Ground: Academy Award-acclaimed filmmaker and creator, executive producer and co-showrunner Guillermo del Toro has curated an unprecedented collection of genre-defining stories meant to challenge our traditional notions of horror. From macabre to magical, gothic to grotesque or classically spooky, these eight equally sophisticated and sinister tales (including two del Toro original stories) are brought to life by a team of writers and directors personally chosen by del Toro.
Exam: Guillermo Del Toro is as well known for his brilliant forays into the genre as he is for the many projects he never got to complete. For each The shape of water Where Crimson Peak, there are dozens of other ideas that Del Toro came up with but failed to complete or even make it to production. A producer as skilled as a director, Del Toro found an outlet for his creative visions by hiring a team of filmmakers to adapt the stories that have long intrigued him. Cabinet of Curiosities is deeply rooted in the tone, style and vision of Guillermo Del Toro’s own works, but extends to the talents of other writers and directors for what might be the best horror anthology ever to hit the screen.
Premiere this week over four days, Cabinet of Curiosities consists of eight short films that vary as much in their settings as in their type of scares. At each entry, Guillermo Del Toro himself mimics Alfred Hitchcock and Rod Serling by introducing the half-dozen tales with a cryptic message and the specific subject matter that inspired the tale before providing the episode title and name. of the responsible filmmaker. It’s a wonderful homage to the anthologies that inspired Del Toro and the following directors involved here, and also sets the viewer’s expectations of what the series is all about. Right from the start, I was hooked by the included stories. The first entry, “Lot 36”, is based on a short story by Del Toro which he adapted alongside Regina Corrado. Starring Tim Blake Nelson, the story is a Lovecraftian nightmare that mixes the social elements of early 1990s America with an eternal evil that seeps through the series. Thanks to director Guillermo Navarro, this is a chilling and moving opener for the anthology.
Lovecraft is a major thematic influence on the series as a whole with two episodes, director Catherine Hardwicke’s “Dreams in the Witch House” and director Keith Thomas’ “Pickman’s Model”, being adaptations of tales on a smaller scale than those long awaited from Del Toro. To the mountains of madness. If this series proves anything, it’s that there’s plenty of room for Lovecraftian horror on the small screen if the right budget is provided. This series has strong production values and is able to tell stories in both past and contemporary locations without making anything look like it was made on a TV budget. The episodes “The Graveyard Rats” which takes place in the 19th century and “The Autopsy” which takes place in a strange and timeless rural location of the 1970s are a good example of this. Both episodes, directed by Vincenzo Natali and David Prior, are violent, surreal and really good.
There are also episodes of Ana Lily Amirpour (“The Outside”) and Panos Cosmatos (“The Viewing”) that blow away what I expected from this series. The cast is absolutely fantastic with everyone from F. Murray Abraham, Peter Weller, Crispin Glover, Dan Stevens and Eric Andre delivering stellar performances that set this show apart from more pulpy horror anthologies like Tales from the Crypt and even Ryan’s. Murphy. American Horror Story. Some of these stories are elegant and dark while others have a morbid sense of humor. None of these tales are like a television series, but rather short films that last about an hour. Some are shorter, some longer, but all feel like they exist in a sweet spot between big screen and small.
The highlight of this series is the eighth and final episode, “The Murmuring”. Based on another short story by Guillermo Del Toro, it is written and directed by Jennifer Kent. In his first real horror production since The Babadook, Kent and Del Toro combine to create one of the best horror tales I’ve seen. There’s so much I’d like to say about “The Murmuring” but just watch it and preferably before Halloween. Seriously, this is going to scare you in the best possible way. And from the opening credits sequence to each episode’s unique music and titles, Cabinet of Curiosities feels like an assembly of unique visionaries rather than the work of one director.
Cabinet of Curiosities represents the all-star team of creative talent assembled by Guillermo Del Toro to tell us stories that probably would never have been screened without streaming services like Netflix. With solid budgets and creative freedom, it’s a show that I hope will return in years to come with scarier stories to tell in the dark. Guillermo Del Toro can’t do it all on his own and now this series proves that if he can get the team below him to realize his visions, that’s as good as directing them himself. Cabinet of Curiosities has a unique rollout with a pair of episodes premiering each night this week, giving everyone just enough time to get spooked before Halloween weekend. And trust me, you’re going to get pissed off.
Cabinet of curiosities by Guillermo Del Toro broadcasts two episodes each day from October 25-28 on Netflix.
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