

By not putting all his eggs in one basket, del Toro shakes away the pastiche formula of his last two films and instead creates something truly unique, blending numerous types of story together into an intoxicating whole.