Cronos – BFI

Director: Guillermo del Toro
Screenplay: Guillermo del Toro
Starring: Federico Luppi, Ron Perlman, Claudio Brook, Margarita Isabel and Tamara Shanath
Country: Mexico
Running Time: 92 min
Year: 1992

Guillermo del Toro’s becoming one of my most reviewed directors on this site. Last year, I covered the releases of Crimson Peak and his adaptation of Pinocchio, both of which are linked for your reading pleasures. He’s a filmmaker that I find myself struggling with sometimes, but always admire the sheer ambition that’s on display with each one of his films. Late last year, when I caught wind that the BFI were releasing his debut feature on 4K UHD for the first time, I figured it’d be a perfect opportunity to finally check out Cronos. It’s one of four del Toro films I’ve yet to see, alongside Mimic, The Devil’s Backbone and Nightmare Alley (or five if you count his upcoming Frankenstein film) so I was pretty excited to see the feature that began it all.

Cronos follows a man named Jesús who stumbled upon a device called ‘the Cronos device’, a bug-shaped object that is able to grant whoever uses it the gift of eternal life. It’s a film I don’t want to reveal too much more about, plot-wise, as I went into it completely blind and feel as if it’s the best way to experience the film so that’s all you’ll get from me narratively. The film’s extremely interesting, as in many ways, it feels exactly like the work we’d expect from del Toro in the future. It highlights his fascination with monsters, the romantic outlook he has dealing with them in his work and while it’s not as gothic as something like Crimson Peak, there’s elements that feel right at home here in his first directorial effort. 

I was delighted to see Ron Perlman in a supporting role, given his close relationship with del Toro since, appearing in countless efforts of his, most notably the Hellboy duology. Jesús is played by Federico Luppi, who’d also work with del Toro again on titles like Pan’s Labyrinth and The Devil’s Backbone and he offers a compelling and well-acted performance that grounds the film better than most of Guillermo’s efforts. 

Running for 92 minutes, I was surprised by how well-paced the film was, as del Toro’s films can tend to meander a little too much for me sometimes, but Cronos is one of the tighter films of his career. There’s some incredible effects work too, with my absolute favourite element of the film being these interior shots of the tiny Cronos device, making it feel like an alien device that’s terrifying, suffocating every single frame it’s in. It offers some of the most unique and jaw-dropping visuals I’ve seen from him.

While it won’t work for everybody, Cronos is del Toro making a classic monster tale his way, with striking visuals, great pacing, strong character writing and confident direction, something that I found to be leagues above most of his work that’d follow in the years to come. 

Film:  

Cronos releases on the 24th February via the BFI on Limited Edition 4K UHD and Blu-ray. I viewed the 4K UHD version of the film and found it to be absolutely gorgeous. Given that it was my first time watching the film, I’m unable to compare it to prior releases but the transfer looked stunning on my display. The Dolby Vision HDR grade helps with many of the darker sequences in the film, making the colours pop and the black levels as fantastic as they could be on a UHD disc. Audio wise, there are three options: A stereo mix, a 5.1 mix and a stereo mix with the original Spanish language opening narration. I viewed the film with the stereo mix and thought it sounded great. I tested the other two audio options and they sounded great too, but the stereo mix is the way to go (regardless of which language narration you choose). All in all, a great effort from the BFI. The following extras are included:

Newly recorded audio commentary by Jason Wood

Audio commentary with Guillermo del Toro (2002)

Audio commentary with producers Arthur H Gorson and Bertha Navarro and co-producer Alejandro Springall (in English and Spanish with optional English subtitles)

Optional original Spanish-language voice-over introduction

Cronos – An Introduction (2024, 34 mins): director Guillermo del Toro in conversation with the former head of the Directors’ Fortnight at the Cannes film festival and current managing director of Arte France Cinéma, Olivier Père (2024, 34 mins)

Geometria (1987, 7 mins): a short film by Guillermo del Toro about a young man who pays dearly to have his dreams come true

Guillermo del Toro on Geometria (7 mins): a short interview with the director about Geometria

BFI Screen Talk: Guillermo del Toro (2017, 74 mins): filmed around the release of The Shape of Water, the writer and director discusses his career with journalist, author and screenwriter Mark Salisbury and the BFI London Film Festival

The Making of Cronos: An Interview with Federico Luppi (2006, 5 mins): a short archival interview with the actor

Interview with the director (2010, 60 mins): an archival interview with Guillermo del Toro

Interview with Guillermo del Toro (2010, 18 mins): an interview with the writer and director

Interview with Guillermo Navarro (2010, 13 mins): an interview with the film’s cinematographer

Interview with Ron Pearlman (2010, 7 mins): an interview with the actor who since Cronos has gone on to become one of Del Toro’s regular collaborators

Theatrical trailer

Stills gallery

60-page book featuring new essays by Michelle Kisner, Rich Johnson, Barry Forshaw, and Michael Leader. Also includes and edited version of ‘Guillermo del Toro: The origins of horror and Cronos’, an interview that originally appeared in The Faber Book of Mexican Cinema, by Jason Wood and an original Sight & Sound review by John Kraniauskas.

