Director: Guillermo del Toro
Screenplay: Guillermo del Toro and Matthew Robbins
Starring: Mia Wasikowska, Jessica Chastain, Tom Hiddleston, Charlie Hunnam and Jim Beaver
Country: US, Mexico, Canada
Running Time: 119 min
Year: 2015
Earlier this year, I covered Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio, his take on the classic story of the same name and while I wasn’t huge on the film, I admired it a great deal and that’s been the case for every film I’ve seen from the director. Even if it’s something I don’t absolutely love, there’s always something to appreciate about the man’s work on a technical level, offering fantastical worlds brimming with incredible creature designs, fun action, compelling romances and a style that’s definitely his own.
When I heard that Arrow were re-issuing his 2015 Gothic romance film, this time on 4K UHD, I jumped at the opportunity to cover the title. I first watched the film earlier this year and, similar to Pinocchio, I didn’t love it but found all of the technical aspects marvellous. On a rewatch, while I mostly felt the same, I had a good time diving back into the world of Crimson Peak for two hours.
The film follows Edith, an author who falls in love with Thomas Sharpe, a baronet who she falls in love with, much to the chagrin to her father, who tries to stop Sharpe from seeing his daughter. After a few surprising turns of events, the couple marry and move into the mansion Allerdale Hall.
As the film continues, horror aspects are introduced but they never feel tonally out of place with the central romance, although I must say, I enjoyed the horror elements a little more than the romance. It’s not that the romance is bad, the two central performances from Wasikowska and Hiddleston are solid and committed to the material, but there’s something that feels missing for me, even on a rewatch. My hopes are that with another viewing, it’ll click for me but as it stands, it harms the pacing a little bit, although it’s rarely boring.
The reason to watch Crimson Peak is undeniably the technical aspects of the film, from the stunning sets, creative ghost and creature designs, Fernando Velázquez’s gorgeous score and the near-perfect lighting. I’d argue that Crimson Peak would work excellently as a silent film, given how much of the narrative is conveyed through visuals, but I feel that way for most del Toro films.
When it comes to rating the film, it’s tricky. I’m not in love with it, but I love elements of it. I think the film’s absolutely an acquired taste and was marketed entirely as a horror film by Universal when it initially came out, which disappointed those who ended up with a romance film with occasional horror aspects, but that doesn’t really bother me. It’s more the lack of a compelling romance that harmed my enjoyment of the film, but that’s entirely down to me and I can’t fault the film outside of not being overly compelling. It’s an utter marvel to behold and as del Toro says on his audio commentary, it’s probably his most visually stunning film. While it’s closer to a 3/5 on a personal enjoyment level, I can’t help but love the look of the film and Arrow’s UHD upgrade only enhances that.
If you’re a fan of romance tales, del Toro’s other work and want something that feels fresh, but uniquely del Toro, Crimson Peak is absolutely worth a watch. While it won’t win everybody over, it’s hard to imagine anybody being disappointed with how gorgeous the film is and I imagine that’ll sway those who find the narrative unengaging.
Film: 
Crimson Peak releases on Limited Edition 4K UHD via Arrow Video on May 20th. The packaging is identical to Arrow’s Blu-ray limited edition, from the looks of it (I was only sent a check disc, but it seems to line up with what that edition contains) and it’s one of Arrow’s more premium releases. The 4K disc looks excellent, with a Dolby Vision colour grade, bitrates that hover between 80 and 90Mbps and both 7.1 and 2.0 DTS:X audio tracks. On an A/V level, the release is phenomenal and although it doesn’t seem to be native 4K, and instead an upscale, the image quality is utterly phenomenal and offers a substantial upgrade over the already excellent Blu-ray release. Given how dark the film can be at times, the higher bitrates and deeper blacks help transport you into the world of Crimson Peak even more than prior releases. The following extras are included:
4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS
- 4K (2160p) Ultra HD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible), approved by director Guillermo Del Toro
- Original 7.1 DTS:X and 2.0 DTS Headphone:X audio
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- Optional Descriptive Video Service® (DVS®) for the visually impaired
- Audio commentary by co-writer and director Guillermo del Toro
- The House is Alive: Constructing Crimson Peak, a feature-length documentary with cast and crew interviews and extensive behind the scenes footage
- Spanish language interview with Guillermo del Toro
- The Gothic Corridor, The Scullery, The Red Clay Mines, The Limbo Fog Set; four featurettes exploring different aspects of Allerdale Hall
- A Primer on Gothic Romance, the director and stars talk about the key traits of Gothic romance
- The Light and Dark of Crimson Peak, the cast and crew talk about the film’s use of colour
- Hand Tailored Gothic, a featurette on the film’s striking costumes
- A Living Thing, a look at the design, modelling and construction of the Allerdale Hall sets
- Beware of Crimson Peak, a walking tour around Allerdale Hall with Tom Hiddleston
- Crimson Phantoms, a featurette on the film’s amazing ghosts
- Kim Newman on Crimson Peak and the Tradition of Gothic Romance, an interview with the author and critic
- Violence and Beauty in Guillermo del Toro’s Gothic Fairy Tale Films, a video essay by the writer Kat Ellinger
- Deleted scenes
- Image gallery
- Original trailers and TV spots
- Double-sided, fold-out poster
- Four double-sided postcards
- Limited edition packaging designed by Crimson Peak concept artist Guy Davis
- Limited edition 80-page, hard-bound book featuring writing by David Jenkins and Simon Abrams, an archival interview with Guillermo del Toro, and original conceptual design illustrations by artists Guy Davis and Oscar Chichoni
All of the extras included are direct ports of Arrow’s Blu-ray release that came out in 2019, so I won’t go too heavily into those as they’re all archival, but I’ll touch on each briefly.
