Guillermo del Toro's new "Frankenstein" adaptation is one of the most anticipated movies coming to Netflix in the final few months of the year, and if you can't wait to stream it, Prime Video is currently home to another of the director's Gothic features, "Crimson Peak."
The former feature is a rendering of Mary Shelley's classic tale of a wayward doctor and his profane creation, while this 2015 release is firmly a ghost story, centered on a woman plagued by frightening visions locked up in a manor.
What is 'Crimson Peak' about?
![Crimson Peak - Official Theatrical Trailer [HD] - YouTube](https://img.youtube.com/vi/oquZifON8Eg/maxresdefault.jpg)
"Crimson Peak" is a Gothic romance movie that takes us back in time to the Victorian era for an intriguing, spooky story.
We follow Edith (Mia Wasikowska), a woman who is visited by her mother's spirit and warned to stay away from "Crimson Peak." Following the death of her father and her marriage to Sir Thomas Sharpe (Tom Hiddleston), a cash-strapped English baronet, Edith leaves New York behind to live with her new husband and his sister, Lucille, in their remote mansion in Cumberland, England. At Allerdale Hall, a rundown manor that stands atop a red clay mine, Edith starts to unravel the dark secrets and ghostly visions that begin to haunt her in her new home...
In addition to Wasikowska and Hiddleston, "Crimson Peak" also features Jessica Chastain, Charlie Hunnam, and Jim Beaver.
Why you should stream 'Crimson Peak' on Prime Video
"Crimson Peak" feels like the perfect pre-Halloween watch in many ways. It is a compelling, suspenseful tale with a palpable atmosphere; Del Toro just gets what a Gothic story should feel like, and it's rendered beautifully in this enchanting watch, thanks in no small part to lavish production values, sound design, and a cast of committed performers.
It may not be as universally well-regarded as some of the director's other features, but it is an evocative and engaging watch. If you're in the market for a spooky watch fit for the season, or to keep you entertained in the run-up to the Netflix release of Guillermo del Toro's newest feature project, this would be my suggestion.
Critically, "Crimson Peak" performed reasonably well; it currently holds a 72% score on Rotten Tomatoes, with a consensus that reads: "Crimson Peak" offers an engaging — albeit somewhat slight — diversion driven by a delightfully creepy atmosphere and director Guillermo del Toro's brilliant knack for unforgettable visuals."
THR's Todd McCarthy wasn't as impressed. While he praised the visuals and production values, McCarthy said it was "conventionally plotted and not surprising or scary at all, adding: "Guillermo del Toro tries his elegant best to shake the cobwebs from a musty old genre but still ends up telling a very traditional and predictable haunted house yarn."
What's particularly of note is that many of the critics who love the film really love "Crimson Peak." Case in point, English film critic Mark Kermode offered a four-star verdict of "Crimson Peak" in The Observer, calling it "del Toro's best film since "Pan's Labyrinth'" and summing it up as "one of the year's most handsomely mounted productions."
Likewise, RogerEbert.com's Sheila O'Malley gave "Crimson Peak" a perfect four-star score, writing: "Watching Del Toro's films is a pleasure because his vision is evident in every frame. Best of all, though, is his belief that 'what terrifies him will terrify others.' He's right."
Not sold on streaming "Crimson Peak," but still searching for a new watch? Check out our round-up of the best Halloween movies to stream on Prime Video or our definitive breakdown of the best Prime Video movies for tons more streaming suggestions.
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