The Shape of Water (2017), yesterday won oscars for best film, best director, best production design, and best original film score. Centered in Baltimore of the early 1960s the story revolves around Elisa Esposito a mute cleaning lady, her black friend and co-worker, her older gay neighbor, and the creature she connects with at work, perhaps because they are both unfit for society around them.
The fantastic touch of the movie goes well beyond the monster creature —slightly resembling those of the movie Avatar, but here the blue color sparkles along the skin vaguely resembling blood circulation— that no one seems to understand but Elisa. Most of the scenes occur at night due to the nature of work of the ladies, thus the screen is often dark. The necessary use of artificial light and the (ab)use of exaggerated colors in the kitsch decor, offer stark contrasts that constantly remind you of the surreal nature of the movie. Two examples: pie slices are fluorescent green; a stranger waits for the bus holding a cake (missing one slice) and a bunch of balloons. Multiple scenarios are unreal and implausible.
Yet, the movie appeals to the audience who relishes both on the fantastic, the romantic, and some moments of comic relief. The movie also covers a wide spectrum of presently resonating social issues, such as sexual harassment, sexual orientation, racism, handicap discrimination, abuse of power, espionage. Though the coverage is wide, it is not deep. In my view not much would have been lost if some of these issues had been left out... but I am not much of a fantasy fan. I could well live without this movie, but for the music.
Noteworthy is the main song of the movie... Renée Fleming singing jazz... truly beautiful. It is the second movie this year featuring the acclaimed soprano, a rare feat!
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