Fold-out poster featuring the new artwork for the film

With exception to the audio commentaries and the image gallery, all of the extras are housed on a second disc. 

Three audio commentaries are included, two archival tracks and one newly recorded for this release. The new commentary by Jason Wood, hosted by BFI’s Vic Pratt is a great, informative listen that dives into Wood’s admiration for Mexican film and how Cronos introduced him to that world. Wood has a close relationship with del Toro, so it’s packed with quotes from their conversations throughout the track. It’s a good, informative listen. Next up is the director’s commentary, which was recorded in 2002 and is featured on the majority of releases for Cronos. This is the best track of the three, and there’s never a dry moment in the track thanks to del Toro’s enthusiasm revisiting the film, highlighting the influences of the film, what he’s proud of, what he’d have changed and more. Those who’ve listened to del Toro commentary tracks in the past should know what they’re in for here: a great time. Finally, the commentary with producers Arthur H Gorson and Bertha Navarro and co-producer Alejandro Springall is a decent listen, nowhere near as fascinating as the first two tracks but highlights a different perspective that’ll please fans. 

Cronos – An Introduction is a brand new introduction to the film and del Toro’s work, recorded exclusively for this release. Running for 34 minutes, del Toro and Olivier Père talk about Cronos and it’s a delightful watch. del Toro reminisces about the production fondly, answering each of Père’s questions with fascinating and in-depth answers about creating the Cronos device, how he almost didn’t end up making the film and more. It’s a great watch, although I’d advise watching this after seeing the film as they spoil narrative elements. 

Geometria is a 1987 short film by Guillermo del Toro that’s absolutely delightful. Following a student who recently lost his father, he attempts to summon a demon for two reasons: to bring back his father, and help with his geometry test. Shades of Fulci and Raimi are present throughout and if you can seek this one out, it’s a must-watch.

Guillermo del Toro on Geometria is a 7 minute piece where del Toro talks about the making of the short, his influences such as Italian filmmakers like Lucio Fulci and Mario Bava, as well as his experimentation with latex experimental effects. It’s a fun piece that’s ported over from Criterion’s 2010 Blu-ray.

BFI Screen Talk: Guillermo del Toro is a 2017 interview with del Toro, conducted by Mark Salisbury at the BFI London Film Festival. It’s an in-depth, comprehensive piece that runs for 75 minutes. While it’s primarily focused on The Shape of Water, which was released around that time, it dives into del Toro’s fascination with monsters and his filmography in general. It’s another excellent piece.

The Making of Cronos: An Interview with Federico Luppi is an archival interview with Cronos’ lead actor Federico Luppi, describing the production of the film briefly. It’s a decent watch. 

If the previous in-depth interviews weren’t enough, the extra titled Interview with the director runs for 60 minutes and features del Toro answering another series of questions about Cronos, the inspiration behind it, where it fits in his filmography and more. This is ported over from the old UK Blu-ray release.

The next interview with Guillermo del Toro, which runs for 18 minutes is ported from the 2010 US Criterion Collection Blu-ray. There’s some crossover from the previous interviews, but it’s another solid watch.

The interview with Guillermo Navarro runs for 13 minutes and is also ported over from the 2010 US Criterion Collection Blu-ray. The cinematographer dives into his working relationship with del Toro and the process of shooting Cronos. 

The interview with Ron Perlman runs for 7 minutes and is ported over from the 2010 US Criterion Collection Blu-ray. Perlman describes how del Toro admired him from the get-go and how unique Perlman found the screenplay. It’s a nice watch.

A theatrical trailer and an image gallery are included.

I was provided with a PDF version of the booklet that’s featured in the release and it’s a good read. There’s a handful of new essays from writers Michelle Kisner, Rich Johnson, Barry Forshaw and Michael Leader, as well as an interview with del Toro conducted by Jason Wood and a Sight and Sound review from John Kraniauskas. Kisner’s essay dives into the concept of immortality and its place in Cronos, Johnson touches on the religious themes of the film, Forshaw touches on the particular breed of monster that’s covered in Cronos and other films that utilised it throughout the 1990s, which Leader focuses on the relationship between del Toro and actor Ron Perlman. It’s a great series of essays, reviews and interviews that are worth your time and as expected with the BFI, are housed beautifully in the booklet.

Cronos makes its UHD debut in class, thanks to an excellent release from the BFI that houses a gorgeous presentation, an unbelievably great series of bonus features and a lovely looking physical release to boot. An absolute must-own release.

Disc/Packaging:  

Where to watch Cronos