The audio commentary by co-writer and director Guillermo del Toro is brilliant, with del Toro opening the track saying he considers it the most beautiful film he’s ever made, before touching on the film’s marketing, the genre of Gothic romance and many anecdotes about the production. It’s a fascinating, engaging audio commentary that’s a really great listen.
The House is Alive: Constructing Crimson Peak is a fifty minute documentary about the film, which covers all aspects of the film’s production. While it’s exclusive to the Arrow release, the interviews are taken from the shoot that the featurettes on this disc also utilise. While those featurettes are pretty solid in their own ways, The House is Alive should satisfy most people who are interested in hearing from the cast and crew, with the extra featurettes being the icing on top. A great watch.
The Spanish language interview with Guillermo del Toro is a great watch too, it runs for 8 minutes and was conducted exclusively for Arrow Video. del Toro touches on the themes of the film, his influences and how he considers the film less of a horror film and more of a Gothic romance. A good inclusion!
Four featurettes are included that cover four aspects of the manor and they’re pretty fun, if brief watches. The Gothic Corridor, The Scullery, The Red Clay Mines and The Limbo Fog run for around 19 minutes and all feature interviews with director del Toro and cast members.
A Primer on Gothic Romance is a five minute featurette with del Toro and the cast touching on the genre of Gothic romance, touching on why they wanted to create a modern Gothic romance film. It’s brief, but a good watch.
The Light and Dark of Crimson Peak is an eight minute featurette with the cast and crew touching on the colours of the film, as well as the difference between the first and second half of the film visually. Another solid watch.
Hand Tailored Gothic is a 9 minute featurette focused on the costumes of the film, which are a key aspect into what makes Crimson Peak so uniquely del Toro. Interviews are included with the costume designers and del Toro himself. It’s worth checking out.
A Living Thing is a twelve minute featurette highlighting Allerdale Hall, detailing how the production designer and crew created all of the sets and brought Allerdale Hall to life. It’s the best of the featurettes included and only made me admire the technical aspects of the film more.
Beware of Crimson Peak is an eight minute featurette with Tom Hiddleston walking around Allerdale Hall, a day before the set was going to be taken down. Seeing and hearing him reminisce about the shoot is delightful and absolutely worth a watch.
Crimson Phantoms is a seven minute featurette that covers the film’s ghosts, how del Toro and his team brought them to life and it’s a neat featurette. There’s some fun behind-the-scenes footage with the make-up effects artists and it’s clear how much effort and passion went into creating the ghosts.
Kim Newman’s interview, Crimson Peak and the Tradition of Gothic Romance is as delightful as you’d expect. His knowledge on del Toro’s work is as impressive as ever and hearing his analysis on Crimson Peak is engaging and absolutely worth watching, especially for those wanting to hear more about Gothic romance after the prior featurette.
Violence and Beauty in Guillermo del Toro’s Gothic Fairy Tale Films is a video essay by writer Kat Ellinger, touching on the filmography of del Toro and how it incorporates iconic pieces of literature and the work of Italian genre legend Mario Bava. She also compares the film to two other del Toro films, The Devil’s Backbone and The Shape of Water. It’s a great essay that’s worth your time.
Five deleted scenes are included.
An image gallery, some original trailers and TV spots are also included.
I wasn’t provided with the poster, postcards, packaging or book, unfortunately but they seem to be reprints of what came in Arrow’s Blu-ray limited edition, so if you’re familiar with that release, you know what you’re in for. It’s a stunning set.
Although none of the extras are newly commissioned, with how extensive the collection is, there’s no need for new ones! It’s an excellent array of extras for a film deserving of a technical deep-dive and compliments the stunning presentation of Crimson Peak well. A must-own/upgrade for fans of the film.
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