Guillermo
Del Toro is a rare crafter of horror and fantasy that has touched upon multiple
forms of media, from cinema to novels, and just this year to television. Well
known for his work on the fantasy film Pan’s
Labyrinth, he was also instrumental in the Hellboy movie series, as well as
the recent science fiction film Pacific
Rim which grossed some $410 million in the box offices worldwide. Quoted as
having said his latest film to be his most immodest work and that it was just
him “being a big kid,” one can only wonder what his upcoming work will be like,
when compared to his earlier career in horror.
The Devil’s Backbone was
a Spanish film released in the United States in Fall 2011, set in 1939 Spain,
the final year of the Spanish Civil War. An atypical ghost story that involves
a mysterious apparition following a new child at an orphanage near the front
lines, the story can only be described as hauntingly chilling, viewed through a
lens of innocence that main character, a small child, looks upon the world
with. Multiple plots slip and slide through this twisted tale, finally all
coming to fruition in an artistic, yet still terrifying, end that is wrought
with suspense and tension produced over the course of an hour and a half.
Possibly
his most popular work would be Pan’s
Labyrinth, another tale set in war torn Spain, though this time through the
overactive imagination of a young girl, who is now the step daughter to a cold
commanding officer of the loyalist forces, who married only to create a son to
carry on his legacy. The movie was critically acclaimed for its creative
imagery, subtle metaphors and overarching symbolism of innocence slowly giving
way to maturity, only to be brutally cut short. The ending carries a different
meaning for every viewer I would say, with some believing that the little girl
wasn’t imagining the fantastical things going on around her, while others would
argue that her dying thoughts are of her mysterious creatures closing in around
her. Either way, the story is possibly one of the best I’ve seen within my
relatively short lifetime.
As
mentioned previously, Guillermo Del Toro, after his two major successes, was
offered more opportunities to shine, which he did in resplendent fashion. Hellboy and the sequel were both
directed by Toro, who viewed them as a chance to widen his horizons. For
Horror, Toro has claimed there to be two sides to this individual coin, "Much like fairy tales, there are two
facets of horror. One is pro-institution, which is the most reprehensible type
of fairy tale: Don't wander into the woods, and always obey your parents. The
other type of fairy tale is completely anarchic and antiestablishment."
This quote, taken from Time magazine
when they had a piece on him, shows you the emphasis he placed on his first two
works; both set in the Spanish Civil War, both with an emphasis on the truly
chaotic feel of the supernatural and the unpredictable nature that spirits have.
You can also see in his other works (Hellboy,
Blade II, Mimic, etc.) his take on the pro-establishment side of
horror, with the government watching over the supernatural world in Hellboy, a secret world-government of
Vampires in Blade II and a group of
government scientists in Mimic who
create a species of insect to battle the cockroaches overwhelming New York
city.
Why
bring the attention to this talented storyteller now? Well, a novel trilogy
that he co-wrote with Chuck Hogan starting in 2009, leading into 2011, that
featured an apocalyptic world where the virus that creates Vampires is spread
throughout the world. The characters, a holocaust survivor and a band of
fighters, move through New York to clean out the infestation as it spreads from
a downed aircraft in JFK international airport. The second two parts I won’t
delve into as this is a series that you would be wise to pick up and read for
yourself. I’ve only just finished it, and was contemplating writing a column
reviewing the trilogy itself when I decided to work on something that would tie
in to a new television show coming out this fall.
In
addition to a new season of American
Horror Story and fresh chapter in The
Walking Dead, we’ll be given the treat of a new series, aptly called The Strain after the first installment
of the book trilogy. The pilot was filmed in September of 2013, and the series
should be launching on FX in late 2014, probably in time with Halloween.
What
should we expect from this series? As it’s on FX and directed and based off of
Guillermo Del Toro’s work, it should be a dark gothic horror set with the
backdrop of New York. Similar to a Sin
City and Batman metropolis’s, it
will be gritty and dark, with very complex characters that grow throughout each
episode, blossoming into their own dark flower in the garden that is the story
being grown around us. In classic Toro style, there will most likely be
multiple plot lines to follow throughout the story, with one main plot line
that everything stems from and grows back into. Characters will come and go,
but always lurk in the darkened fringes of the plot as it unravels. The novels
themselves are more than worth the wait to read, and can even change your
outlook on horror stories based on how deep into the rabbit hole you go with
them.
The
best suggestion I have for you, dear readers, is to pay attention to what
Guillermo Del Toro does; just like Michael Bay is known for explosions, and
Steven Spielberg for touching stories, Del Toro should be known for his dark
and gritty tales, interweaving storylines and subtle plotlines, as well as
magnificent character development. While it’s worth finding these traits in
anyone trying to be creative, to find all three in one man is a complete and
utter delight, as he already has plans going well into 2017 to help forge new
worlds and terrors to tantalize the very edges of sanity.
In
the meantime, dear readers keep your eyes peeled for more twisted tales and
always feel free to drop a line about a new book or movie you think I should
review or wax philosophically about.
Sweet
Dreams
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