I went out to see Crimson Peak last night and I have... mixed feelings...
Beware, there be spoilers in this post!
First, the positive. The mansion looked absolutely wonderful. I loved the architecture, the gaping holes in the roof, the claustrophobic atmosphere and how there was always something falling through the holes to let you know they were there (snow, debris, etc...) The costumes were astounding. I loved the dresses, the suites, the nightgowns... Everything was stylized in a beautiful way and aesthetically, you felt you were in another place and time. The grounds were desolate and I loved the snowfall turning red. The cinematography and production were very well done and the score was beautiful. I also loved the ending, but more on that in a moment...
Now, the negative. First and foremost, the characters... I found it so difficult to actually care about anybody and believe me, I tried! I really wanted to like this film and I was begging for it to give me a reason to care about anybody. And yet I could not. The side characters were more interesting then the primary cast. I couldn't get into the motivation behind the protagonist and her character was so inconsistent, her lines just didn't make sense. The brother character didn't have much of a personality of his own and I lost sight of his motivation, but once the film was over, I was able to piece it together is he wasn't as bad as I thought while watching. The sister character was the only one who consistently sold me throughout the film because she was consistent, acted well (especially throughout the finale) and I really believed her. Unfortunately, she had nothing to work off of. The "mystery" surrounding the film was so shallow that I began to wonder if we were supposed to uncover anything or if we were just supposed to know everything with no mystery and no suspense. With every single reveal, I felt, "...But I already knew that..." Towards the end, it just became a horror cliche checklist.
Revisiting the ending, the final confrontation was spectacular. I loved every minute of it. It was twisted, dark, full of action and was just altogether well done. It was a shame though, because I felt the movie didn't actually deserve the ending it got. The beginning did a marvelous job setting the scene and the ending wrapped everything up in a great way, but I felt it was the winding middle that just didn't do the job it promised. The ghosts almost felt like an afterthought and they didn't serve much purpose, other than adding suspense here and there. I enjoyed them, but I didn't feel like the movie really needed them, other than a few times.
It hit one of my pet peeves with this kind of ghost movie. I get the atmosphere of a ghost and that sometimes, the ghosts are added to build suspense. Why then, if the ghosts are trying to help, do they insist on doing it in the most terrifying way possible? When the protagonist is visited by the spirit of her mother, the doorknob shakes, and slams, arms jut through the door and scare her to pieces. Is that really how you deliver a message trying to save someone? The other aspect of this is the ghosts that hid in the background and slither around just out of the field of vision of the protagonist. If you want to warn her, what good is staying in the shadows and out of sight and disappearing right before she turns around? They do a lot for the atmosphere of the film, but many times, the inclusion just wasn't practical.
Overall, I enjoyed it in a "Didn't hate it, glad I saw it" way. But at the same time, I can't really recommend it with a glowing review. It was fun and I enjoyed the 2 hours I spent watching it, but I felt that with the amount of detail they clearly put into the aesthetics of the film, they could have ironed out the characters just a bit more. (And I'm sure the actors did the best with what they had, but there were too many scenes of characters reciting lines and going through the motions rather than actual acting. I also was baffled by how nobody seemed to have an accent, despite where they all lived. I especially liked how the brother said, "I don't speak a word of American English" and then I couldn't distinguish his English mannerisms from anybody else. He seemed just as American-English as Jim Beaver, who I kept expecting to turn into Bobby from "Supernatural" at any moment and, say, "Ya idjit!"
But I loved the dripping red clay everywhere and watching the details they carefully placed into the film, so great job there!
(I'll end this by saying, I was supposed to attend a 7:50pm IMAX showing of this film but when we arrived at the theater, we learned that just 3 hours before, they had decided to cancel the showing we were going to, so we had to drive about 45 mins out of our way to go to another theater to catch a 9:50pm standard showing. This movie wasn't worth the running around, but I'm glad we saw it standard, rather than at IMAX prices.
Not worth it for this film... So you know, not mad, just disappointed.)